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So – you’ve discovered how WhatsApp can revolutionise your business comms strategy, but are you making the most of the WhatsApp Business app’s features? In this article, we’ll cover the key account features you need to know, why you should use them, and how to maximise your success with each one.
Use WhatsApp Business to engage customers, build strong relationships, and showcase your products and services effortlessly. The app is packed with features to help you save time, energy, and effort while making your customer service strategy as effective as possible.
The Top WhatsApp Business Account Features To Try
- QR Codes and Short Links
- Quick Replies
- Automatic Greeting Messages
- Automatic Away Messages
- Labels
- Business Catalogue
- Business Profile
- Broadcast Lists
Let’s take a closer look at the WhatsApp Business account features you should be using.
QR Codes and Short Links
What are QR Codes and Short Links?
Short links are URLs or QR codes that instantly initiate a WhatsApp chat between a customer and your business with just one click. It’s a quicker, easier way for customers to get in touch without the hassle of creating a new contact or entering phone numbers.
When the customer clicks your Short Link on a device with WhatsApp installed, the app instantly generates a chat between you and them. If they click through from a web browser, they’ll see a web page containing your business information and your chosen default message. All they need to do is edit the message, hit send, and they’ve made contact with your brand.
How should I use QR Codes and Short Links?
To make the most of QR Codes and Short Links, embed them wherever you want your customer to contact your brand. Storefronts, product packaging, advertising campaigns, receipts, and social media channels are all excellent places to start.
If you have a website, you can customise your Short Link text based on which web page your customer clicks from. For example, the text could ask to arrange a viewing, book a consultation, or request a brochure of your services.
What are the benefits of QR Codes and Short Links?
Short Links make it quicker and easier than ever for customers to get in touch with your company. The more barriers you can remove that might block a customer from getting in touch, the more conversations you’ll have landing in your inbox. More interactions mean more engagement, more leads, and, ultimately, more sales for your business.
Short Links also encourage your customers to get in touch via WhatsApp instead of through email or phone call, saving your customer service team valuable hours spent replying quickly to messages on the app.
Learn more about QR codes and Short Links here.
Quick Replies
What are Quick Replies?
Quick Replies are templated messages that you can use to reply to commonly asked questions or conversation starters. They’re completely customisable, and you can store up to 50 on your WhatsApp Business account.
Quick Replies can contain media, such as images or videos, making them a good way to simplify more complicated explanations without long paragraphs of text. The app makes it easy to search, edit, and send Quick Replies using shortcuts.
How should I use Quick Replies?
When writing your Quick Replies, consider the most frequently asked questions and conversation starters that your business receives. For example, you might include conversation greetings and closures, requests for personal details such as address and phone number, seasonal messages, refund and return updates, or pricing list details.
Write your Quick Replies in keeping with your brand’s tone of voice to ensure a consistent customer journey. Before you or your customer service team send a Quick Reply, take a moment to review and edit it to make sure that it makes sense in the context of the conversation at hand – and remember to edit any personalisation details, such as the customer’s name, before sending.
What are the benefits of Quick Replies?
When replying to FAQs, Quick Replies can save you valuable time, effort, and energy. If you tend to get the same questions asked time and time again, you’ll love being able to send an answer in seconds – no more typing out the same response for the fifth time in one day!
Quick Replies also helps you maintain a consistent, professional, and polished tone of voice for your brand. Pre-templated messages can help minimise spelling and grammar errors when fielding FAQs.
As the name implies, Quick Replies helps you get back to customers in a tight timeframe. Prompt replies can improve customer satisfaction ratings and build trust over time.
Learn more about Quick Replies here.
Automatic Greeting Messages
What are Automatic Greeting Messages?
Automatic Greeting Messages are sent to customers when they first contact you or after 14 days of inactivity in their chat. These messages are fully customisable and can help your customer to feel welcomed from the first point of contact.
How should I use Automatic Greeting Messages?
Use Automatic Greeting Messages to set the tone for the rest of your interaction with your customer.
Some examples below:
- Hi there! How can I help you today?
- Hello! You’re through to Katie. Could I start by taking your name, address, and order number?
- Thanks for reaching out to us via WhatsApp. We respond to all messages within 24 hours.
- Thank you for your message! We’re busier than usual, but our customer service team will get back to you as soon as possible. Speak soon!
What are the benefits of Automatic Greeting Messages?
Automatic Greeting Messages ensure that every conversation starter is responded to immediately, meaning that your customer service team has one less response to send per interaction. You can use Automatic Greeting Messages to request customer details such as name, address, or order number, or ask the contact to specify the nature of their enquiry.
No one likes to feel neglected or ignored, so having an automated response helps your customers to feel secure in the knowledge that their message has been received and will be processed. It can also make a friendly and professional first impression that helps to foster a stronger relationship with that client.
Find out how to set up Automatic Greeting Messages on WhatsApp’s help centre.
Automatic Away Messages
What are Automatic Away Messages?
Automatic Away Messages are customisable messages sent during set hours. You can use Away Messages to explain why you are unavailable and tell contacts when to expect a response.
How should I use Automatic Away Messages?
You can enable Automatic Away Messages when you won’t be able to respond immediately to your WhatsApp messages. That could be during annual leave, outside of business hours, or during particularly busy periods.
Decide when you want to send your automated message. You can enable Away Messages permanently, during certain times of day, or outside of office hours.
You also have complete control over who receives your automated message. You can enable Away Messages for everyone, only for unsaved contacts, only for selected contacts, or excluding selected contacts.
What are the benefits of Automatic Away Messages?
Automatic Away Messages help to manage your customer’s expectations when they get in touch with you. Nothing is more infuriating to a customer than being ignored or ‘left on read’. You can set accurate and reasonable expectations from the first contact by setting out immediately when they should expect a response and why that timeframe is in place.
The benefits extend to your business and customer service team, too. These automated messages protect your time and lead to a better work-life balance, allowing you and your employees to completely switch off from work communications outside of your chosen office hours.
Find out how to set up Automatic Away Messages on WhatsApp’s help centre.
Labels
What are Labels?
Labels are tags you can use to sort your WhatsApp chats and stay on top of your inbox more easily. Contacts can have multiple Labels applied to them, making it easy to implement several different labelling systems simultaneously (such as sales funnel tracking and payment status).
How should I use Labels?
The best way to use Labels will depend on your particular business needs. You can use Labels to achieve a few different aims. For example, you could:
- Sort clients by interest, past purchase behaviour, or physical location.
- Monitor clients’ payment status using Labels such as Awaiting Quote, Invoiced, Pending Payment, or Payment Overdue.
- Track your customers through the sales funnel using Labels such as Lead, Sales Call, or Follow Up.
- Keep an eye on urgent or important chats using Labels such as VIP, Urgent, Complaint, or To Do Today.
What are the benefits of Labels?
With Labels, you can prioritise your WhatsApp chats with a single glance. Labels make it easy to have an overview of the current status of all your contacts without the need to manually click into each chat every time. The result? A more streamlined, efficient workflow for your customer service team – and quicker responses for your customers.
Learn more about how to use and set up Labels here.
Business Catalogue
What is the Business Catalogue?
Your WhatsApp Business Catalogue is a user-friendly way to display your products, services, or items on the platform. It’s a mobile storefront that showcases pictures, pricing, and descriptions of everything your business offers.
How should I use the Business Catalogue?
Start by entering as much detail as possible into your Business Catalogue. Include short and easy-to-understand titles and descriptions, high-quality images, and clear pricing structures. Make sure that any wording you use is appealing, brief, and in line with your brand’s particular tone of voice. You can also add web links and product codes as needed.
Once your Catalogue is complete, you can direct customers towards it. You can also share products or services from your Business Catalog directly with your customers within the chat.
As your business evolves, your services, products, and pricing will change too. Keep your Catalogue up to date to ensure consistency and transparency, and avoid any awkward conversations with new customers enquiring about out-of-date pricing structures or unavailable items.
What are the benefits of the Business Catalogue?
The Business Catalogue offers your customers a speedy, convenient way to browse your products or services without the hassle of having to leave WhatsApp to download a PDF or relocate to their web browser. It’s a good way to communicate what you’re offering without explaining your products or services to each customer individually.
Having an up-to-date Business Catalogue saves you time and is a reassuring sign of your business’ professionalism and skill. This helps build your customer’s trust and satisfaction from the start of your relationship.
Learn more about setting up and using the Business Catalogue here.
Business Profile
What is the Business Profile?
Your Business Profile serves as the face of your brand on WhatsApp. It’s your first chance to make a great impression on customers, colleagues, and external business contacts.
Your WhatsApp Business Profile can include the following:
- Cover photo
- Profile image
- Business name
- Business description
- Phone number
- Email address
- Physical address
- Business hours
- Website
- Catalogue
- Social media links
- Business category
- Status
How should I use the Business Profile?
We recommend filling in all the available sections and keeping your Profile updated when your details change.
What are the benefits of the Business Profile?
New contacts can see all your business details at a glance by visiting your Profile. This gives your business legitimacy and sets up your brand as friendly, professional, and approachable.
WhatsApp has also launched a Business Directory in some territories, allowing customers to search for businesses directly through the app using the information in Profiles. While this feature isn’t available in all locations yet, it’s worth getting ahead by establishing your business credentials now.
Find out more about Business Profiles on WhatsApp.
Broadcast Lists
What are Broadcast Lists?
The Broadcast feature on WhatsApp allows you to send targeted messages to specific groups of contacts. Broadcast Lists allow you to group these contacts, so you can message the same group repeatedly without needing to manually enter each contact every time.
How should I use Broadcast Lists?
Firstly, review WhatsApp’s Terms of Service document, which explains appropriate ways to use the platform. Understanding best practices will prevent temporary bans. Two key points include securing opt-in permission from your contacts before sending marketing messages and only sending relevant, high-quality, and infrequent messages.
Next, consider the most useful ways to group your contacts. For example, you could create Broadcast Lists based on your customer’s past purchasing habits, preferences, and interests or current sales funnel position.
Finally, it’s time to write your message. Broadcasts are great for advertising sales periods or special events, announcing new launches, or alerting customers to restocked or updated products.
What are the benefits of Broadcast Lists?
Broadcast Lists have the power to supercharge your marketing strategy. Instead of sending marketing messages manually in one-to-one chats, you can target up to 256 contacts at the same time. As WhatsApp has a much higher open rate than email, you can maximise your time and energy spent on your marketing strategy and enjoy even better results.
Your customers will benefit from receiving timely, relevant marketing messages tailored to their interests or requirements. If they want to follow up on your message or have questions, it’s easy for them to reply directly to you while maintaining their privacy.
Learn how to send a Broadcast in our step-by-step guide.
How can I get started with WhatsApp Business?
We’re so glad you asked! WhatsApp Business is an incredible tool for companies to grow their businesses and create strong, long-lasting customer relationships. It’s quick and easy to set up – and you can even install the app on your existing mobile device.
You can’t use the same number to verify two WhatsApp accounts, so if you already use WhatsApp Messenger, you’ll need to use a second virtual phone number to verify the WhatsApp Business app.
YourBusinessNumber offers an ideal solution. We instantly generate a new phone number for you and send it via SMS to your mobile – so you can unlock the power of WhatsApp Business in just a few clicks. Our flexible contracts mean you’re in complete control, and our customer support team is on hand to assist you with any queries.
So, what are you waiting for?
Get A Virtual Number Now!
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Author:
George Lineker
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