How To Use Whatsapp Business For Your Business: The Complete Guide
Meta’s instant messaging application, in its Business version, allows you to manage a professional profile. We will explain everything to you!
What is WhatsApp Business?
WhatsApp Business is a version of Meta’s instant messaging application aimed at professionals and especially small businesses. Like its consumer version, it allows you to communicate simply and quickly, but this time with your customers, throughout their buying journey. WhatsApp Business also allows you to promote your products and/or services, as well as to schedule automatic responses. The avowed objective: to increase your sales, while maintaining close contact with your customers.
How to create your account on WhatsApp Business?
The first important thing to know about WhatsApp Business has to do with your registration. If you use the same phone number to log in to WhatsApp Business as you did when you signed up for the classic WhatsApp app, it will migrate all your chat history and media to the Business version. And this action is irreversible. If you don’t want to mix up your personal and business contacts, consider using a different phone number to sign up for WhatsApp Business.
To create your business profile on WhatsApp Business, here’s how:
- Download WhatsApp Business via the App Store or Google Play,
- Register or log in by entering your phone number and, in the first case, enter the 6-digit validation code transmitted by SMS or phone call,
- Create your account with your company name (be careful, it cannot be changed later), select your activity category and add a profile photo, then press Next.
How to set up your business profile on WhatsApp Business
Your WhatsApp Business account is created. All you have to do is configure it:
- WhatsApp Business offers you, in the wake of your registration, to discover “the professional tools” of the application. Tap Explore,
- Once in the Professional Tools tab, choose Professional Profile,
- On this page, you will be able to give details about your activity, such as entering a physical address, a description of your activity, your opening hours, an email address, or your e-commerce site.
How to Use WhatsApp Business Effectively?
WhatsApp Business doesn’t stop at just creating a professional or business profile. Other functionalities will allow you to inform your customers about your products or services, or to communicate quickly and simply with them.
1. WhatsApp Business Catalog
The WhatsApp Business catalog gives you the opportunity to highlight your products and give details, such as their price for example. Here are the steps to follow :
- Join the Professional Tools page by tapping on the top right of the home screen on the three-dot menu, then selecting Professional Tools,
- On this Business Tools page, select Catalog,
- The application offers you to Create a catalog, then press Add product or service,
- Here, add photos of your products by selecting Add images, fill in the Name of the product or service, as well as the Price,
- You can also, by pressing More fields, add a Description, a Link to the product page of your website, or the Product or service code,
- Tap Backup at the top right of the screen.
Your catalog is created with your first product. You can then share and promote them in your discussions. To do this :
- In a chat, tap the paper clip in the compose bar at the bottom of the screen,
- In the options that drop down, you will see the Catalog item appear,
- Select Catalog so you can choose the product(s) you want to share and then tap the send arrow that appears.
2. Short link and QR Code on WhatsApp Business
WhatsApp Business allows you to generate a QR code or a short link that you can share to increase your visibility and that your customers can also share. This QR code or this short link will allow your customers to start a conversation with you. You will see, it is very simple:
- Join the Professional Tools page by tapping on the top right of the home screen on the three-dot menu, then selecting Professional Tools,
- On this Business Tools page, select Short Link, at the bottom of the Email Tools heading,
- In the Short link section, you will have access to your link, which you can copy or share, as well as a QR code,
- By pressing the View QR code, you will display a page with said code and you can then Share the code with your customers or future customers,
- In the same way, you can Share the generated short link,
- You can also customize a short default message sent by your customers,
- Remember to allow your customers to modify and send this default message which will be used automatically when opening the short link.
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3. Automated messages and quick replies
With WhatsApp Business, you can define automated messages to manage your customers’ expectations, inform them of important points or automatically answer recurring questions. Go to the Business Tools page by tapping on the top right of the home screen on the menu as three dots, then on the Messaging Tools section, where you have three options, Message from absence, Greeting, and Quick Replies.
- Absence message: you can set up an automatic message that will be sent if you are unavailable. Define in Planning when the automatic message should be sent in response to the customer, as well as the people who will be able to receive this message in Recipients. Once done, tap Save.
- The Welcome Message: Create a welcome message to respond to your new customers. Write it and select its Recipients. Here, prefer the Everyone who is not in the address book option. Finally, press Save.
- Quick replies: they allow you to quickly answer recurring questions. To do this, press the + button located at the bottom right of the screen. Write your answer, such as a thank you message, a message specifying your schedules, etc. Then enter a Shortcut, such as /schedules for example, and define keywords allowing you to quickly find your answers. Finally, press Save. In a discussion, on the occasion of a recurring question, you can answer it by typing only the beginning of your shortcut. WhatsApp Business will then show you some of your quick replies that you just need to select and send.
4. Labels to categorize your chats
Other features are available in WhatsApp Business, giving you the ability to better manage your customer base. Tags, for example, help categorize chats or customers and help you find messages quickly. To create a label:
- Go to your Chats, then tap the menu as three dots and choose Professional Tools,
- Then tap Labels,
- Press Add, give your label a name and save it with OK.
To apply a label to a chat or message:
- In your Chats, tap and hold one of them or directly on a message and tap Label,
- Select the label that suits you and press Save.
Find your tags – you can create up to 20 of them – as well as your tagged messages in the Tags menu accessible in Professional tools. This is also where you can edit them.
You can also create a mailing list from your labels to send a message to all contacts under a single label. To do this :
- Tap the menu in the form of three dots at the top right of the screen,
- Go to Professional Tools then Labels,
- Choose the label you want to use for your mailing list,
- Tap the three-dot menu and select Message Customers.
- Tap the green tick, write, and send your message.