How To Use WhatsApp for Business: Better Business Interactions

You’ve likely already heard of WhatsApp. It’s a messaging app used by over 2 billion people. This cross-platform messaging app allows you to communicate with other WhatsApp users. It uses your phone’s internet connection to let you message and call friends and family. What you may not know is that you can use it for business communication. 

In 2014, Facebook bought WhatsApp. Its integrations with Facebook and Instagram paved the way for the WhatsApp Business app. A significant number of businesses worldwide already relied on WhatsApp for business communication, but this made it possible to create a business profile and automate replies.

How WhatsApp for Business Communication Works

WhatsApp Business works similarly to the regular app. The main difference is you’re using your business number instead of your personal number.

Creating a business account makes it easy to keep work and personal messages separate. Additionally, you can take advantage of features like WhatsApp Business Profiles, Quick Replies, and Away Messages.

If you already have a personal WhatsApp account, you can easily create a business account. Just download the app and set up your business profile. You’ll need to use a different phone number for your business account.

Once you set up your business profile, you can start messaging customers and leads. You can also use WhatsApp Web to message people via a tablet or your computer.

How To Complete WhatsApp Backups and Archiving

WhatsApp archiving is a way to keep your messages safe and organized. You can archive inactive chats. Doing this clears up space in your chat list and helps you focus on more recent conversations.

To archive a chat, go to the chat > tap More Options.

WhatsApp backups are another great way to keep your messages safe. WhatsApp automatically backs up your chats every day and stores them on your phone. You can also manually back up at any time. Follow these steps to back up your WhatsApp chat history on your phone:

1. Open WhatsApp and go to Settings.
2. Tap Chats > Chat Backup.
3. Tap Back Up.

You can also back up your WhatsApp chat history to the cloud. However, it’s important to note that you lose WhatsApp end-to-end encryption for the data backed up. That said, the data is encrypted in the cloud by the cloud service provider. Here’s how to do this:

1. Go to Settings > Chats > Chat Backup.
2. Tap Back Up to Google Drive or iCloud.
3. Choose how often you want backups to occur and tap Back Up Now.

How To Successfully Use WhatsApp in Business Communication

Now that you know what WhatsApp for Business is and how it works, let’s look at how you can use it to improve your business interactions. Here are a few different uses to consider.

1. Internal Communication

Use it to create groups for different departments or projects. This makes it easy to keep everyone on the same page and eliminates the need for long email chains. You can also use WhatsApp to share documents, images, and other files quickly. Just go to the chat you want to share the file in and tap the Attach button.

2. Customer Service

Leverage WhatsApp to provide customer support. Use it to resolve customer issues and answer questions quickly. You can also use features like Quick Replies to automate your responses. Just set up a business account and add your customers to your contact list to do this. Then, you can start messaging them just like you would with any other WhatsApp contact.

3. Marketing

WhatsApp can be a great way to reach your target market. You can use it to send promotional messages and updates. Plus, you can use features like WhatsApp Broadcast Lists to send messages to multiple people at once. To do this, create a Broadcast List and add the people you want to message. Then, you can start sending messages to your list.

How To Address WhatsApp SEC Challenges

Most businesses can use WhatsApp for communication, but there are some exceptions. For example, in 2021, JP Morgan faced $280 million in fines for failing to keep accurate records. This stemmed partially from using informal channels, such as WhatsApp, to conduct business.

Consequently, companies working in regulated spaces should determine whether they use WhatsApp and for what. Communications, marketing, and customer service are great uses for WhatsApp. However, even with end-to-end encryption, the SEC dislikes its use for financial transactions.

The Bottom Line

WhatsApp is a great tool for improving your business interactions. It’s easy to use and provides various features that can help you communicate more efficiently with customers and be more productive. However, you also need to properly secure and backup the data it generates. Find out how LeapXpert can help.