Ksenia Novikova
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When entrepreneurs need to make the process of communication more automatized, Whatsapp business API comes in handy. Let us see how to get a business account in Whatsapp and what functions it performs.
What Whatsapp business API is and how to get it
What Whatsapp business API is
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Whatsapp business API is a service with the help of which you can send messages to customers on Whatsapp. These can be automatic messages like "It's time to pick up your package", news about promotions and individual offers.
After signing up for a service on a website, a client receives a confirmation message on Whatsapp.
To work with Whatsapp business API you need a developer. For example, if you want clients to receive a confirmation on Whatsapp after signing up for a haircut, a developer writes a command, and confirmations will be sent.
Here is how it looks:
Why and for whom Whatsapp business API is useful
An ordinary business account on Whatsapp does not allow you to make mass newsletters because an account can be blocked for identical messages. If a company has many clients, without automation Whatsapp chats get lost, employees miss orders, and clients wait for a long time to get answers to typical questions and leave without a purchase.
For example, on a Saturday evening a customer visits the site of a wooden tableware store. They look at the pages, choose a product but find no details about delivery.
The site has a link to Whatsapp, so the client clicks on it and asks a question in the chat. Since it's a weekend, there's no one to answer. Only when the work week starts, a sales manager sees the question and answers it. And during this time, the client has already placed an order at another store.
The situation would be different if the store connected Whatsapp Business API, and customers would get answers to typical questions automatically.
Whatsapp business API helps to build a bridge between the customer and the company. It can be used for technical support, additional and repeated sales, and also to simplify the work of employees who chat with customers via messengers.
With Whatsapp business API you can notify customers about the launch of a website, an app and at the end make a personalized offer to the customer.
Here are features you can use after connecting Whatsapp business API:
launch chatbots to communicate with customers;
combine CRM systems with chats to use more information about clients and their orders;
notify about the status of an order, an appointment;
send company news and personalized recommendations;
collect feedback from customers;
connect chats with end-to-end analytics;
customize buttons with a link to a website or a landing page;
provide instant, automated answers to popular questions;
receive reports;
create catalogs with products and services with prices;
create sales funnels.
combine CRM systems with chats to use more information about clients and their orders;
notify about the status of an order, an appointment;
send company news and personalized recommendations;
collect feedback from customers;
connect chats with end-to-end analytics;
customize buttons with a link to a website or a landing page;
provide instant, automated answers to popular questions;
receive reports;
create catalogs with products and services with prices;
create sales funnels.
Whatsapp business API helps build a chain of communication with clients and get feedback from them.
Remember that you are not allowed to send mass promotional messages on Whatsapp but you can write service ones and insert a personal offer at the end. Also, products that you promote must be presented on the allowed list. For example, on Whatsapp you are not allowed to sell animals, weapons, intimate toys, credit cards, or smartphones. You can see the full list of prohibited items in Whatsapp commerce policy.
How to connect Whatsapp business API and how to get a green tick on Whatsapp
Whatsapp commerce policy lists the groups of products that are not allowed to be sold on the site.
With Whatsapp business API, an unlimited number of managers from different devices can be connected to dialogs with clients using the same account. If many clients write to a company on Whatsapp about an order simultaneously, these requests will be processed faster because several people will deal with them.
Whatsapp business API is a paid solution for large and medium-sized businesses. For small companies, Whatsapp business application is enough, it will solve basic tasks.
There are two ways to connect Whatsapp business API: directly through Facebook business manager account or through a special provider who you can contact to apply for verification.
To register directly, you will need to create a business account through your office and then confirm it with Whatsapp support. There are problems at this stage as Whatsapp often does not approve an account. The registration process itself takes a long time and can take several weeks or even months.
When a company connects Whatsapp business API, it can verify its business account and get a green tick. It confirms that it is an official company account, causes more trust in people and also the name of a company is displayed even to those users who have not added its number.
There are two ways to connect Whatsapp business API: directly through Facebook business manager account or through a special provider who you can contact to apply for verification.
To register directly, you will need to create a business account through your office and then confirm it with Whatsapp support. There are problems at this stage as Whatsapp often does not approve an account. The registration process itself takes a long time and can take several weeks or even months.
When a company connects Whatsapp business API, it can verify its business account and get a green tick. It confirms that it is an official company account, causes more trust in people and also the name of a company is displayed even to those users who have not added its number.
The example of an account with a tick.
Now about how to get a tick on Whatsapp: for this, a brand must be large and known, often mentioned in the media, be confirmed in Facebook Business Manager and maintain a high trust rating in messengers.
It is better not to use unofficial options of connecting Whatsapp business API
Since the official Whatsapp business API is paid and expensive, and the procedure of obtaining it is complicated, some companies use gray methods of connection. It is an unofficial Whatsapp channel through intermediaries, which is easier and cheaper to obtain. We do not recommend using it.
The official way is safer and more convenient, users confirm it:
The official way is safer and more convenient, users confirm it:
Using the gray API is inconvenient: users often complain about the instability of the gray API.
For a gray API, a business account can be blocked. In addition, if a client's smartphone is turned off, messages may not be delivered, so it is better to use proven official Whatsapp tools.