What is WhatsApp Business? Your complete guide to how it works

12 WhatsApp Business features you should know about

Now that we know what WhatsApp Business is and how it’s better than SMS, here are its 12 features that can help your small business.

1. Business profile

You can set up a business profile with a ‘verified’ badge next to it to give helpful information to your customers. This can include your business description, address, website and email address. A verified business account gives you credibility and makes it easy to gain a customer’s loyalty.

2. Quick replies

Create customised quick replies to save time when responding to frequently asked questions. Remember that a significant proportion of questions are going to be predictable. For example, you can create answers to questions such as “What are your business hours?” “Do you accept online payments?” or “Is there home delivery?”

3. Automated greetings

Businesses can create greeting messages that users will receive when they initiate a conversation or after 14 days of inactivity. These messages allow you to greet the customer and introduce your company without any delays or waiting time.

4. Away messages

Let customers know when you’re away or unavailable with custom away messages. You can edit and decide when you want to send these messages. Select from after-work hours, custom schedule or always send.

5. Label contacts

You can organise your contacts and categorise them using labels for easy access. This makes it easy to search for your contacts and keep them organised and grouped.

6. Message statistics

WhatsApp Business gives you crucial metrics for better communication management. You can find out how many of your messages were sent, read and delivered.

7. Catalogues

A standout feature of WhatsApp Business is its Catalogues. Now you can easily showcase your products for your customers to browse. Group them on your WhatsApp page and you won’t have to send every product, price or description like you used to do before.

8. Interactive messages

With interactive messages, you can create easier and more seamless user journeys. There are two kinds of interactive buttons that you can use on WhatsApp Business. With CTA, a user clicking on it will be directed to a webpage or phone call. With quick reply, users can choose from pre-written messages without having to manually type them.

9. List messages and reply buttons

Along with the other interactive messages, WhatsApp Business also gives you list messages and reply buttons. List messages have up to 10 options, allowing people to simply click on their chosen option instead of typing it out manually. With reply buttons, customers can select from up to three options.

10. Integration with Facebook Shop

You can link your WhatsApp Business account to your Facebook Shop. This allows you to create seamless and customised shopping experiences for your users. For small businesses, this is a highly helpful tool to retain customers and reduce the time from product discovery to purchase.

11. WhatsApp payments

Payments are the next big frontier in the digital world and WhatsApp is getting on board. This is excellent news for small businesses since customers will be able to discover and buy through their WhatsApp Business account. The payment service from WhatsApp is currently available in Brazil, India and for some users in the US but it will be rolled out widely soon.

12. WhatsApp business directory

Before a potential customer can browse your products or buy from you, they need to discover you. That’s what the WhatsApp business directory aims to do. While it’s currently operational only to select businesses in São Paulo, a greater rollout can be soon expected.