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WhatsApp Marketing: the dos and don’ts

A woman smiling in front of a blue background, surrounded by Christmas message templates.

By Sophia Binder, Content Manager

| 4 minute read

Marketing over WhatsApp Business is convenient and effective. It’s a powerful way for marketers to connect directly with customers on a channel they love. Looking to get started with WhatsApp Business? Here are tyntec’s top dos and dont’s to get you started. 

One message on Whatsapp pings louder than any email. Smart brands know this and are shifting towards marketing through Whatsapp rather than sending out mass email campaigns. It’s simple and cost-effective.

Let’s put it this way, Whatsapp messages have a 98% open rate. Traditional marketing through email has an open rate of 21%. Get the message? 

Whatsapp marketing is a type of mobile messenger marketing that allows brands to connect directly with customers on their preferred device—their phone. Messaging through Whatsapp feels deeply personal, which is one of the reasons why this type of marketing is so effective. In fact, 75% of adults want to connect with businesses the same way they do with their friends and family. Brands should identify and leverage these mobile channels to effectively reach more customers in a more meaningful way.

75% prefer connecting with businesses the same way they do with family and friends

Whatsapp is a powerful tool to start conversations with your customers. At the same time, it can also open doors to building long-lasting relationships. When implemented correctly, Whatsapp Business enhances the overall user experience and allows for seamless communication between customers and the brand.

It may seem daunting at first to get started but fear not. To help you put together a marketing strategy for Whatsapp, we’ve compiled a list of our top dos and don’ts.

WhatsApp messages have a 98% open rate

The dos of effective WhatsApp marketing

Set goals for your Whatsapp campaign

It may be tempting to get messaging right away. Resist the urge. First, it’s essential to understand what the goals of your marketing campaign are. Are you looking to build awareness of the brand? Educate the audience about certain products? Announce seasonal discounts? Make sure the strategy you’re formulating addresses these goals. It never hurts to do a little research and see what other brands are doing for some inspiration.

Start with setting your goals, formulate a strategy, then start messaging

Personalized messages over generic ones

Impersonal, generic communication doesn’t fly anymore with customers. They expect to receive personalized messages. Customers place a lot of value on high-quality, one-on-communication—they want to feel like they’re speaking with a human. 

It’s necessary to deeply understand your audience and what exactly it is that they want from you. Plus, WhatsApp Business only allows you to send messages to a certain number of people. This functions as a tiering system, and as you gain status you can begin to create bigger campaigns. If your customers don’t like what they’re receiving they can flag you, which will result in you being downgraded. As long as your messages are relevant, well-timed, and personalized you’ll be creating an experience that customers will be delighted by.

While creating your WhatsApp campaign, think of ways to build a connection through conversation. Here are a few that can do the trick:

  • Asking for feedback: for the product, the customer service, or their overall experience with your brand.
  • Checking in on a customer post-purchase—you’d be surprised by the wealth of information your customers would be willing to share.
  • Offering something exclusive, like access to special content or a preview of a new product drop.
Messages must be relevant, well-timed, and personal

Go omnichannel to maximize success

Combining traditional marketing with WhatsApp Business can help you reach a wider audience, and ultimately drive more sales. With the ability to promote your WhatsApp Business channel through physical signage or virtual platforms, you can ensure that potential customers are aware of your presence and can easily find you. You’ll be communicating with prospects who you might not otherwise have connected with!

Don’t forget about response management

Whatsapp Business enables you to engage in conversational marketing, which means that you need to have the infrastructure in place to support this. You’ll need to have a chatbot, live agents, or a combination of both to ensure your customers receive immediate responses of quality. Managing your responses efficiently can turn a potential customer into one that repeats purchases—that’s how much they value real-time responses.

Only contact opt-ins

It’s necessary to have an opt-in form in order to communicate with your customers on any channel—WhatsApp is no exception.

Allow your customers to select the channels they want to receive messages on. Not only is this respecting your customer, but it’s also a prerequisite for using the WhatsApp Business platform for promotional purposes. In most countries, it’s even a legal requirement. Protect your customers as well as your brand from reputational damage, and possible legal repercussions—only use opt-ins.

Only use opt-ins on WhatsApp

Looking for a way to collect more opt-ins? 

After a customer makes a purchase, a page appears that summarizes their purchase. You can use this page pop-up to easily collect opt-ins. If they’re not interested, they simply close the page. Here’s what the page could look like.

Collecting opt-ins and double opt-ins can be completely automated once customers sign up to receive WhatsApp messages

Collecting opt-ins and double opt-ins can be completely automated once customers sign up to receive WhatsApp messages

The dos of WhatsApp Marketing

The don’ts of WhatsApp marketing

Spamming your customers is a no-go

Think low frequency, high relevance. Sending too many messages will cause you to lose customers and will negatively affect your brand reputation. On top of that, it will affect your quality rating with WhatsApp Business.

Reach out to your customers 1 to 2 times per month with highly relevant and persuasive content. You know how to communicate with your target audiences. It’s completely in your hands to send campaigns they’re going to be interested in.

Whatsapp is the perfect tool to engage with your customers in a meaningful way—not to push constant marketing messages. Think of it as a channel to facilitate deep relationships with your customers. 53% of people say they would buy from companies they can reach via chat. Customers want to connect directly with their favorite brands and have two-way communication with them.

Don't spam your customers with messages

Contacting your customers at odd times won’t work

Don’t assume that your customers don’t have a preferred time to be contacted. Keep things like time zones and working hours in mind. You must respect their preferences—otherwise, you risk losing customers and may have legal implications. For instance, some regions prohibit sending messages between 10 pm and 8 am. Be aware of these regulations and adhere to them at all times.

WhatsApp newsletters aren’t the same as emails

WhatsApp newsletters and traditional email newsletters each has a distinct usage.

Whatsapp newsletters are sent with a much lower frequency and have highly relevant information. Traditional email newsletters on the other hand are used for high-frequency communication. You can certainly use both formats, but they are not interchangeable in terms of their marketing function.

WhatsApp newsletters are much shorter than traditional email newsletters. They’re used to spark your customer’s interest much faster than an email. Simply put: don’t copy and paste your email newsletter content into a Whatsapp newsletter. It will lead to lower conversion rates and lower quality ratings.

The dont's of WhatsApp Marketing

Add WhatsApp Business to your marketing tool-belt

Whatsapp Business is a highly effective marketing and sales tool to create customer love.  It works so well because it allows you to be conversational and personal. These days, customers expect immediate, two-way communication. They’re looking for ways to connect with their favorite brands in a meaningful way—WhatsApp couldn’t be a better tool for this.

Give it a try—the results will surprise you. We’re here to help you reach your marketing and sales goals using WhatsApp Business.

At tyntec, we’re communication experts. We also happen to be a WhatsApp Business Platform solution provider—which means we can get your conversations running on WhatsApp in no time. Get in touch with us to get started now.