By Shradha Thapa
Conversational commerce began trending as a buzzword in 2015 when former Uber lead Chris Messina used it in a post for Medium. It was the first time that the opportunity for brands to capture customers’ attention on communication channels was prominently highlighted. It was soon picked up by the tech giants, and today, various conversational commerce channels and tools are available, including chatbots, voice assistants, live chat, and messaging apps. These channels/tools offer personalised product recommendations, respond to queries, streamline purchasing and enhance shopping experience through natural, conversational interfaces. Companies are using them to provide the highest level of customer service. One such popular channel with a lot of potential is WhatsApp.
Before WhatsApp became popular with businesses, it was a preferred channel among people to connect with family and friends because of its smooth user interface and rich media features. With over 2 billion users globally, WhatsApp offers a huge user base as an opportunity for businesses to reach out to a wider audience. WhatsApp leveraged it to launch the WhatsApp Business platform, designed for medium to large businesses seeking to scale audience engagement, boost sales, and enhance customer support outcomes. This resulted in the emergence of conversational commerce as businesses used the WhatsApp Business platform to connect with customers in a more personal manner like one does with a friend.
The Outcome of WhatsApp Business Messaging
For today’s consumers, convenient communication, dependable customer service, and personalized interactions are crucial for brand loyalty. Users favour engaging with brands through their preferred chat apps, and with WhatsApp as the world’s most popular channel, it significantly enhances business interactions with customers. Every day, around 175 million people message businesses on WhatsApp, and 40 million users view product catalogues monthly. The channel boasts a 99% open rate. With its global reach and high visibility, businesses can maximise the impact of their eCommerce campaigns, transactional messages, and other interactions on WhatsApp, especially during the festive seasons.
What Makes WhatsApp the Future of Conversational Commerce?
WhatsApp offers multiple features that can enable businesses to not just connect with customers, but market their products, offer customer support, generate leads, and provide quick updates.
Easy Access to Chat with Business on WhatsApp
It is easy to direct the customers to the business’ WhatsApp account through ads on social media. For instance, if a customer sees a product on a Facebook ad and wants to purchase it, they can click on a link to a WhatsApp conversation where they can interact with the business and make their purchase through the chatbot without leaving the app. Apart from links, businesses can also use QR codes on websites to provide access to their WhatsApp channel. This simplifies the discovery phase for customers, eliminating the need to sift through lengthy FAQ pages or search for the correct support number to reach out to. This is an efficient way to increase lead generation and sales. Businesses can also leverage WhatsApp Flows, an innovative tool that allows them to design and implement tailored, interactive conversation pathways. By guiding customers through a series of predetermined steps, WhatsApp Flows creates seamless journeys that can cover everything from initial inquiries to after-sales support.
Customer Opt-ins
eCommerce retailers can enhance engagement and maximize every interaction, leading to higher customer satisfaction, reduced churn, and increased brand loyalty. With the option of opt-in for notifications, businesses can connect with customers directly with their consent. Once businesses are able to initiate conversations, they can share back-in-stock messages with call-to-action buttons, targeted ads and special offers based on the browsing behaviour of customers on the app and their websites. By utilizing rich media messaging options and automated conversational support, the entire customer journey can be optimized, encouraging customers to return for future purchases.
Payments on WhatsApp
Payments on WhatsApp is a groundbreaking feature that enables customers to complete financial transactions directly within the chat. This innovation transforms the widely-used messaging app into a versatile channel, offering not only communication but also seamless and secure financial transactions. By leveraging WhatsApp’s widespread reach and user-friendly interface, this feature represents a major advancement in digital payments and conversational commerce. It allows businesses to accept payments from customers, serving as a key element in WhatsApp’s integration of transactional functionalities into the customer communication experience.
A Complete Customer Journey
To elevate the customer shopping experience, it’s essential to offer end-to-end service, from tracking and delivery updates to smooth returns and feedback collection. After an order is placed, businesses can keep the conversation going through WhatsApp. Around 93% of customers want proactive updates from retailers about their shipments. Businesses can keep customers informed through their preferred channel. Use WhatsApp to proactively send delivery updates, ensuring they know the status of their order before they need to reach out.
Businesses can further improve customer experience. For instance, receiving the wrong order can be a major frustration for customers, especially if it’s a gift during festivals and could discourage future purchases. This can be avoided by using WhatsApp to resolve issues quickly. While returns can be disappointing, they also present an opportunity for eCommerce retailers to enhance the customer experience by simplifying the process by sending shipping labels via WhatsApp and following up with updates to confirm that their return has been received and the refund has been processed.
Lastly, gathering customer feedback is crucial for eCommerce retailers to refine their processes and address pain points. Make this step as easy as possible to ensure a high response rate. Use WhatsApp Flows or list messages to create a seamless feedback experience, allowing customers to rate their experience directly within the chat, without needing to switch apps.
Conclusion
WhatsApp is the future of conversational commerce because of its easy accessibility and use. From businesses to customers, it’s a preferred channel for communication. Its features enable an end-to-end customer experience that makes the shopping experience seamless.
The author is regional head – OTT India, Infobip. (The author is CXO of XYZ. Views expressed are the author’s own and not necessarily those of financialexpress.com)