Here’s how startups can use WhatsApp for marketing

Startups need to follow their potential customers where they are most active. So, WhatsApp, in that case, has 1.5 billion active users across the globe. This means that social media marketing has a huge opportunity missed if companies, do not make effective use of WhatsApp. Netflix in India sends out movie recommendation to its users via WhatsApp. Isn’t it awesome?

Communicate via WhatsApp

A few days back, I ordered from a local eatery and was not satisfied so, I left a review on a food forum and upon seeing that, the startup founder contacted me on Facebook. Facebook has a policy that when someone tries to contact you through that medium, the user is not sent a direct notification but it appears in their inbox that someone is trying to connect with them. So, it takes a lot of time which is not very good when it comes to communicating with customers. It is always better to reach out to your customer on WhatsApp for a quick response.

Use the group admin feature to take complete control

Open your WhatsApp and click on the group info. Now click on group settings and select, “Only admins”.
Now you have complete control over the messages and you will be the only one who can send messages in that group. So, all the employees will stay focused regarding the action plans as there can be no discussion in the group that makes them forget the task and deadline so, they will be clear about the task that needs to be finished on time. Similarly, you can add your customers to the group as WhatsApp allows 256 members to be added to a group and you can send a broadcast message to your customers.

Communicate latest offers

Unlike than any other social media platform, WhatsApp ensures that the customer has read your offer. In order to make sure that the customer does not get irritated, you can always take their permission to send them promotional offers via WhatsApp. There is an online gift retailer, Buyagift that offers discounts and deals to only those who choose to add the company’s given number on their WhatsApp and send them a message.

Furthermore, you really need to make an offer that they cannot refuse. Furthermore, you can add it to your WhatsApp story if you feel customers might not be very welcoming to your message. You can keep a track of who has seen the story to know how many customers have been communicated your new offering.

Take orders on WhatsApp

I believe that this is what startups in Pakistan majorly miss out on. For example, Shahi Sawari, local ride-hailing service has an app where I can book a rickshaw for me, but my mom would always prefer to send a WhatsApp message to the company to send a rickshaw her way. Not all the users of your service are millennials. Also, when it comes to restaurants, I would really like to place an order via WhatsApp because I will be in office and do not want to use the time-consuming options such as ordering via Food Panda or calling the restaurant.

Start contests

In 2012, Toyota came up with a mind-blowing idea to use WhatsApp as a medium to carry out a contest. In order to participate, users had to use the term”hybridized” in their WhatsApp status. They gave out iPhone 5 every week for one month to a user who registered on the company’s website. This marketing strategy helped Toyota get thousands of users. Also, the idea was unarguably creative and had the potential.