Every small business owner knows how important it is to use any tool at your disposal to market your products and services. Many businesses use WhatsApp as a free way to communicate directly with their customers to provide better service and answer questions.
However, with a whopping 2.7 billion global users and an incredible 98% open rate, you can also use WhatsApp as a powerful marketing tool to promote your small business. Here are five tips to help you use WhatsApp and WhatsApp Status effectively to market your business.
Make great WhatsApp Status updates with templates
What’s WhatsApp Status? It’s a quick text- or image-based post that appears on your business’s WhatsApp profile for 24 hours before disappearing. It’s very similar to an Instagram or Facebook story. And you can use your business’s WhatsApp Status to promote your brand. The best way to ensure an eye-catching and exciting design is to use WhatsApp Status templates.
Since you’re busy running a business, you likely don’t have time to design amazing WhatsApp Status updates from scratch. But your Status is a representation of your business, so it has to be good!
With a template, you can save time designing from the ground up without sacrificing quality. Simply browse through the available WhatsApp Status templates from a website like PosterMyWall, choose the one that best fits your brand, customize it in the editor, and you’re ready to post.
And since your Status goes away after 24 hours, make sure you have another one lined up when the first one gets removed!
Share important updates (especially about deals)
Most businesses use WhatsApp to speak directly to their customers about problems or to answer questions. But why always let your customers open the line of contact? Use WhatsApp to share information with your customers about business updates or upcoming deals.
Whenever you’re about to run a deal on a product or service, send a quick message (or a few over time) reminding all your WhatsApp contacts about the deal. WhatsApp has a much higher average open rate compared to email marketing, so it’s almost guaranteed that more people will learn about your amazing deals, driving higher conversion rates.
Your WhatsApp Status is also a great place to showcase time-sensitive information like promotional deals or discounts. You can post better quality content, including pictures and videos, to get more attention for your deals. And since they’re deleted after 24 hours, you don’t have to spend time going back through your WhatsApp profile to remove everything once the promotion is over.
Get personal with your customers
Customers never like feeling like just a number or a sale. They prefer when brands talk to them directly with personalized messaging — you know, like they’re real people! With that in mind, be sure to personalize your WhatsApp messaging.
Even something small like adding the customer’s name can do wonders to boost engagement and build stronger (and more profitable) relationships. Almost all marketing professionals (99%) say personalization helps advance customer relationships.
Offer WhatsApp-only discounts
How do you make your WhatsApp marketing strategies even more powerful? Get more contacts! Naturally, the more contacts you have on WhatsApp, the more people who will see your marketing messages.
One of the best ways to promote your brand and get more contacts is to offer WhatsApp-only discounts and deals. For example, send out a WhatsApp message with a unique discount code customers can use at checkout to get 10% off their next order.
Not only will your existing WhatsApp contacts feel special and immediately head to your store to make a purchase, but you can also put up signs in your store or post on other social media platforms that anyone who connects with you on WhatsApp can get these great deals too, growing your contact list for future campaigns.
Use call to action (CTA) buttons
With any type of marketing, the goal isn’t to just have customers read your messaging (no matter how good it might be). You want them to take the next step in the process, which is typically to buy a product or service! To tell potential customers what they should do next, be sure to add call to action (CTA) buttons in all your WhatsApp messages and in your Status.
Think of a CTA as a stepping stone for customers. It’s something that encourages and shows them how to take the next step. For example, if you’re promoting a seasonal deal on a new product, a simple button at the bottom of the screen that says “Buy Now” would make a great CTA.
Whenever you send a WhatsApp message or make a new Status, be sure to include a CTA telling customers what they should do next. Don’t leave your messaging open ended!
Build your brand with effective WhatsApp marketing strategies
With its massive user base and incredible average open rates, WhatsApp is a powerful and cost-effective marketing tool for any small business. But you can use it for much more than customer service! Update your WhatsApp Status with professionally designed templates, share all the latest updates and deals, personalize your messaging for the customers, offer in-app discounts, and include plenty of calls to action.
With direct access to your customers and an effective WhatsApp marketing strategy, you’ll be able to engage with your contacts and build your brand with even more success.
