Over the years, WhatsApp has become a staple tool for business communication. Businesses use it extensively for everything from marketing to sales and support. And it has become a preferred means of business communication for customers as well.
This also means that depending on the scale at which your business is running, hundreds of conversations occur on the platform every day.
Now the question is, how do you handle all of them? With WhatsApp automation.
What is WhatsApp automation?
WhatsApp Automation refers to using the WhatsApp Business API to automate WhatsApp messaging and business communication. This includes streamlining all marketing, support, sales conversations, updates, and reminders.
You can set up a WhatsApp automation to reply to common queries and send messages to customers, cutting down on repetitive tasks that could overburden your team. You can even set them up to respond to FAQs and configure chatbots to forward complex queries to be taken up by your support team.
WhatsApp business automation will let you carry out diverse kinds of business communication, ranging from welcome messages, customer support, alerts, transactional messages, abandoned cart reminders, promotional notifications, order updates, feedback requests, and more.
2 Ways to setup WhatsApp Automation
1. WhatsApp Business App
The WhatsApp Business app alone can provide you with a few automation features like welcome and away messages.
But as you scale your business, there’s much more to achieve which can be attained with a API that is limited in WhatsApp Business App.
Steps to setup WhatsApp Automation on WhatsApp Business App
1. Go to your WhatsApp Business Account
2. Click Business Tools on top right corner
3. Click and Turn On ‘Greeting/ Away Message’
4. Customize your message
2. WhatsApp Business API
Advanced automation on WhatsApp businesses can be leverage by WhatsApp Business API. By doing so you can easily guide your customers from one point to another and streamline your business to run smoothly.
With Interakt’ WhatsApp Business API, businesses can easily set up automation with these easy to use features. Here is how you can do this:
Steps to setup WhatsApp Automation on WhatsApp Business API
1. Custom Auto Reply
Manage customer conversations better and improve their experience by creating automated replies on WhatsApp. These auto-replies are known as Custom Auto Replies.
With Interakt you can set up to 5 variations for a given input. Custom Auto replies gets triggered for an exact match. The type of input and its variations is dependent on the business workflow and the type of customer interaction you have. Hence these must be crafted smartly.
Here’s a step by step guide on how can you set up custom auto replies with Interakt.
2. Automated Workflows
With workflows, businesses can ask sequential questions, capture customer responses in variables, and export the data for efficient processing. Here’s how it is easy to setup automated workflows with Interakt for your business to effortlessly create conversational flows.
What are the benefits of WhatsApp automation?
There are several benefits to using automation. Here are some when you automate WhatsApp communication:
• By utilizing pre-set responses, automation allows your business to run around the clock, 24×7, irrespective of whether it is a holiday or a weekend. This puts your business ahead of the competition as accessibility and reliability translate into trust.
• WhatsApp business automation reduces your response time significantly. Instantaneous responses are what customers expect and you can provide precisely this with seamless ease.
• Automation also offers a way to instantly collect customer information for effective lead qualification.
• Automated replies to common queries can also save a lot of time which will otherwise be wasted on answering repetitive questions. Your agents can focus on more pressing issues and channel their efforts towards areas that need more attention.
• Employing WhatsApp automation for business has a significant boost in customer engagement. This also wins over quality leads and results in a better conversion rate. Businesses can set up and launch automated WhatsApp marketing campaigns targeted at specific audiences by leveraging WhatsApp Business API.
10 Top ways to use WhatsApp automation
WhatsApp business automation can be put into use in various ways. Here are some ways in which we see businesses setting up WhatsApp automation on Interakt:
1. Greeting message
If you’re leading your customers to WhatsApp to initiate conversations, we recommend setting up a greeting message. The message acts like a chat initiator giving the conversation more direction by letting the consumer know what they can seek information on. You can also use list messages to further streamline the conversation after the greeting.
Hello {NAME}!
Thank you for getting in touch with us and becoming a part of our WhatsApp group! Please select what you’d like to know more about.
2. Away message
At the same time, we also suggest you set up a message that automatically notifies the consumer when your team is away. This can help manage reply expectations with ease, and still ensure your consumer feels heard.
Hello {NAME}!
Thank you for getting in touch with us. We’re currently away and will be back to WhatsApp at 11 am tomorrow. Please reply to this message with details of what we can help you with.
3. Order updates and live delivery updates
You can leverage WhatsApp automation to send out order confirmation, order details, shipping information, live delivery notifications and more. By providing live updates, you can greatly alleviate some of the anxiety a customer might have after placing an order.
Hello {NAME}!
The wait is over. Your {PRODUCT NAME} is out for delivery!
4. Quick replies
You can set up quick replies to be sent automatically to your customers when they reach out to you. Instant replies and impressive onboarding messages are crucial for enhanced engagement. Besides this, welcome messages are also a great way to create a lasting impression of your brand on your customers.
Hello {NAME}!
Welcome to {BUSINESS NAME}! How can we help you today?
5. Feedback collection and surveys
You can also automate WhatsApp messages that are sent as part of your after-sales customer support. Send out automated feedback requests and surveys to customers who are in their post-purchase or post-service stage. Automation allows for swift, instant and direct feedback collection that provides you with valuable insights on where your brand needs improvement.
Hello {NAME}!
How well have we been able to meet your expectations? Take a few minutes to answer this survey and help us improve our services.
6. Alerts and Reminders
Another way to make the most of WhatsApp automation is for sending timely alerts and reminders. These messages can help keep customers up-to-date about important information, updates or upcoming events, which further helps improve their overall experience with your brand.
Hello {NAME}!
This is a reminder for your spa appointment tomorrow at 12 pm. Please let us know if you’d like to cancel or reschedule up to 3 hours prior.”
7. Lead generation
You can direct potential customers towards WhatsApp from other platforms like your website or social media handle. Here, chatbots can be employed to collect crucial customer information, further engage them and guide them towards the products/services that they are looking for.
Hello {NAME}!
Tell us what you are looking for and we can help you find your product!"
8. Marketing campaigns
WhatsApp automation can enhance your marketing campaigns, helping you easily send out promotional broadcasts, product launch alerts, sales notifications and more, to your customers. This helps you minimize the amount of time and effort that is usually expended on marketing campaigns.
Hello {NAME}!
Looking for the coziest fit this winter? We have exciting deals on jackets, sweaters and more!"
9. Abandoned cart recovery
Abandoned carts are a major issue for many businesses. WhatsApp business automation for abandoned cart recovery notifications, is a great way to win back these sales, without having to expend valuable manpower on the task.
Hello {NAME}!
Your cart misses you real bad! Get back to it right away.”
10. Appointment reminders
In industries like healthcare or beauty, WhatsApp automation can be utilized to set up automated appointment reminders so that the customer will not miss them.
Hello {NAME}!
This is to remind you that your monthly check-up is right around the corner. Your appointment is scheduled on {DATE}.”
3. Interactive List Messages
Interaktive List messages are messages that allow you to send out Custom Auto Replies as list messages. These can be easily customized and set up as menu buttons. With Interakt set up interactive messages and send out auto replies to your customers on the go
Conclusion
WhatsApp is a competent communication channel and this has been proven to be true for many businesses. WhatsApp helps brands scale the conversations they are having and offers a lot of high-end features that assist in doing so effectively.
But at the same time, responding to these conversations and engaging your customers is an equally important part of effective business communication. This is where the importance of WhatsApp automation for business comes in.
Interakt arms you with an array of WhatsApp automation tools that will let you automate WhatsApp messages among other business processes.
