By now you already know the importance of WhatsApp for marketing, sales and support. With more of your consumers becoming active on the messaging platform, it’s only obvious for you to want to make the most of it too. 

In our previous lesson, we talked about setting up a catalog to showcase the products and services you sell on your WhatsApp Business profile. But how do you get people to really notice what your catalog includes? 

In this lesson, we’re going to tell you all about using WhatsApp broadcasts to not just promote your catalog, but also to drive traffic to the website. 

What is WhatsApp Broadcast?

Even though you may use WhatsApp all the time, you may not be aware of something called WhatsApp Broadcast.

A WhatsApp broadcast lets you send a message to many contacts simultaneously, but the recipient cannot see other people in the same broadcast list. This makes it far more private, secure, and direct – especially when you’re making use of it from a business standpoint.

WhatsApp Broadcast may seem similar to WhatsApp groups, but there are some vast differences between both features.

Difference between WhatsApp group and WhatsApp Broadcast

Although both of them are used for sharing messages; there are many differences in their features.

	Whatsapp group	Whatsapp broadcast
No. of people you can add	You can add up to 256 people to a WhatsApp group	There is no limit on how many people you can add to a WhatsApp broadcast
Who can send messages?	Any group member can send, read and reply to the messages in the group.	Only you can send a message first; once the customer responds to your message, it will be a one-on-one conversation.
Does it have a chat history?	It does have a chat history feature. Though, you can save a message by marking it with a star.	It does have a chat history feature; all the messages exchanged will be automatically added to the one-on-one chat history feature.
Who is the admin?	Different group members can be appointed as admins.	You can be the only admin in a WhatsApp broadcast.

Looking at all the differences, it’s clear to use a Whatsapp broadcast when you need to check directly in with your customers. You also have a record of all the exchanged messages in the broadcast chat history feature. 

Different ways to use WhatsApp broadcasts 

WhatsApp marketing is about building relationships with customers and providing them with value. 

WhatsApp broadcast allows businesses to message customers, including announcements, notifications, promotions, and more. Simply put, you can use WhatsApp broadcasts to grow your brand and publicize your products and services.

So let’s take a look at some different ways to use WhatsApp broadcasts: 

1. New products and collection announcements

Many new product launches fail due to a lack of reach and effective product marketing. With a 98% open rate and up to 40% response rate, WhatsApp broadcast is just the perfect solution for such campaigns. 

Hello Jane, 

We have just launched our long-awaited headphones. 

Enjoy up to 20% off by pre-booking it right away! 

CTA >> Pre-book now!

2. Promote new discounts and deals

Another way to use WhatsApp broadcasts to keep your opt-ins interested in what you sell is by using discounts and deals. Promote them on the messaging platform with a copy that creates FOMO and a sense of urgency in the buyers. 

Alternatively, you can send out discount codes on occasions such as the customer’s anniversary with your brand, their birthday, and similar. 

Hi Tina, 

Happy 1st purchase anniversary! 

Here’s your 50% OFF coupon to say THANK YOU.

Use code: 1 YEAR at checkout. 

CTA >> Avail the discount. 

3. Notify about upcoming Sales

You can use a customer’s past purchase or search history to send notifications about upcoming sales. Create excitement for the deal even before it begins by providing customers with pre-access to the products.

Hello Jay, 

Exclusive: THE BIG BOLD SALE starts in 48 hours. 

Get 60% off every product.

Wishlist your favorites now. Hurry! 

CTA >> Visit website 

4. Inform about policy change 

Not every message sent to customers should be aimed at making sales. Information about any changes made in general terms, conditions, and policies should be conveyed to customers soon. Sending these messages is an excellent way to show customers that you care about them. This will help you earn a good rapport for your business and increase customer engagement.

Hey Mari, 

Due to changes in our policies, we will not be able to offer COD on orders placed on our store {brand name}. 

This is owing to the changing consumer patterns and government policies to serve you in the best way possible. 

To know more about this, visit our website or simply reply to this message. 

CTA >> Visit website 

5. Contest announcements

Contests are an excellent way to increase engagement and boost sales by giving discounts to winners and participants. These contests can also collect more information for your target audience. 

Hello Jane, 

Please participate in our Cupid Hunt on Valentine’s Week and stand a chance to WIN a HOLIDAY for your Valentine.

Click on Play Now to participate. 

CTA >> Play now! 

6. Collect feedback

In today’s time, feedback is the backbone of every business. To evaluate your product and customers’ requirements, it is necessary to collect and assess their responses. This helps in innovation, product development, and a loyal customer base.

Hello Smith, 

Thank you for placing an order from our store {store name} recently. 

Please rate your experience on a scale of 1(extremely poor) to 5(exceptional). 

Simply send us the score you think we deserve. 

Your feedback is valuable to us. 

7. Brand Advocacy

Celebrate achievements and milestones achieved with your customers. Make the consumer a part of your family by providing them with news about your business.

Hey Adam, 

We are excited to announce that we have been selected as the title sponsor for INDIAN WOMEN’s Hockey Team for the OLYMPICS. 

Thank you for being an integral part of our journey. 

CTA >> Learn more about it 

While the above examples are all inclined towards helping you make a sale through WhatsApp, broadcasts can also be used to keep customers engaged after they do place an order. We will be covering that in detail in our upcoming lessons; stay tuned! 

Now that you know about the different ways in which you can use WhatsApp broadcasts to sell on the messaging platform, let’s look into how you can send your first campaign. 

How to send your first broadcast message on WhatsApp?

Now that we know the importance of WhatsApp broadcast messages for your business, let’s talk about how you can send out your first campaign: 

Step 1 – Import a Contact List

You must first import the contact details of customers who have opted into your WhatsApp list. It is crucial to ensure all the contacts are saved in the international format with country and area code in the CSV file.

Step 2 – Create a message template

Message templates are specific message formats pre-approved by WhatsApp and can be broadcasted to your customers. You can leverage the message template to push out promotions, notifications, payment updates, customer care messages, etc. You can create message templates as per your business requirement or customize existing WhatsApp templates available on Interakt. 

Step 3 – Compose your WhatsApp Broadcast message

After the approval of the message template, personalize the message as per your requirements. You can use formatting tools to structure the message, highlight key points and make it more interactive and appealing. Keep the message short, clear, and to the point while focusing on your goal.

Step 4 – Send or schedule your WhatsApp Broadcast

To send WhatsApp broadcast messages or schedule them for a particular event, you will need to set up a broadcast message campaign through the WhatsApp Business API provider like Interakt. Remember to use tags to send targeted WhatsApp broadcast messages to serve different lists and objectives. 

Ready to send a WhatsApp broadcast campaign? 

WhatsApp broadcasts are proving to be an effective way of meeting customers where they are the most active, and getting them to notice what the brand has to offer. From your WhatsApp catalog to the ongoing deals and discounts available on the website, broadcasts are a great way to drive traffic to the website as well as boost customer engagement. 

This is where you need a powerful WhatsApp Business API solution provider to make campaign setup, automation, and performance monitoring easy. 

If you’re ready to send your first WhatsApp broadcast campaign, book a demo of Whatsapp Business API Interakt today. 

If you plan on running broadcast campaigns at scale, make sure you explore the next few lessons in our academy. We will help you learn about the challenges of running broadcast campaigns, best practices to follow, and how you can increase your message limit.