New WhatsApp Features: WhatsApp Flows and Payments

WhatsApp, the most popular messaging platform, has always been at the forefront of innovation. With their recent announcements, the company has again showcased its commitment to pushing the boundaries and evolving its platform for businesses.  

Dive into the realm of super apps and interactive engagements, where the ability to craft extraordinary customer experiences within a singular chat application has become a game-changing phenomenon. This has elevated convenience to unprecedented heights, enabling businesses to forge personalized in-app customer journeys seamlessly, all within a chat app they are already familiar with—eliminating the need for an extra download.

Leading this transformative wave is WhatsApp Flows & Payments within the WhatsApp Business Platform that empowers businesses like yours to effortlessly construct and personalize in-app journeys from initial greeting to payment.

Here’s a deeper dive into the new features:

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1. WhatsApp Flows

WhatsApp Flows, the newest feature addition in WhatsApp Business Platform, helps businesses design, build, and customize their own (customer) journeys. This way, you'll be able to create rich menus and customizable forms to support the needs of different customers, allowing you to provide seamless services while interacting with your customers.

“We are launching Flows so that companies can provide more experiences, such as quickly choosing a train seat, ordering a meal or booking an appointment. All without leaving the conversation. With Flows, companies will be able to present elaborate menus and customizable forms that meet their different needs.”

- Meta

Basically, WhatsApp Flows let's you create something similar to a customizable and flexible online form, where your customers get to pick different choices from a drop-down menu or (pre-)fill information fields while being guided through their buying or support journey. These WhatsApp Flows can also make handovers from and to chatbots feel more natural and help automate processes seamlessly. They can also be used to gather customer information, add leads to your CRM, and personalize content to target your customers.

"Interactions made flexible, functional, rich. Powered by WhatsApp Flows. With WhatsApp Flows businesses can design, build and customize their own journeys, which can make chatbot and AI agent solutions better, as well as offer end-to-end experiences."

- Meta

This description paints a picture of a feature that seamlessly blends into the natural conversation flow. It suggests that businesses will be able to craft and curate unique experiences for users right within the chat interface. Imagine a scenario where a user can browse through a restaurant’s menu, select a meal, customize it, and place an order – all while continuing their chat conversation. This not only saves time but also reduces the friction often associated with switching between apps or platforms.

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Benefits for Businesses

For enterprises and startups, obtaining reliable and accurate customer input has often been a hurdle. With ‘Flows’, these interactions promise to be more intuitive and engaging. By presenting users with well-structured menus and forms, businesses can potentially reduce errors, save on customer service time, and enhance overall user satisfaction.

Furthermore, the feature could open doors to innovative use cases across various sectors. From travel and hospitality to healthcare and retail, ‘Flows’ offers a versatile tool that can be molded to fit diverse business needs.

The worldwide accessibility ensures that businesses, irrespective of their size or location, can harness the power of ‘Flows’ to redefine their customer interactions.

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Use Cases

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• Drive Sales Through Marketing
  ‍Getting the right content to the right audience is key. WhatsApp Business Platform can already be used to send out promotional messages and newsletters. Adding WhatsApp Flows into this mix will give your customers a chance to choose what type(s) of content they wish to receive, and how often, tailoring your marketing efforts to their needs.
  For example, some customers may want to receive new product updates or special offers, while others want to be re-engaged about one specific product (when it's back in stock). Making sure you target each customer with offers they wish to receive will help increase conversion. The personalized customer experience will also help build trust with your brand, as your customers will feel seen, heard, and understood by your business.

• Streamline Scheduling & Booking
  What queries are almost always in your top 10 most asked questions to your customer service? Are they perhaps something along the lines of 'What are your opening hours?', 'Can I schedule an appointment next week?', 'When can I stop by?' Then WhatsApp Flows can not only help you streamline, automate, and answer these questions, but also help schedule the bookings and make the appointments through WhatsApp Chat. And it's not just about booking appointments. WhatsApp Flows can also assist your customers with booking your services, such as reserving tables or seats, or booking tickets.
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• Assist Customers & Drive Sales
  There are countless scenarios where customers need a little help when browsing or purchasing your products. This can range from seeing if something is available in their size, to checking delivery options. WhatsApp Flows can help your customers decide on the right products, assisting them in their buying journey.
  Conversion rates are typically higher if customers don't have to switch to a different channel to get their questions answered or continue their buying journey, so WhatsApp Flows can potentially boost sales.

• Simplify Sign-ups and Log-ins
  Are you promoting your event(s) through WhatsApp? Then WhatsApp Flows can help sign customers up faster. You can even combine it with Authentication Messaging Templates to double-check the customer data input. And all of this, within the App.
  In similar fashion, WhatsApp Flows could also make it easier for your customers to sign into their account. With WhatsApp Flows, they just have to follow the flow you set up to verify their identity, and then access their account.

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2. Payments on WhatsApp

Digital transactions have become an integral part of our lives, changing the way we shop, travel, and interact. Recognizing this shift, WhatsApp has been diligently working on its payment feature, aiming to create an unrivaled transactional experience for its users. With the latest enhancements, it’s clear that the future of payments on WhatsApp looks promising.

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Empowering In-Chat Purchases

The essence of WhatsApp’s payment system lies in its simplicity and user-friendly approach. As per their recent blog update:

“We’re making it easier to complete a purchase directly in the chat. Starting today, people in India can add items to their cart and send a payment using the method of their choice from all supported UPI apps, debit and credit cards, and more.”

-Meta

Imagine the convenience of browsing products or services within a chat, adding them to your cart, and making a payment, all without needing to leave the conversation. The feature effectively merges the casual feel of chatting with the functionality of online shopping, offering users a delightful, hassle-free experience.

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What Are the Benefits of Payments on WhatsApp?

Some benefits of implementing payments into WhatsApp to complete the in-app customer buying journey are:

• Simplify the payment process - No need for second (payment) apps, no switching between screens, and no long check-out processes. This will significantly reduce the risk of cart abandonment by customers.
• Increase convenience - By enabling in-app purchases you will make it easier for customers to pay. The accessibility and convenience, particularly on mobile devices, will take away any hurdle your customers may experience when purchasing your products.
• Utilize WhatsApp's immense reach - WhatsApp is an incredibly popular channel, with over 2 billion active daily users worldwide. Tap into this massive user base and reach all (potential) buyers.
• Secure your payments - WhatsApp is end-to-end encrypted, which adds an additional layer of security and safeguards transactions against fraud and unauthorized access. An ideal solution for online payments. Also, Meta will not have access to customer data, as the transactions will be processed via the banks.
• Offer cross-border transactions - With payments on WhatsApp, you can easily facilitate worldwide transactions. It's the perfect solution for countries without international payment options and it'll open up new opportunities for growth and revenue for your business.

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Collaboration with Industry Leaders

WhatsApp’s endeavor to simplify payments is further bolstered by their collaborations:

“We’re excited to be working with partners Razorpay and PayU to make paying for something as simple as sending a message.”

-Meta

Razorpay and PayU are renowned names in the digital payment ecosystem, especially in the Indian market. Their expertise, combined with WhatsApp’s massive user base, can lead to the creation of a robust and reliable payment platform. This partnership underscores WhatsApp’s commitment to ensuring that their payment feature is not just user-friendly but also safe and secure.

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Potential Impacts and Future Prospects

The ongoing digital revolution has led to a significant uptick in online transactions. As users increasingly lean towards digital payments, platforms like WhatsApp, with their widespread reach, are well-positioned to dominate this space. Integrating seamless payment features within the chat interface can change the dynamics of e-commerce and peer-to-peer transactions, making them more accessible and straightforward.

Moreover, while the feature is currently rolling out in India—a market with vast digital potential—it’s plausible that similar functionalities could soon find their way into other regions, expanding WhatsApp’s footprint in the global digital transaction arena.

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In Conclusion

WhatsApp’s latest announcements mark a significant leap in its evolution as a business tool. From enhanced customer interaction to efficient marketing tools and seamless payments, the platform is gearing up to offer a comprehensive suite of features that cater to modern business needs.

Businesses should keep an eye on these developments, as they promise not only to streamline operations but also to open up new avenues for growth and customer engagement.

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Learn more

If you'd like to learn more about how WhatsApp can help you grow your business, please reach out to us at www.vfirst.com  

We will offer a consultation session where we review your use case, answer any questions about WhatsApp, and help you build a strategy to make the best out of the platform. We'd love to speak with you and explore more!