So, you’ve heard of WhatsApp Business and maybe you’ve heard of WhatsApp API (a.k.a. Enterprise), but what’s the difference?
WhatsApp Business is a separate app available for free, that allows small and medium businesses to receive and reply to customer messages. The platform includes nifty features like a business profile, a tool called “Quick Replies” (saved responses to customer queries), plus basic stats on your sends. It’s decent but limited app to provide basic customer support, broadcast messages to groups of up to 256 people.
The big kahuna is WhatsApp API. Focused on medium to large businesses, WhatsApp API involves an advanced technical setup to integrate your business profile with your other systems. The power of the WhatsApp API is that it facilitates AI powered conversations at scale. Imagine servicing thousands of customers in the space of a few minutes without human intervention.
Why is this so cool? The applications are limitless – from getting your consumers to participate in market research, RSVP to your events, redeem a product, or use your loyalty platform. And consumers love interacting with WhatsApp because it costs them almost no data.
While brands in South Africa are discovering the massive benefits of WhatsApp API, no brand has capitalized on it yet to create a landmark campaign that makes wave and gets consumers hooked. Let’s look at WhatsApp API campaigns from around the world to get inspiration from ideas that really captured consumers’ attention to drive ROI.
Iconic Namibian beer Tafel Lager wanted to help celebrate their nation’s Independence Day via a fresh campaign mechanic that was enjoyable, interactive and could drive consumer engagement. Techsys Digital rose to the challenge, by building a WhatsApp line through which consumers could share homemade videos of their beats or moves to stand to win weekly prizes of airtime and cases of Tafel Lager.
With over 8,000 entries during the two-week campaign, the WhatsApp line was a smash hit, fuelling national pride and rewarding consumers in a fun way. The video entries were so powerful that sister agency Weatherman & Co combined them to showcase the “Beats of Namibia” that creatively captured the heart and soul of Namibia and the inclusiveness of the country’s Independence Day.
Check out the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rribkJ0w-34.
The concept is simple: send your phone number to Hellman’s via their website. A chef contacts you over WhatsApp and teaches you how to cook something based on the ingredients you show him you have in your fridge. The genius of the campaign is that it inspires people to use Hellman’s mayo in new ways, all while capitalising on the one-on-one feel of WhatsApp to create brand affinity.
The results speak for themselves: 13K signups, and a 99.5% approval rating. The campaign was so successful in Brazil (where WhatsApp is the biggest social media and communications platform – just like in SA), that it was soon launched in Chile, Uruguay and Argentina.
Swedish Vodka brand Absolut hosted an exclusive party with limited tickets to the public. To try get in, consumers could WhatsApp Sven, the brand’s virtual doorman. But convincing this icy bouncer to give you tickets was not going to be easy! Consumers were challenged to be as creative as possible, sending videos, voice notes, songs and custom-made memes.
The campaign generated mega buzz, with thousands of interactions. The key insight here is that giving your brand’s WhatsApp a personality means that consumers will have much more fun interacting with it
Techsys Digital connects you to official WhatsApp-approved providers for all its messages, and is a market leader in the WhatsApp space. Get in touch with us to find out how we can craft a breakthrough WhatsApp campaign for your business. Drop us a mail at az.oc.syshcet@ofni and we can get chatting!
Want to know more? Download this handy document for more details on our WhatsApp offerings.
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