Whether you’re a new entrepreneur or an established business owner looking to connect with customers, you’re likely asking, “What is a good WhatsApp marketing strategy?” At its core, a good strategy helps you have one-on-one conversations with customers and makes shopping with you feel like the easiest choice. In this guide, you’ll learn what WhatsApp marketing means and the legal must-knows before you send your first message. You’ll also explore the different account types, the features available, and 5 practical strategies you can start using today.
Businesses have lots of options when it comes to leveraging technology and social apps to promote their brand. Take social media for example. A key factor behind social media marketing’s popularity is that many companies’ target markets already exist there. If an ad pops up on their feed, customers are more likely to make a purchase from that company.
Like social media, WhatsApp Messenger (owned by Meta) is an app that people use to talk to anyone—from friends to colleagues to relatives. Unlike some messaging apps that only work on specific devices, WhatsApp supports global, cross-platform access—and you don’t even need a WiFi connection.
This popular messaging app introduced WhatsApp Business in 2018. Just like how social media marketing campaigns leverage existing users on social media, WhatsApp marketing allows enterprises to connect with new and existing customers who already use the app. You just need a good WhatsApp marketing strategy and you’re all set. Let’s explore how to get started.
What is WhatsApp marketing?
WhatsApp Business is for business owners and entrepreneurs who want to interact with their customer base. Because WhatsApp has more than 3 billion monthly active users, chances are many of your customers are already on this messaging platform. With a WhatsApp Business profile, you can send a variety of unique messages to users’ phones and even automate messages.
The purpose of a WhatsApp marketing strategy is to use text messages to reach your audience directly. This will eventually help you build closer relationships with your customers by streamlining the shopping experience and providing personalized conversations that fit their needs. Features like WhatsApp Flows take this a step further, letting customers book appointments, complete surveys, or check out, all without ever leaving the chat.
What is a good WhatsApp marketing strategy?
A good WhatsApp marketing strategy uses personalized, permission-based messages to build stronger customer relationships. The goal is to reach people with relevant updates, answer questions, and create personalized shopping experiences right in the chat. Success comes down to sending timely, relevant messages that match each customer’s needs.
A good strategy also comes with real benefits. WhatsApp has a 98% open rate for messages sent on the platform, compared to just 20% for email, with most messages read within minutes. This visibility pays off. According to Content Kettle, WhatsApp has a conversion rate of 45-60%, compared to 2-5% for email and SMS. Plus, these personalized conversations actively encourage customers to spend more, helping you achieve a higher return on ad spend (ROAS).
The legality of WhatsApp marketing messages
With any kind of text message marketing, you must request permission from each user before you send them promotional messages. If you don’t collect SMS consent, you could face legal risks and lasting damage to customer trust. Repercussions range from financial penalties to damaged brand reputation— and even losing your ability to text your customers altogether.
The same message applies to WhatsApp marketing campaigns. Before sending marketing messages, you must get explicit consent from your customers and comply with data privacy laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Also, when you obtain each user’s consent, let them customize their message preferences and opt out at any time.
WhatsApp Business account features for marketing campaigns
WhatsApp Business account features for marketing campaigns include a verified business profile, personalized multimedia messages, automated chatbot responses, and in-app customer support. These tools let businesses send images, videos, and documents, while allowing customers to reach out for help without leaving the chat.
Many of these features go beyond what’s possible with traditional SMS marketing. While both channels help businesses reach customers directly, WhatsApp adds richer messaging, automation, and two-way conversations to create a more interactive experience. We’ve covered SMS marketing in another article, so here we’ll explore some of the beneficial features you can get only with your WhatsApp number.
Send messages from your WhatsApp business profile
Have you ever received a promotional text message from an unknown number? Once you read the text, you can see who—or what company—it’s from, but just looking at the number alone, it’s almost impossible to tell. This kind of confusion clutters customers’ inboxes and makes it harder for legitimate businesses to stand out.
Luckily, with WhatsApp, that’s not an issue. WhatsApp allows you to create a business account and broadcast messages from your company’s official profile. This creates more transparency with your customers because they’ll always know that your messages come directly from you. This can also make it easy for your customers to spot phishing scams where hackers would pose as your company and trick your customers into clicking a suspicious link.
Deliver unique and personalized marketing messages
With traditional SMS marketing, you can only fit up to 160 characters into each promotional text. Also, you’re only allowed to send a message with text and maybe an image. WhatsApp lets you send not only images but also audio recordings, documents, and videos to promote your products or services. Moreover, you don’t have a character limit—you can send rich media texts of any length.
Customers can interact with your personalized WhatsApp message by watching your video, clicking a link, or filling out a form—all directly on the app. This interactive, in-chat experience makes messages more engaging, boosting replies and strengthening customer relationships.
The real key to personalization, though, is having the right contacts synced and segmented for improved targeting. This means syncing your WhatsApp contacts with your customer relationship management (CRM) system and creating segments based on previous purchases, past interactions, or preferences. That way, you can make sure each message drives engagement and leads to meaningful conversations.
Automate messages, alerts, and reminders
Another benefit of WhatsApp marketing is the ability to use chatbots and send automated messages, alerts, and other reminders. This could include transactional notifications like order-out-for-delivery alerts, an abandoned cart reminder, or quick updates on how soon customers can connect with your Support team.
Not only can having an automated messaging system benefit your customers, but it can also help reduce your own team’s efforts. Instead of managing every customer conversation manually, WhatsApp lets you use pre-approved templates, preset responses, and automated reminders to save time. Overall, these automated alerts can help improve communication and customer engagement with your WhatsApp profile.
Provide customer support
Most SMS marketing texts work in a single way—you send a text to a user and they receive it—meaning that your users can’t send texts back. If your customers have an issue, they usually can’t solve it with an SMS text chain.
WhatsApp lets customers ask you questions directly on the app, which means they don’t need to take the extra step of contacting Customer Support on your website or over the phone. By offering customer support in-app, you can provide assistance to your customers in a timely manner. The app will even let you provide customer support via chatbot, and if a customer needs more help, it’ll send them a link to your company’s knowledge base or alert your team that they need a live agent.
Why growing businesses need WhatsApp Business API
Growing businesses need the WhatsApp Business Platform (API) because it goes beyond a standard account by offering unlimited messaging, CRM system integration, and automation. Unlike the free app, the WhatsApp Business Platform lets companies message anyone who’s given consent, not just contacts. This makes it a better fit as customer volume and support demands increase.
If you have a small business with a short list of customer contacts, a regular WhatsApp Business account will suffice. However, if you have a growing business—or expect to grow soon—it might be best to look into using the WhatsApp Business Platform. This gives you room to scale without hitting the limits of a standard account.
How the WhatsApp Business Platform helps you scale
The WhatsApp Business Platform relies on an application programming interface (API), which lets software programs share customer data with each other, enabling integrations between applications. In practice, this means you can send more data (i.e., messages) to your end users (i.e., customers) than a standard WhatsApp Business account allows.
And you may need that extra capacity sooner than you think, as business texting is growing fast. According to Mobilesquared, brands worldwide are expected to send 3.57 trillion messages between 2024 and 2027. Over that period, daily message volume will likely jump from 115.77 million to 1.96 billion. As your own customer conversations grow along with this trend, a standard WhatsApp Business app won’t be able to keep up. The WhatsApp Business Platform helps you scale to meet that demand.
Differences between basic and API-enabled WhatsApp accounts
With the API-enabled account, you get the previously mentioned features: a chatbot, automated messages, media and clickable messages, and direct customer support. However, not all of these features come with a regular WhatsApp Business account. So, let’s go over the most common differences between the free WhatsApp Business app and the API-enabled WhatsApp Business Platform.
Key Differences Between the WhatsApp Business App and WhatsApp Business Platform | ||
| WhatsApp Business App | WhatsApp Business Platform |
Cost | Free | Variable per-message pricing |
Messaging limit | Up to 256 people | Unlimited |
Customer contact | Only existing contacts | Anyone who’s given consent |
Chatbots | No access | Included |
Automated messages | No access | Included |
Clickable messages | No access | Included |
For small business owners who do not want or need to provide extra support through chatbots or automation, the free WhatsApp marketing tools will be enough. However, for medium and large businesses that want to engage more directly with their target audience, the WhatsApp Business Platform will likely be a better choice.
5 WhatsApp marketing strategies
A strong WhatsApp marketing strategy combines a few key tactics: click to WhatsApp ads, automated welcome messages, status updates, personalized multimedia content, and chatbot-powered customer support. Used together, these 5 WhatsApp marketing strategies help businesses build trust and turn one-time buyers into repeat customers.
WhatsApp marketing strategies can take many forms, and the possibilities only increase if you decide to use the WhatsApp Business Platform. Of course, there are no proven WhatsApp marketing strategies that will work for every business. However, most companies who invest in the API platform should be able to use the following marketing examples as part of their WhatsApp campaigns.
Use click to WhatsApp ads to gain broadcast lists
WhatsApp has a strict anti-ad policy, meaning there are only 2 circumstances where businesses are allowed to send messages to customers within their target audience:
- A customer starts a conversation by messaging your company directly.
- Your customer already has your company’s number in their contact list.
If you’re not sure how to start a WhatsApp conversation or gain a customer contact, try using click to WhatsApp ads.
First, you’ll need to set up an ad campaign on Facebook or Instagram. Then, once someone clicks on your ad, their WhatsApp app will open and a new conversation will start—that’s it! You’ve gained the customer’s name and phone number and now you can add them to your broadcast list.
Send automated promotional messages
Once you’ve got a list of all your customers, it’s time to broadcast your first message. This could be an automated message with a chatbot that welcomes your customers and directs them wherever they’d like to go as soon as they enter that conversation. You could also opt to include something your customers might value, such as a link to a giveaway, a promotional code, or an exclusive product drop.
As you get going, remember to avoid overwhelming customers with targeted promotions, like coupon codes or flash sale alerts. As a general guideline, limit promotional WhatsApp messages to 1 or 2 per week, and keep messages relevant, actionable, and concise. That way, customers are more likely to stay engaged instead of muting or opting out.
Promote special codes via WhatsApp status
WhatsApp statuses are very similar to Instagram stories in that they can feature pictures, videos, or other multimedia from your profile. On your WhatsApp status, you can also provide real value with special offers or sales that are only accessible to WhatsApp users.
Even more, you can allow customer contacts to react to your WhatsApp status by sending you a direct message. Just remember that with most social media stories, WhatsApp statuses disappear after 24 hours.
Because of that short shelf life, statuses work best for time-sensitive promotions, like flash sales, limited-stock alerts, or same-day discounts. The idea is to create a sense of urgency, so your customers engage with the message and buy your products before the offer disappears.
Create personalized messages beyond text
As mentioned with WhatsApp Business Platform, you can use more than just text to create personalized messages. Take advantage of your ability to send visually engaging texts with emojis as well as videos, pictures, or clickable documents. This will allow you to not only keep customers engaged with tailored, entertaining content, but they’ll also start to feel more inclined to read each message you send them.
Also, keep in mind the fact that you have access to your customers’ contacts, meaning you can send timely messages that align with their needs and experiences. Whether it’s your customer’s birthday or you want to include their name in a special offer, creating targeted messages is a great way to keep your customers engaged.
Boost engagement with helpful customer support
Providing great customer support is essential for ensuring customers keep coming back. In fact, 90% of customers are more likely to make another purchase if they have a positive experience with your Customer Support team. Luckily, WhatsApp allows your business to provide customer support 24/7, but without having to be on call 24/7.
All you need to do is set up an AI chatbot and train it to answer typical customer service queries, such as questions related to order updates, sales dates, or promotional code reminders. Chatbots deliver faster response times, handle thousands of conversations at once, and offer multilingual customer care services, saving more intricate questions for live agents.
Improve your marketing efforts with a WhatsApp Business API
WhatsApp marketing can support your company’s direct marketing and advertising campaigns, delivering stronger open and conversion rates than traditional channels like email and SMS. No matter your business size, a well-managed WhatsApp presence can help you build relationships and share valuable content with customers around the world.
For the best results, work WhatsApp into a broader omnichannel strategy alongside email, so that customers can connect through multiple communication channels. With the right approach, your WhatsApp channel can be the conversational core of your customer engagement.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the WhatsApp Business Platform (API) cost?
WhatsApp Business Platform uses conversation-based pricing rather than a flat fee, with costs varying by country and message category. Once you connect WhatsApp to your systems, you can deliver messages at scale, with service replies to customers typically free within a 24-hour window.
How do I get WhatsApp opt-in consent from my customers?
You can collect customer consent through signup forms, checkout checkboxes, or QR codes that link directly to a WhatsApp conversation. Getting opt-in also requires compliance with data privacy laws like the GDPR. So, always be transparent about what messages customers will receive and let them opt out anytime.
What’s the difference between the WhatsApp Business app and WhatsApp Business Platform (API)?
The WhatsApp Business app suits small businesses sending a limited number of messages. The WhatsApp Business Platform supports successful WhatsApp marketing at scale. Only the API account type can track metrics like direct engagement and conversions, and it supports A/B testing to see which messages perform best.
What types of messages can I send with the WhatsApp Business Platform (API)?
WhatsApp Business Platform supports conversational messages for real-time chats and template messages. Templates fall into 3 categories: marketing, utility (such as order and shipping updates), and authentication. Each type follows different rules and pricing, so knowing which to use helps keep your account in good standing.
How does WhatsApp work alongside other digital marketing channels?
WhatsApp marketing works best when you integrate WhatsApp with more traditional channels rather than using it alone. Many businesses connect WhatsApp with email, SMS, and social media so customers can move between channels smoothly. WhatsApp handles real-time conversations, while other channels work for broader campaigns.