Everything you need to know about WhatsApp marketing

Remember how great it felt to be a "regular" somewhere? No shopping experience is as fulfilling as supporting a company that knows who you are and what you like.

In the fast-paced digital era, this concept feels like a thing of the past. However, the truth is, it's not gone: it’s just changed shape.

Stand-out customer experiences still rely on creating that sense of familiarity and personalization but instead of knowing your breakfast order as you step through the door, marketers use messaging tools, like WhatsApp, to know how everyone in the area likes their eggs.

With an opening rate of over 90%, WhatsApp is a great way to get eyes on your products and services

WhatsApp marketing taps into the preferences of today’s always-on, digital-first consumer. As of 2021, WhatsApp is the most popular global messenger app worldwide. With over two billion active users, it's more than likely how your customers connect with family, friends, and maybe even your competitors across the globe.

Marketing with WhatsApp can modernize your approach to customer care, helping you create stellar experiences that people remember and repeat.

Why you should include WhatsApp marketing in your social strategy

Have you experienced the frustration of looking for an impossible-to-find call centre hotline, or the boredom brought on by seemingly endless customer service wait times?

These customer complaints used to seem inevitable but now they're easy to avoid.

Your customers want to connect with businesses the same way they connect with their friends and family. No special hotlines or single-use platforms. Just fast, simple, and convenient messaging.

WhatsApp marketing supports seamless customer experiences, encouraging retention and promotion. If you’re still on the fence, here are three prime reasons you need to include marketing with WhatsApp in your social media strategy.

It’s how you’ll beat your competition

The average person can and will avoid disjointed customer experiences. The latest Sprout Social Index™ found that responding to customer service questions promptly is the easiest way to get customers to buy from one brand over a competitor.

Keep your customers happy by responding quickly!

With WhatsApp, your brand can secure a competitive edge that makes a measurable difference to your bottom line. A WhatsApp Business account allows you to set up messaging tools that guarantee quick response times with less effort.

When 77% of consumers expect a response in less than 24 hours, speed is the best way to stand out from the crowd.

It’s where your customers are most responsive

WhatsApp marketing open rates are much higher than traditional email open rates. In fact, it's estimated that they’re on par with SMS marketing open rates, hovering somewhere around 90%.

This responsiveness opens the door for more meaningful interactions that go beyond support requests. These days customers are using social messaging to ask questions about products, provide feedback, and give shout-outs.

These behaviours empower your social media and customer care teams to act as digital sales floor associates, giving them real-time influence on purchasing behaviours.

WhatsApp allows customers to get the answers they need quickly and conveniently

It’s the future of commerce

According to Meta’s Head of Messaging Developer Partnerships, Martha O’Byrne-O’Reilly, messaging is here to stay. She believes this influx of 1:1 messaging, combined with social commerce, is creating a new wave of what’s known as conversational commerce.

“[Conversational commerce] encapsulates the full range of reasons people chat with businesses, from asking about store hours to booking appointments, tracking deliveries, and resolving issues,” says O’Byrne-O’Reilly. “And it’s happening in all the places where people are spending time online, which is predominantly social and messaging platforms.”

New technologies, like machine learning, chatbots and messaging, are ushering in a new era of customer experience. In fact, 77% of consumers say they’re more likely to buy from a brand if they could browse or get questions answered via messaging. Building WhatsApp marketing into your social strategy today can help future-proof your marketing strategy for tomorrow.

The 3 best WhatsApp marketing examples we’ve seen (so far)

A quarter of the world’s population, mainly in Latin America, Asia and Europe, use WhatsApp. It’s no wonder brands from those regions lead the pack when it comes to stand-out WhatsApp marketing strategies.

If you’re planning to roll WhatsApp into your social marketing strategy, here are three brands you can look to for inspiration:

1. World Health Organization

In March 2020, the World Health Organization launched dedicated COVID-19 WhatsApp hotlines to service users in seven languages.

Getting up-to-date information quickly was a game changer during the pandemic

Users can access the hotline by messaging a location-specific number via WhatsApp. They’re then given several prompts to pick from for more information on the disease, vaccines and more.

This automated chatbot provides users with a solid middle ground between self-service and live support.

2. Lidl

Lidl, an international food retailer specializing in discount goods, has been riding the WhatsApp train since May 2020.

Initially, in response to the pandemic, the brand created a “Quiet Time” chatbot that allowed shoppers to check store capacity before heading over to shop. Now, Lidl has rolled out a full-scale customer care strategy on the platform to provide a seamless support experience to their shoppers.

WhatsApp makes chatting to a store feel like interacting with a friend

The company uses the platform to provide instantaneous support with automated greeting messages. When a customer sends a question or request, they get a message thanking them for their business. The message also shares that a live support agent will be with them shortly.

3. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines

Flight information typically lives in two different places: in a password-protected account or somewhere in an email. Neither of these options is particularly helpful when you’re speeding to the airport, trying to catch a flight. KLM is using WhatsApp to provide their passengers with something better.

When a person books a flight with KLM, they can opt into WhatsApp communications. This allows them to centralize their booking, baggage, and flight status information in a single, searchable conversation thread.

Blending WhatsApp into your social media strategy

WhatsApp marketing isn’t a magical solution to connecting with your customers. A poor messaging conversation will drive a customer away just as quickly as a poor in-person experience would. Like all marketing strategies, you get what you put into it.

If you’re ready to start marketing with WhatsApp, here’s everything you need to do before jumping in.

Decide on your team goals and operating norms

Your WhatsApp marketing goals will be different from your goals for traditional social media networks. Instead of engagements and impressions, you’ll want to start by tracking customer care metrics.

KPIs like average reply time and total response volume can help you benchmark your initial WhatsApp marketing efforts. Eventually, you’ll be able to use that data to inform more commerce-driven channel decisions.

You’ll also want to use this time to decide on operating norms. WhatsApp Business accounts only allow for one active user at a time, so creating a clear channel management schedule is imperative.

Luckily, you won’t have to experience this issue for long. Sprout brought WhatsApp messaging into its product suite in 2022.

Sign up for WhatsApp Business

You won’t run your business account on the general WhatsApp app. Instead, you have to use WhatsApp Business.

WhatsApp Business is available for both iOS and Android devices. Once you’ve downloaded the app, you’ll see the account setup is pretty simple. All you have to do is verify your phone number and update your business information. For a full walkthrough, check out the video below.

Craft templated messages

WhatsApp Business offers several messaging tools to streamline your workload and customer response times. All you have to do is craft your message.

These templated responses are designed to help you act on important conversations in advance. WhatsApp’s messaging tools include:

• Away message: When an away message is enabled, customers who message you will automatically receive a reply indicating that you’re busy or offline for the day.

• Greeting message: Your greeting message automatically sends out a warm welcome when customers interact with you for the first time or after 14 days of no activity.

• Quick replies: These canned responses can be used to quickly reply to frequently asked questions. They can be accessed in message conversations using specific shortcuts and you can save up to 50 at a time.

Build out a product catalog

The catalog is a powerful WhatsApp marketing feature that allows customers to browse through your products or services directly within the app. Once a product is in your catalog, you can share its link anywhere for more discoverability.

WhatsApp Catalog helps customers discover and purchase your products!

If you offer several products, try starting with your most popular items. As you continue to build out your product offerings on the app, you can sort them into collections for easy browsing.

Promote your presence on other channels

WhatsApp isn’t an “if you build it, they will come” platform. Customers need to know your WhatsApp number to reach out.

Once your business profile is all set up, run a lightweight awareness campaign to let people know you’ll offer customer care through the platform. This might include an email to existing customers, promotions across other social media networks, and a quick update to your website’s “Contact Us” page.

Say “what’s up?” to WhatsApp marketing

Marketing with WhatsApp sits at the intersection of marketing and customer care, opening up new ways for brands to connect with fans and prospects alike. If your approach to messaging is more reactive than strategic, now is the time to use WhatsApp Business to step into the new normal.

If you want to learn more about messaging as a channel, then check out this guide Sproutsocial created in partnership with Zendesk. Use it to learn how to effectively integrate social messaging into your customer experience so you can prepare for the future of customer experience.

This article was written by Ronnie Gomez for Sproutsocial and adapted for the V5 Digital Audience.

The importance of a Google Business Profile & how V5 Digital can get you listed

Running a business can be tough, especially when it comes to marketing. So it’s always great to find something easy and impactful to use to increase business leads.

Google Business Profile marketing, formally known as Google My Business, is a modern-day necessity! Potential customers use it to find and compare products and services and those not using it are often ignored.

So we’ve established that GBP is essential to your business but what exactly is it?

Setting up a Google Business Profile is an easy way to direct more traffic to your website

What Is A Google Business Profile?

At its core, a Google Business Profile is a search engine that helps customers locate businesses based on their keywords and search location. It’s often the first interaction potential customers have with a company.

Adding photos, hours of operation, and contact information means users can get a great deal of information at a glance. Selecting a business category helps Google to better index your website and claiming a free listing on Google Maps brings clients right to your door.

Increases Visibility

We’re all aware that more visible brands bring in more leads. A Google Business Profile can effortlessly increase your visibility and help connect your products and services to those desperately trying to find them.

A GBP helps you manage your online presence and keeps you in control of how your business is perceived across the web. It attracts new eyes to your website and employs local SEO maps to show potential customers where they can find you.

Helps Customers Locate Your Physical Address

Every day countless people hop on the internet, look for a product or service, find it, check the operating hours, and then use Google Maps to go to the location they need.

A Google Business Profile reassures potential customers that you’re a legitimate business, shows them what you offer, and gets them to your physical address.

If your business isn't linked to Google Maps you might as well be invisible!

Helps Customers Review Your Business

Nothing builds trust faster than a good review. It’s a fantastic way to build credibility in your industry and amongst your community. It even improves interactions with stakeholders and the government if they can see, firsthand, the positive impact you have in your area of expertise.

Google Business Profile makes leaving reviews about your business a hassle-free experience. These reviews are not only invaluable for attracting new customers but also give you great feedback about what you’re doing well and where you could improve.

Helps You Understand Your Target Audience

A GBP account can help you understand your target audience and use this information in marketing campaigns and keyword research. This can be handled in-house or outsourced to a company that specializes in GBP optimization.

Business owners can see metrics such as engagement on posts, photos, and profiles and what content is not generating enough traffic. This identifies weaknesses and improves the quality and effectiveness of the content you put out.

It’s also the perfect way to discover what keywords people are searching for and use this information to entice and connect with potential customers. This information can also be used across content channels to improve media campaigns and increase traffic to your website.

A Google business profile is ideal for getting to know your audience on a deeper level. It’s very easy to discover variables such as location, gender, and, age, as well as conversion-related information. Seeing how many people used a certain link to visit your website and how many went on to purchase a product becomes an effortless process.

Tips to Improve GBP Optimization

• Use relevant keywords that attract attention and traffic. Use the right tools to discover the right keywords to help potential customers find you.

• Always use a localized phone number so Google can verify that you’re a real business with a geographical location. This helps Google’s algorithm connect your business with customers in your area.

• Write an accurate business description. Be sure to pick the correct category that your business falls under or your audience won’t be able to find you. Make your description compelling with a strong call to action and don’t forget to mention special holiday operating hours.

• Add high-quality photos and videos of your products, services, and location. This can help distinguish your business from your competitors and create a perception of value in the minds of your target audience.

• Regularly update information such as your website address and phone number. If Google discovers broken links they could penalize you by dropping you in their rankings. This will also harm your reputation.

If this still seems a little confusing, you don’t have time, or you would prefer an expert to handle this for you, feel free to get in touch with V5 Digital where we can help you set up the perfect profile that is sure to succeed.

What’s the Best Time to Post on Facebook in 2022?

If you run a Facebook Business Page, you know that organic reach is dwindling on the platform. The average organic reach on Facebook is 2.2%. This means that if you have 1,000 followers, only 20 of them will see your new posts and updates in their feeds. Sucks, doesn’t it?

Now, the number of people who see your posts depends mostly on Facebook’s algorithms, but there’s one thing you can do to increase your reach and engagement. And that is to post content at the right time.

But when is the best time to post on Facebook?

Does a best time to post on Facebook really exist?

Before we get into this, note that everybody and their grandma has done a study on the best times to post on Facebook (and other social platforms) and the results vary widely. So if you really want to know the best times for you to post on Facebook, you’ll have to take a dive into your own followers and Facebook analytics — because peak times that work for other social media marketers can very well flop on your account.

That being said, recency is a major ranking signal for Facebook. So if you want to boost your odds of appearing at the top of your followers’ feeds, you have to post when they’re online.

If you’re just starting with Facebook and you don’t have an audience yet, you might not know when, exactly, your target audience comes online. In that case, you can start posting at the universal best time the team of social media experts at Hootsuite or Sprout Social recorded in their research.

When you do have an audience, it’s extremely easy to figure out the best times to post on Facebook — especially if you have the right tools. Read on for specific tips!

The best time to post on Facebook

According to Hootsuite’s analysis, the universal best time to post on Facebook is 8:00 am to 12:00 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

According to Sprout Social's analysis the universal best time to post on Facebook is at 9:00 am to 10 am on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

For your own brand things might be different as your users might be following a different timeline than the universal market. This is why it is important to monitor your own posts and see what times and days you get the most engagement. There is no one size fits all.

It’s best to post first thing in the morning because this is when people are catching up on their news feeds. Lunchtime is also great because it’s when people tend to have the biggest gaps in their schedules. Just after working hours are effective too, because people are checking out what they missed over the day.

So, as you can see, there’s more to finding your most effective time to post on Facebook than simply knowing when your audience is online.

When posting on Facebook, here are some key Facebook statistics to consider:

• 51% of people check Facebook several times each day

• 74% of users check Facebook at least once a day

• People spend 34 minutes (on average) per day on Facebook

• 80% of people use mobile devices to access Facebook (19% use both mobile and desktop)

How to find the best time to post on Facebook

If you want to find your own best times to post on Facebook, here are six things you should do:

1. Find out when your audience is most active online

Facebook prioritizes recent posts. Why? Because people care about new things — not old things.

Posting content when your followers are most active online can increase the chances that your content will reach them. And when Facebook’s algorithms detect that you’re posting when your fans are browsing through their feeds, it will push your content to the feeds of people who don’t follow you (yet!).

For Facebook, all you have to do to know when your followers are online is to look at your analytics.

V5 Digital Heat map showing user activity

2. Look at your best-performing posts

After you figure out when your audience is online, the next step should be to study the content you’ve posted in the past. Look at your social media reports and analytics tools to see the most successful posts for each metric you track. For instance, check for posts that performed well for:

• Awareness: posts that have high impressions and/or views

• Engagement: posts that have spectacular engagement rates in terms of likes, comments, and shares.

• Traffic/sales: posts that got many clicks

Then, look at the time and day of the week you posted this content, and see the patterns that form.

Pro-tip: You can even see your best times to post on Facebook based on impressions, engagements, and click-throughs.

An example of V5 Digital's best performing posts for the month of July and August 2022

Social Media Management Tools can predict the best times to post your content

3. Post in your audience’s time zone (not yours)

If you want to reach people who scroll through their Facebook accounts as soon as they wake up, posting in the early morning (at 6 am to 7 am) is a good idea. In Africa it is generally good to post between the hours of 6-9 am. The earlier being the better.

If you’re a brand that has a large number of audiences in a particular region, you might want to create a separate Facebook page for that audience. This allows you to post in the language people in that region understand.

If you have a global customer base, you should consider posting content throughout the day. In this case, you’d need a good social media scheduling tool.

4. Study what your competitors are doing

As you work on your Facebook account, you should also check your competitors’ accounts to see what they’re doing–especially if you’re new to Facebook.

Look for their high-performing posts to get an idea of the sort of content your audience might be looking for. Or you could even do a full social media competitor analysis and reverse-engineer your competitors’ Facebook tactics.

For instance, if you notice that your competitors publish content on the hour (the :00 mark), you could try posting on the :15 or :45 mark to get ahead of them.

Keep your ears peeled for news concerning your industry. You might learn strategies worth incorporating, pitfalls to avoid, or opportunities to take advantage of.

5. Test and modify your posting times

After doing your research, you’re ready to press “Publish” on those brand new posts you’ve created. But what would you do if your results aren’t as good as you’d hoped?

Short answer: run A/B tests.

With A/B tests, you post the same content at different times to see which time gets the best results. You can take things up a notch by changing the images (if there are any) on the post or even the post copy itself to see which version performs best.

Pro tip: This advice applies to all social networks, not just Facebook!

6. Keep checking for changes

Facebook is ever-changing, from its algorithms to its users. For instance, since COVID and the surge of remote work in 2020, people use Facebook (and other social media platforms) more. People shifted from scrolling through Facebook during lunch breaks to checking in between Zoom meetings.

You have to look at your top-performing posts weekly to determine if there is any data in there that can provide you with insights to rework your posting time. For example V5 Digital has found that the earlier posts go out on Special Holidays the more engagement they get. So we aim to post our Holiday posts between the hours of 6 and 7 am.

The trick is to regard time as an important, but variable, factor as you tweak your social media scheduling strategy.