Jan 2, 2023
As more businesses prioritize digital experiences, brands seeking distinction should shift towards an experience-focused strategy and explore less crowded channels like WhatsApp in their multichannel marketing strategy.
WhatsApp is the world’s most popular messaging app and the third most popular social media app. With the potential to reach billions of people, it’s unsurprising that businesses have started to recognize the potential of WhatsApp for business.
This guide will delve into WhatsApp Business API, explore its advantages for marketers, provide detailed instructions for the setup process, and offer expert insights on using WhatsApp for business.
What is WhatsApp Business API?
5 Benefits of WhatsApp Business API
How do you set up WhatsApp Business API with Insider?
Step 1: Set up your account
Step 2: Verify your WhatsApp Business account
Step 3: Select your use case
Step 4: Complete integration
Step 5: Get your message templates
Step 6: Set up your campaigns
Step 7: Analyze and measure results
Step 8: Compliance and best practices
Insider’s WhatsApp marketing software
FAQ
WhatsApp Business API is an emerging channel for brands aiming to expand their marketing reach. It empowers marketers to drive growth and establish more intimate connections. With a 98% open rate (compared to just 20% for emails), WhatsApp is significantly more effective at reaching recipients than email, meaning customers are more likely to see, engage, and click your messages.
As a B2C messaging channel, WhatsApp Business API shifts away from conventional promotional messages, focusing instead on delivering real-time, relevant, high-value communication. It has strict rules against huge marketing campaigns and promotions.
There are three primary types of business accounts on WhatsApp:
The WhatsApp Business API provides numerous advantages for businesses seeking to improve customer communication and engagement. Here are seven key benefits.
Insider’s WhatsApp message templates make it easy to send a high volume of personalized messages, such as order confirmations, shipping updates, appointment reminders, and more. Usually, these messages come with automatic personalized text, including user names and dates.
Here’s how Insider’s WhatsApp message templates make getting started super easy:
WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption makes it one of the most secure communication channels—even more so than SMS and Email. All messages sent through WhatsApp are encrypted, so not even WhatsApp can access or read them.
Companies using WhatsApp Business API automatically have a competitive edge, not only for its high deliverability and open rates but also because it’s a preferred channel and already has a significant user base. WhatsApp recently surpassed 500 million active users.
WhatsApp Business API features a messaging statistics function that allows companies to measure the success of their campaigns for insights and optimization. You can unify this data on a customer data platform like Insider to leverage WhatsApp as part of an omnichannel marketing strategy and always send the right message at the right time.
Videos, photos, PDFs, and GIFs are common on WhatsApp—but did you know you can take things a step further? Insider’s end-to-end WhatsApp buying experience, WhatsApp Commerce, enables end-to-end purchasing journeys without leaving the app. From discovery to purchase to order confirmation, you can guide your customers through an entire buying journey on WhatsApp.
Making things simpler and putting all the steps together in one place makes signing up for a WhatsApp Business account faster. This includes connecting WhatsApp Business Manager accounts, creating WhatsApp Business Accounts, and verifying phone numbers.
All you need to start the WhatsApp Business Registration is the following:
To begin, ensure you have an Insider account. If you don’t already have one, sign up on Insider’s platform. Once logged in, navigate to the WhatsApp Business API section to begin the setup process.
WhatsApp requires businesses to go through a verification process to ensure authenticity. Be prepared to provide the necessary business documentation and details for this step. Insider will guide you through the verification process to ensure your WhatsApp Business Account is approved swiftly.
Define your specific use case for WhatsApp Business API. Whether sending transactional notifications, customer support, or personalized marketing messages, Insider’s platform offers flexible solutions to your business needs. Choose the one that aligns with your objectives.
Integrate Insider’s WhatsApp Business API solution with your existing systems, such as your CRM or ecommerce platform. Insider provides robust integration options to streamline communication processes and ensure a seamless customer experience.
WhatsApp Business API requires pre-approved message templates for outbound communications. With Insider’s template hub, you can create these templates within the system and get notified when they get approved by Meta. There’s no manual intervention needed once you submit your templates for approval. Insider notifies you via email about the approval status and also provides a quality score for your templates to improve them.
Looking for inspiration? We curated 60+ tried-and-tested message templates for different use cases used by top brands in our WhatsApp templates explorer library.
With Insider, you can create and launch WhatsApp campaigns effortlessly. Customize your messages, target your audience, and schedule campaigns for maximum impact. Insider’s tools allow you to A/B test and optimize your campaigns for better results.
Keep a close eye on the performance of your WhatsApp Business API activities using Insider’s robust analytics and reporting features. Gain insights into message delivery, open rates, click-through rates, and more to refine your messaging strategy.
Stay compliant with WhatsApp’s policies and best practices to ensure a smooth and effective communication strategy. Insider provides guidance and updates to help you navigate any changes in regulations.
By following these steps and using Insider’s WhatsApp Business API solution, you’re well on your path to tapping into the immense potential of WhatsApp platforms for your business. Connect with your customers on WhatsApp today and open the door to fresh opportunities for engagement and growth.
Once the installation is complete, it’s time to set up your WhatsApp Business API integration. We highly recommend partnering with a platform that offers a WhatsApp solution to guide you through the process, saving time and effort for your development or IT team.
Here’s a step-by-step guide for marketers looking to integrate WhatsApp Business API into their businesses:
Start by applying for access to the WhatsApp Business API on the WhatsApp Business website. WhatsApp will review your application before granting access.
WhatsApp requires you to work with an official WhatsApp Business Solution Provider, often called a “Business Service Provider (BSP).” These providers are authorized to help you integrate WhatsApp Business API and ensure compliance with WhatsApp’s policies.
Your chosen BSP will guide you through setting up your WhatsApp Business Account. You’ll need to provide details like your business name, description, and contact information.
WhatsApp will provide you with a dedicated business phone number, which you will use for communicating with your customers. This number will have a special business number showing a business account.
Your BSP will help you implement the WhatsApp Business API. This involves configuring your messaging platform or CRM system to send and receive messages through the API.
WhatsApp has strict guidelines for initiating customer conversations. Submit your message templates to WhatsApp for approval. This is a crucial step, as WhatsApp needs to verify that your templates meet their standards.
WhatsApp provides an API sandbox environment where you can test your integration and message templates. Use this sandbox to ensure that everything is working correctly before going live.
Conduct thorough testing to ensure your integration functions as expected. Test different types of messages and scenarios to cover all use cases.
Once your integration is tested and templates are approved, you can use WhatsApp Business API for marketing. You can now send personalized messages, engage in two-way conversations, and deliver marketing campaigns directly through WhatsApp.
Ensure you comply with WhatsApp’s policies and data protection regulations. Be transparent with customers about their data use and provide opt-out options if necessary.
Remember that adding WhatsApp Business API to your marketing plan requires careful planning, following WhatsApp rules, and continuous attention. Partnering with a reliable BSP can simplify things and maximize the benefits of this effective communication tool.
WhatsApp Business API isn’t your typical mass-marketing tool. WhatsApp marketing software strictly prohibits sending bulk promotional messages, so you need to be hyper-targeted and strategic with your messaging.
For example, Madeira Madeira used Insider’s WhatsApp solution to personalize customer communication. The home goods retailer was struggling with low engagement and conversion rates and wanted to broaden its use of marketing channels.
The retailer turned to Insider to leverage WhatsApp and reach consumers with more personalized content. It created unique campaign promotions for its VIP customers and sent purchase confirmations, order updates, Wishlist reminders, and back-in-stock alerts. The result? Higher AOV and triple the conversions.
Discover MadeiraMadeira’s full success story
Partnering with Insider also removes the pressure of keeping up with WhatsApp’s policy updates. Insider handles everything from security to compliance, allowing you to focus on creating impactful user experiences.Insider’s integration with WhatsApp Business API simplifies and accelerates marketing teams’ use of WhatsApp at scale to deliver impactful personalized marketing experiences to every customer. Interested in leveraging Insider’s tools for quick, secure, and valuable messaging with your customers? Request a demo today.
No, you can’t use the WhatsApp Business app with the WhatsApp Business API. These are separate tools designed for different purposes, with the app intended for small businesses and the API tailored for medium and large companies.
Setting up the WhatsApp Business API involves a multi-step process, including creating a business profile, obtaining a dedicated business phone number, signing an agreement with WhatsApp, applying for API access, and creating message templates. It requires IT and development teams to implement and maintain.
The primary distinction between WhatsApp API and WhatsApp Business API lies in their target audience and capabilities. WhatsApp API is designed for smaller businesses and offers basic features. In contrast, WhatsApp Business API is tailored for larger businesses, providing more advanced functionality such as automated transactional messages, integration with company systems, and a fee structure based on templated messages.
Written by
Katie Morley
Katie is an award-winning content marketer with over eight years of experience in content strategy, development, and copywriting. As Global Content Director at Insider, she currently oversees content strategy across 26 regions. Fun fact: Katie read 64 books last year (for which she owes a long commute and two week-long holidays where she spent approximately six hours a day with her nose in a book).