WhatsApp Guidelines
Important concepts for WhatsApp business accounts.
Introduction - WhatsApp for Business
WhatsApp: It is a new technology for the B-to-B market.
Attention:
Very few companies had access to beginning tests in the year 2017. Despite being announced to the market in August, still all use cases undergo approval by WhatsApp – once approved, your company is one of the few that can communicate with their customers through this channel. As it is a new channel and technology, you will need patience and organization within your company so that communications are done as best as possible and always placing your customer at the center.
Support
You will always have the support of your account executive and the New Business team, specialized in WhatsApp.
Important Terms
Facebook Business Manager
It is Facebook’s business management platform. It houses Sinch (company)’s general Facebook account as well as those of our customers. It includes all Facebook services and applications (Ad accounts, Pages, Apps, Employees, etc.). The Business Manager is referred to by an ID that we need to receive from each of our customers - the BM ID (Business Manager ID) - in order to set up the customer’s WhatsApp account (WABA)
WABA
WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) – Account of each Sinch
customer on WhatsApp, within which the Phone Numbers (or “Verified Accounts”) will be created
Phone Numbers
Each number is created within a WABA, as a “Verified Account.” After it has been created and installed, WhatsApp can give our customer a GREEN badge, for “Verified Account,” or keep it with the GRAY badge, for “Business Account.” This is a decision of WhatsApp.
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Each WhatsApp number requires a technology solution that is linked to (servers.)
Expressly Forbidden Actions
Messages of a Promotional or Advertising Nature
Actively sending messages about Sales; Marketing; Promotions. (Any actions of a spamming nature are forbidden).
Invasive Messages (Spamming Nature)
In addition to the messages mentioned above, there are infinite messages that can be of a spamming nature, and aggressive; thus, it requires the explicit opt-in for WhatsApp from the end customer. (There is a section exclusively to discuss opt-ins in this manual).
If you wish to communicate promotions through other channels where information can be requested through WhatsApp, this is fine. (As long as your customer pulls up your WhatsApp and requests it; the chat must be initiated by the end customer). For everything you do in this channel, always keep in mind that the end customer is who decides if you are helping, informing, or bothering them. Thus, we suggest a communication that is always centered on the end consumer. (We have a section discussing this).
Opt-In
Requesting your customer’s opt-in before sending them an active message is mandatory.
Good Practices
When requesting a customer’s Opt-In, we suggest including the WhatsApp number field for them to fill out, so you can also ensure the accuracy of the data. Avoiding sending messages to a phone number that does not belong to a customer.
Sending an SMS with a click to WhatsApp.
Sending a mass email collecting opt-ins.
Collecting the customer’s opt-in on your website or app.
Training all PAs to collect opt-ins on the calls.
Important: Collect their opt-in and take the chance to update this customer’s WA mobile number (one of the greatest issues we face today are outdated bases).
A few examples and closing remarks.
When a customer’s their Opt-In, we suggest including the WhatsApp number field for them to fill out, so you can also ensure the accuracy of the data. (avoiding sending messages to a phone number that does not belong to a customer).
The WhatsApp logo should appear near the opt-in field. The examples above are from Ingresso Rápido and Netflix respectively
Opt-Out
Give your customer the option to say they do not wish to receive a certain type of message.
This is also a way to improve your content and adapt to your customer’s interests.
Suggestion of what should be included in your HSM.
It is extremely important that the Opt-Out happens, abiding by the user’s wish to no longer receive any messages.
We have recently added a new feature to the opt-out mechanic, consisting in the possibility to send automatic replies to users when they opt out or back in.
When users opt out, these automatic replies are sent to them from replies that we set by default, but you can also choose customized response sentences, if the customer requests for our support.
Important: Sending automatic messages is customizable and therefore, when a user sends an “exit,” for example, by default we will send the automatic reply, but it is also possible not to send it, if the customer has such a setting.
Another point of attention is that automatic replies do not prevent the customer from replying to a user’s MO. Therefore, it is possible that a user will receive two messages, one with the automatic reply and the other with the “I don’t understand” from the customer’s bot. So, the ideal is for the customer’s bot to identify messages with the “exit” text, for instance, and not reply to the user in cases of opting out or back in.
Replies to Users Opting Out
When a user begins the opting out process with one of the keywords: "Sair," "Salir," "Exit," "Stop," or "Detener," we can send a corresponding automatic reply for each language. Our replies, by default, are:
"Sair" (BR): "Seu pedido para sair da conversa foi atendido. Favor enviar #voltar para retornar!"
“Salir” or “Detener”: "Tu solicitud de abandonar la conversación se cumplió. ¡Envíe #volver para regresar!"
“Exit” or “Stop”: "Your request to leave the conversation was accomplished. Please send #start to come back!"
Replies to Users Opting Back In
It is also possible for a user to wish to opt back in and begin receiving messages again. For that, they must send one of the keywords: "#voltar," “#receber,” “#recibir,” “#volver,” or “#start.” We can also send automatic replies in this case, corresponding to each language. Our replies, by default, are:
"#voltar" or “#receber”: "Seu pedido para sair da conversa foi atendido. Favor enviar #voltar para retornar!"
“#recibir” or “#volver”: "Tu solicitud de abandonar la conversación se cumplió. ¡Envíe #volver para regresar!"
“#start”: "Your request to leave the conversation was accomplished. Please send #start to come back!"
WhatsApp - Customer Focus
WhatsApp is very concerned about the privacy of its users and their right to be contacted or not by a certain business/ brand through their channel.
This is why all actions done in this channel must always have the end customer in mind and the purpose of being useful to the end consumer.
In addition to the actions you are expressly forbidden from actively doing (specific section discussing this), there are invasive actions and actions that do not generate benefits to the consumer or actions that are repetitive and bothersome.
For this reason, the customer is who decides if you are helping, informing, or bothering them. The customer can always block you if your communication makes no sense to them or if you are being very insistent. The way that WhatsApp measures if you are focusing on the end customer and their wellbeing, without being intrusive, is to monitor your block rate, i.e., the % of people to which you have been sending messages who have been blocking you. (Unfortunately, your block rate is an information to which we do not have access; WhatsApp notifies Sinch when it starts to go up and can even block your number if it stays high and going up).
Your block rate is also related to the accuracy of your base. This is why you should collect opt-ins on your website, when purchasing new products; this way, in addition to their opt-in, you ensure your customer’s WhatsApp number is the one you are using.
Inform Your Customer that You Have an Official WhatsApp Number
It is extremely important that you relay your number to your customer. The fact that your customer knows you will communicate with them through WhatsApp and especially that it will be through a verified number is security to both parties.
You can evidence it in all email signatures, on your website, on all purchase receipts. You can even use this to obtain your customer’s opt-in, asking them to send #I want to receive messages to your number.
Avoid Fraud: Informing your customer that you will now communicate with them through an official number and teaching them to identify that the number is official as shown in the figure below generates trust and prevents your company from being plagiarized, or offering fake discounts, promotions, or even stealing data from your customers.
Service via WhatsApp
Implementing bots in your WhatsApp channel to handle the most searched topics by users, making it easier to solve problems and reducing the amount of direct service. Transferring to the human assistance platform if the issue is not resolved with Artificial Intelligence only.
Through WhatsApp, you can assist your customers more quickly, using service platforms exclusive to this channel. On this platform, you can Interact with your customers, answering questions, relaying clear and objective information, and providing necessary support. You can also enrich your conversation by sending files (pdf, images).
Assisting multiple customers at once, improving efficiency, customer satisfaction, and decreasing service costs.
WhatsApp Guidelines
Download the WhatsApp for Business guidelines below:
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