WhatsApp Business for E-commerce: The Ultimate Guide (Jan 2023)

The golden era for e-commerce business is finally here! A report by Meticulous Market Research projects that the global e-commerce market will touch $16,215.6 billion by 2027, at a compound annual growth rate of 22.9% from 2020 to 2027.

Online shopping surged exponentially after the pandemic because it’s safe, convenient, and time-saving. Despite all the advantages, it also has a few limitations which include the lack of customer interaction.

In recent years, many social media platforms have stepped in to bridge the communication gap. WhatsApp was one of them. It launched WhatsApp Business and Whatsapp Business API in 2018 to help businesses connect with their customers.

Shortly after that, the messaging app introduced some new features to make its business versions more effective and friendly for e-commerce.

In 2019, WhatsApp introduced a Catalogs feature, which allowed small businesses to design a storefront and display all items they sell. It now has above eight million business catalogues all over the world (of which one million is in India.)

In April 2021, WhatsApp announced two new features for e-commerce. The first will give better support for WhatsApp Catalogs on desktops. The second will provide the ability to temporarily hide items that are out of stock.

On June 22, 2021, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced three new e-commerce features, which included Shops on WhatsApp. Under the feature, when a customer comes across a shop on the messaging platform, they can chat with the business before purchasing anything.

If you have an e-commerce business (or maybe you are planning to launch one soon) leveraging the power of the widely-used messaging platform is one the best things you can do to give your customers a better shopping experience.

How to Integrate WhatsApp into Your E-commerce Business

If you have many customers visiting your website and trying to contact you over the chatbox or contact form, this integration can be extremely helpful. 

Conversations that are initiated by a visitor on the website will be redirected to WhatsApp instead of continuing on the website.

If visitors are on their mobile phones, tapping on the green ‘Start Chat’ button will redirect them to their WhatApp accounts so that the conversation can continue there. If they are on their laptops or desktops, clicking on the button will open a WhatsApp Web window.

Taking these chats to the messaging app will enable them to get updates and delivery notifications even after they leave your website. You can also send them relevant and useful messages in the future.

You can integrate WhatsApp into your e-commerce site by the following steps:

1. Get a WhatsApp API approved account from an authorized BSP

The first step of integrating WhatApp into your e-commerce website starts with  getting a WhatsApp API approved business account from an authorized and reliable business service provider (BSP) such as BotSpace.

At BotSpace, we will provide you with a pre-approved WhatsApp Business API with a verified green checkmark at zero upfront payment. You need to give these three things:

• Business Display name
• A verified Facebook Business Manager id
• A phone number that doesn’t have any WhatsApp account installed (both personal and business, you can deactivate if it has)

We have posted a detailed blog, which will enable you to set up WhatsApp Business API.

2. Embed a WhatsApp chat widget into your e-commerce website

The first step to to embed a WhatsApp chat widget. Next, you can set up the Whatsapp Click To Chat link, which will enable your website visitors to initiate a Whatsapp chat with your business after clicking on it. They will be redirected to their Whatsapp app or WhatsApp Web and can send a message to your WhatsApp API business number.

You can embed a chat widget with us for absolutely free by simply filling in your Whatsapp phone number and clicking on the Create Widget button. You can customize the look and message of your Whatsapp widget. After that, share the code with your developer, or insert it on your website before the closing </body> tag. Your customers can contact you via Whatsapp.

Our widget works with all leading website builders such as:

• Shopify
• Woo Commerce
• Webflow
• WIX
• WordPress
• BigCommerce
• Elementor
• Squarespace
• Googlesites
• Weebly
• HubSpot
• GoDaddy

Integrating a WhatsApp chatbox to your e-commerce website will enable your visitors to initiate a WhatsApp conversation with your company. After clicking on the widget, they can post their queries over their WhatsApp account.

3. Send automated messages, notifications, and other updates

After your customers connect with you over WhatsApp, you can send them the following messages:

Order confirmation: After customers place their orders, you can send the message of order details to avoid mistakes or confusion and thank them for shopping from you. You can also give payment information and, after confirmation of the payment, you can send automatic notifications.

Order cancellation: If the customer or you cancel the order for any reason, you can send the message to the customer. The message will have the information on the list of products cancelled and the payment that will be refunded. This message gives customers the assurance that your business has accepted the cancelation of the products.

Send bills: You can send bills to your customers after they purchase your products or services.

Shipping confirmation: After dispatching the order(s), send your customers messages about the same to enable them track the packages and remain available to receive it.

Send reminders: You can send various reminders to your customers such as:

• Cart abandonment: You can send messages to your customer if they have placed some items in their cart but not completed the purchase. You can also show them related products or offer discounts to them.
• Renew their subscription or service: If you have a subscription-based e-commerce site or any subscribers for your product(s) or service(s), you can send reminder messages to your subscribers to renew their subscriptions.
• Upcoming sale and offers: You can notify them and send subsequent reminders about an upcoming sale and offers.
• Send loyalty programs: You can send loyalty programs to your customers over WhatsApp.

4. Build Chatbots

WhatsApp chatbots enable you to handle your customers’ problems in a steadfast and easy manner. The conversational marketing tool allows you to answer all queries of your customers and improve their experience. You should leverage the power of bots for your e-commerce website. Using WhatsApp chatbots, you can:

• Communicate refund policy and return policy
• Collect feedback and ratings on the overall shopping and customer experience.
• Send questionnaires to your customers in a completely automated manner.

An authorized business solution provider such as BotSpace can help you create chatbots and save your time.

E-commerce as an industry is booming and is expected to witness strong growth in coming years. It has revolutionized the way people shopped but at the same time created a gap between buyers and sellers that was non-existent in the traditional marketplace. Personal communication platforms such as WhatsApp are helping businesses to bridge the gap and many e-commerce players are using it. If you are an e-commerce business owner, you can give a personal touch to your business by leveraging WhatsApp. In case you are considering integrating WhatsApp into your website, get WhatsApp Business API from an authorized BSP. BotSpace is an authorized and official BSP that can provide you with all integrations to get started with your e-commerce business. To know how we can help you, contact our team today.