Updated: November 10, 2020 5:03:40 pm
WhatsApp is adding a purchase button to business accounts. This is how it will work. (Image source: WhatsApp)
WhatsApp has added a new Shopping button, which will make it easier for customers to discover a company’s catalog. This button will allow them to see what goods or services the particular company offers. WhatsApp says the new button will make it easier for businesses to discover their products, and this, in turn, can help boost sales.
According to WhatsApp, more than 175 million people send messages to a WhatsApp Business account every day and more than 40 million people view a company’s catalog each month, which includes more than 3 million in India. In India, WhatsApp has more than 400 million users, and the company has just launched the Payments feature with Unified Payments Interface (UPI) technology.
With the new WhatsApp feature, users will now see a purchase button next to the business account profile. The button looks like a storefront icon. This marks a change from the previous configuration, where a user had to access the company profile to view the catalog. Tapping the buy button will open the catalog and users can browse the items.
WhatsApp says that this new shopping button is now available worldwide and will replace the voice call button on business accounts. To find the voice call button, a user can simply tap the call button to select a voice or video call for the business account.
For WhatsApp, integrating purchases on the platform is the next big step. As the video below shows, WhatsApp eventually hopes to be the one-stop shopping destination where a user can verify the product, send a message to the seller, eventually purchase the product, and pay for it. The user would get all the order details on WhatsApp without having to leave the platform. However, there is still a while for this functionality.
In India, WhatsApp has launched its Payments service, although for now it will be limited to 20 million users. The payment service is based on UPI and will allow direct payments by bank transfer from WhatsApp itself.
How to use the purchase button in WhatsApp together with a business account
Go to any business account on WhatsApp. This could be a business account that you are chatting with regularly, such as a local bakery or local vendor.
If the seller has uploaded a catalog to their business account, users will see a store symbol next to the account name.
Touch the symbol and the catalog will open, showing the products that are available in the company. You can browse the catalog and see images of each product. If you like a product, simply tap on the Commercial Message button below each image and you can generate an inquiry about that particular product.
The store front symbol will only be displayed if the business has a live catalog added to their WhatsApp business account.
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