Comparing WhatsApp Business With Whatsapp
insightEver since the inception of the Whatsapp Messenger in 2010 even till the point of it’s acquisition by the administration of FACEBOOK and onward, the fastest growing messenger platform has undergone its cycles of ups, downs, booms and criticisms. Meanwhile, as Whatsapp and Whatsapp Business has to run with the aim of keeping up with trends, user feedback and an efficient management of the database of the more than 65 billion messages sent each waking day, upgrades and innovation would stand in as more of a necessity than a routine.
As the world closes in faster than ever towards the data age whence the world’s economy operates online, the commerce sector amongst others is not left out in the revolution as the era of e-commerce is closing in than ever. In January 2018, Whatsapp successfully launched the Whatsapp Business App for small business use in order to support businesses and basically created with the best interest of small business owners in mind. With a new capacity and enablement for the owners of small and medium scale businesses to connect with their clients, it was a very welcome initiative.
It can be expected that a bone of contention would be raised regarding the need for the original version of Whatsapp or the supplementary significance of Whatsapp Business but herein are some things that may be needed to be put in consideration when placing the two Apps on the scale of need or satisfaction.
The Scale of Privacy
Imagine having to attend to business conversations as late as 9:00pm when your business actually closes daily operations as early as 5:00PM just because you do not want a client wondering why you are obviously online but not responding even after your latest Whatsapp story reads CLOSED FOR TODAY! as boldly as possible. It happens that you get torn between answering to a chat as personal as one form, say, your fiancé, and answering a client you have never met and need to create a good impression on.
It is very tempting, especially for small business owners and entrepreneurs, to spend time meant for personal conversations, discussions and engagements on answering to a client. There is another fear to answer to when your personal/ mobile phone is borrowed is the same device used for business calls. In summary, the ability of a device to accommodate both the Whatsapp Messenger and the Whatsapp Business App helps every business owner to create a boundary between personal ‘stuff’ and business ‘stuff’.
By adhering to the time schedule placed on your Whatsapp Business profile as your ‘hours for business’, Whatsapp can assure you a safe haven for all private chats and groups while you go all out on the Whatsapp Business platform; being as actively online as possible so that you could attend to clients in time and ‘freeze’ it once your business hours are over. This ensures the continuity of private conversations on Whatsapp without being exposed to potential conversations relating business that could rob you of your personal space.
The Scale of Structure
Whatsapp proves to be a very friendly and informal environment for chatting, messaging and exchange of moments and memories while Whatsapp Business is meant to be more formal, business-like environment with exchanges of transactions. In order to fit its purpose, the Whatsapp Business App comes with tools, features and packages that help stimulate an online business structure such as the following:
- Cataloging
- Profiling
- Labels
The Scale of Automation
Whatsapp Business comes with features and tools that makes it easier for businesses to have a full operational structure online which would be totally not so useful for private purposes.
Even at this, there are some of these features that can be explored for personal use, one of which is AUTOMATION. Just like voice mail boxes, automation of 'away' or 'welcome' messages calls your respondents tho action by welcoming then and encouraging them to drop a text or offline messages till you are around.
There are really no much features that distinguish WhatsApp Messenger from WhatsApp Business asides the purpose for which the latter was created - business, of course. If you are a small business owner with a strong presence online, you might want to consider maximizing both.
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