Ads that click to WhatsApp: What are they and what are the benefits?

What are ads that click to WhatsApp?

Advertisements that click to WhatsApp are basically promotions over Facebook and Instagram that direct the people that click on the ad to a chat conversation within WhatsApp Chat. These ads can appear everywhere you'd expect Facebook and Instagram advertisements to pop up: feeds, stories on both Facebook and Instagram, and even Facebook Marketplace. Important for these ads is the call-to-action button that will prompt and redirect customers to initiate a conversation with your business.

Say you're a popular sports retail store, and you've set up Instagram feed carousel ads to promote your new line of outdoor sneakers. Under the photos you can add a click-to-action button to encourage shoppers to chat with your team to figure out which sneaker is best suitable for them.

The benefits of Click-To-Chat Ads on WhatsApp

Direct engagement

Click-to-WhatsApp ads make is easier and simpler for your (potential) customers to contact you via WhatsApp in their exact moment of need. They can immediately engage with your business after seeing the ad with just a single click and get their questions answered or receive personal advice about the products listed in the advertisement, like in assisted sales.

Low effort

There is no extra information needed - customers can engage with you without having to save your (business) phone number to their contacts. Less effort means people will be more likely to engage with your business, thus increasing your audience.

WhatsApp's click-to-chat feature allows you to begin a chat with someone without having their phone number saved in your phone's address book. As long as you know this person’s phone number and they have an active WhatsApp account, you can create a link that will allow you to start a chat with them. By clicking the link, a chat with the person automatically opens. Click to chat works on both your phone and WhatsApp Web.

Targeted ads and communication

These click-to-chat ads can also engage shoppers at all stages of the funnel, from new customers with questions about your company to size- and inventory-checks and repeat purchases from loyal customers. Meta, the organisation behind Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, offers targeting features that let you direct ads to people at specific buying stages, so you can make the most out of your ad spend.

Company branding

Keep in mind that click-to-WhatsApp advertisements are different from WhatsApp links, though their workings may be similar. Ads that click to WhatsApp have the added benefit of showing more company branding in the advertisement. This will help customers recognize your brand, which in its turn will help you reach a wider audience.

Best practices for ads that click to WhatsApp

Getting customers to click on your advertisements is just step one. Getting your customers to engage with your business over WhatsApp is a great opportunity to convert those conversations. But to do so, you have to nurture and build trust with your customers over messaging. Here are some best practices for succes.

Keep your promises

Perhaps an obvious statement, but very important. If your ad promises something to the customers who click on it, you have to make good on that promise shortly after the chat starts. Did you entice them to click on the advertisement with a promise of a discount code? Then provide them with the code. Promised to help them with questions about your products? Then don't divert them to a chatbot or employee who does not know how to handle these questions. Customers will close the chat just as easily as they started it, closing your window opportunity.

Don't make them wait

Make sure that customers that click on your ad can actually engage with your brand 24/7, or you'll risk losing these shoppers. Imagine that somebody clicks on your advertisement and then gets presented with an automated message that says: "Thank you for contacting us. We'll be with you shortly." Generally, customers will wait for approximately 5 to 10 minutes before they give up. Employing a chatbot, the employee that never sleeps, can help retain these customers. A chatbot can:

• Answer simple questions so these won't flood your support team's resources

• Provide product recommendations and share resources based on the question of the customer

• Direct customers with complex questions to a live agent

Create new opportunities

When customers click to your WhatsApp message, you have a golden opportunity to ask them for continued engagement - an opt-in. Customers that give you an opt-in basically give you permission to contact them regularly about your business, so you can gently nudge them through the buying funnel.

Getting started with WhatsApp Business Platform

Do you also want to offer your customers a personalized and conversational marketing experience? With WhatsApp Business Platform, the business messaging tool for WhatsApp, you'll have the ads that link to WhatsApp feature ready to use, amongst many other powerful features and tools for conversational commerce. Interested? Read more about WhatsApp Business Platform below or contact our dedicated team (free of obligation) to discuss your personal use cases.