WhatsApp wants to make it easier for small companies to communicate with customers
The short message service WhatsApp wants to establish itself more strongly as a channel for small companies to communicate with their customers. The Facebook subsidiary is therefore launching the new "WhatsApp Business" app, which provides additional tools for companies.
WhatsApp manager Mitu Singh said that companies will be able to save time by saving answers to frequently asked questions and calling them up when needed. The app will initially only be released for Google's Android operating system. It remains to be seen when there might be a version for Apple's iOS system.
Other functions of the app include absence notes for customer service and the option to maintain key data such as opening hours or address centrally. Companies also have access to statistics on their interactions with users.
They can exchange chat messages with customers as well as make voice and video calls. The companies also get to see the phone numbers of the users.
Messages between companies and their customers will be protected by end-to-end encryption, as is usual with WhatsApp, Singh emphasized. The restriction to a maximum of 256 members in a group also remains in place for the company app.
However, the focus is on simplifying conversations with individual customers, Singh emphasized. The app was initially launched on Thursday in the USA, the UK, Italy, Mexico and Indonesia on Google's Play Store app platform and will be available worldwide in the coming weeks. (SDA)
