10 core benefits of using WhatsApp Business accounts

What if we told you WhatsApp could be one of your highest-performing channels? Convinced there’s nothing left to learn about the platform? Think again.

In this guide, we break down the 10 core business benefits you can unlock on WhatsApp, the mechanism behind each one, and the KPI to track it. Read along to get a compliance checklist, an implementation blueprint, and learn how Infobip ties it all together with chatbots, Flows, team inbox, and a CDP.

WhatsApp Business App vs. WhatsApp Business Platform

For smaller businesses, the WhatsApp Business App is a simple, manual tool on a single device. For scale, automation, and multi-agent operations, the WhatsApp Business Platform delivered by a provider like Infobip is absolutely necessary.

The platform adds APIs, chatbots and Flows, rich interactivity, orchestration, analytics, and enterprise-grade security so you can run marketing, commerce, and support at volume.

Tracking the 10 core benefits of WhatsApp Business

Each benefit is broken down into the mechanism that drives it, and the KPI used to measure its performance. With WhatsApp Business Platform features such as Click-to-WhatsApp ads, interactive messages, Flows, chatbots, a team inbox, orchestration, CDP, and analytics, you can unlock these gains.

Higher reach and engagement

• Mechanism: Promote opt-ins through Click-to-WhatsApp ads, QR codes, wa.me links, web widgets, and in-app prompts.Templated messages sent within ads free-entry point are without costs for 72 hours, which boosts acquisition and early engagement.
• KPIs: Opt-in growth rate, read rate, response rate, click-through rate. Benchmark performance against WhatsApp’s typical results: 2–10x higher CTR and up to 42% sales compared to other channels.

Faster speed-to-response and resolution

• Mechanism: Use a shared team inbox with SLAs and business hours. Deflect calls to chat and route messages to the right agent.
• KPIs: Speed to first response, average response time, resolution time, resolution rate.

Structured, interactive experiences that reduce drop-off

• Mechanism: Guide customers with interactive buttons and lists. Build end-to-end WhatsApp Flows for tasks like booking, ordering, and feedback to keep journeys inside the chat.
• KPIs: Step-completion rate, form completion rate, drop-off points per step.

Personalization at scale

• Mechanism: Merge CRM or CDP segments and variables into templates and journeys. Trigger messages based on behavior or lifecycle stage.
• KPIs: CTR, conversion rate, revenue per conversation, repeat engagement.

Automation and self-service

• Mechanism: Deploy a chatbot for FAQs, triage, and transactional Flows. Automate common requests and hand off to agents when needed.
• KPIs: Containment rate, average handle time reduction, deflection from voice or email, bot CSAT for resolved sessions.

Compliant outreach and customer trust

• Mechanism: Capture explicit opt-in, use approved message templates, and apply frequency caps. Send from a verified business profile with end-to-end encryption.
• KPIs: Quality rating, complaint rate, opt-out rate, template approval rate.

Seamless handoff and agent productivity

• Mechanism: Transfer from bot to human with full context. Apply skills-based routing and queue management in the team inbox.
• KPIs: Reassignment rate, queue time, agent utilization, CSAT. Aim for high CSAT outcomes seen by enterprise brands on WhatsApp.

Unified data and actionable analytics

• Mechanism: Consolidate customer profiles, consent, and journey events. Attribute outcomes across entry points, messages, and conversions with real-time reporting. 
• KPIs: Assisted conversions, ROAS or ROI, cohort performance, lifetime value uplift.

Cost effective solution

• Mechanism: Shift high-volume support to WhatsApp, automate repetitive tasks, and use ads that grant 72-hour free conversations to lower acquisition and servicing costs. 
• KPIs: Cost per conversation, cost per resolution, service cost reduction, CAC by entry point.

Security and compliance

• Mechanism: Protect data with end-to-end encryption, verified sender, role-based access, and governance over consent, templates, and retention.
• KPIs: Audit pass rate, data incident rate, template rejection rate, compliance SLA adherence.

The Essential Compliance Checklist

Opt-in standards and proof of consent storage

• Capture explicit consent before sending business-initiated messages. Use clear entry points like Click to WhatsApp ads, QR codes, wa.me links, and web or in-app prompts that state purpose and frequency.
• Store proof of consent with source, timestamp, purpose, and channel. Maintain an audit trail for updates and withdrawals.
• Apply suppression rules for opt-outs and set frequency caps to protect quality and trust.

Data privacy, retention, and role-based access

• Protect conversations with end-to-end encryption and a verified business profile.
• Set retention policies for chat transcripts, consent records, and reporting. Limit access with role-based permissions and enforce approval workflows for templates and broadcasts.
• Centralize consent and profile data to keep personalization compliant across journeys and channels.

Infobip provides verified onboarding, consent management, template governance, encryption, and analytics, so you can launch quickly while remaining compliant.

Implementation blueprint to unlock benefits

Step 1: Set up your WABA and verified sender

• Register your WhatsApp Business account and verify your business. This builds trust and ensures all chats are end-to-end encrypted.
• Use Infobip’s cloud apps or API to onboard fast and connect to your stack.

Step 2: Capture opt-ins with source and purpose

• Add entry points across your touchpoints: Click-to-WhatsApp ads, QR codes, wa.me links, web widgets, and in-app prompts. Templated messages started via CTWA are free for 72 hours, which lowers acquisition cost and boosts early engagement.
• Store opt-in source, timestamp, purpose, and channel. Apply suppression rules for withdrawals.

Step 3: Prepare core templates

• Create and submit templates for welcome, utility updates, marketing offers, and authentication OTPs. Map each to the right conversation type and personalize with variables and media where allowed.
• Keep templates concise, clear, and compliant.

Step 4: Build interactive flows and FAQs

• Design WhatsApp Flows for tasks like lead capture, booking, ordering, surveys, and payments so customers complete journeys inside the chat.
• Deploy a chatbot to handle FAQs, triage intents, and trigger transactional Flows with agent handoff when needed.

Step 5: Configure routing, SLAs, and a team inbox

• Set business hours, SLAs, and skills-based routing. Use a shared team inbox to manage queues, apply priority rules, and keep full context during bot-to-human transfers.
• Deflect voice calls to WhatsApp to reduce service cost and speed resolution.

Step 6: Connect CRM/CDP and dashboards, then iterate on KPIs

• Connect your CRM or CDP to personalize messages and manage opt-ins efficiently.
• Use our customer engagement solution to run triggered journeys and A/B tests. Track delivery, clicks, conversions, and assisted outcomes in real time, then optimize based on your KPIs.

How Infobip enables these benefits end-to-end

Infobip brings acquisition, automation, live support, and analytics into one platform so you can run WhatsApp across marketing, commerce, and service at scale. You get rich messaging, chatbots, Flows, verified profiles, payments, integrations, and real-time reporting in a single stack used by 2,500+ enterprise brands globally.

Chatbot building platform (chatbots and Flows)

• Build structured, automated journeys for lead capture, booking, orders, surveys, and payments inside WhatsApp using Flows.
• Triage intents, answer FAQs, and trigger transactional steps. Hand off to an agent with full context when needed.
• Use rich UI elements like buttons, lists, product catalogs, and media to guide customers and reduce drop-off.

Cloud contact center solution (team inbox and routing)

• Manage multi-agent service with a shared workspace, skills-based routing, SLAs, and business hours so chats reach the right person fast.
• Keep conversation history and bot context visible to agents for seamless resolution. Track productivity with advanced analytics.
• Deflect calls to WhatsApp for lower service cost and quicker resolutions.

Customer engagement solution (journey orchestration and failover)

• Orchestrate triggered campaigns and lifecycle journeys with segmentation and A/B testing. Optimize send time and creatives by cohort.
• Run omnichannel continuity with failover to SMS, RCS, and more when WhatsApp is unavailable or consent wasn’t given.
• Connect ad clicks to conversations. Use combined analytics to attribute conversions and ROI across entry points and messages.

Customer data platform (profiles, consent, segmentation)

• Unify profiles, consent, and behavioral signals. Segment audiences and personalize templates with variables at scale.
• Store opt-in source, timestamp, and purpose. Apply suppression lists and frequency caps to protect quality ratings.
• Measure delivery, seen, clicks, conversions, and assisted outcomes to improve KPIs month over month.

Example use cases by industry

Retail and e-commerce

• Journey: Click to WhatsApp ad → guided Flow for preferences and product discovery → assisted checkout with catalog and payments → post-purchase care with order updates and feedback.
• Features: Interactive buttons and lists, product catalogs, payments, chatbot triage with agent handoff, combined ad and messaging analytics.
• KPIs: Opt-in growth, CTR, conversion rate, average order value, repeat purchase rate, CSAT.
• Proof: Brands report 2–10x higher CTR and up to 42% sales lift on WhatsApp. Unilever achieved 14x sales via a WhatsApp chatbot; Nissan saw a 138% increase in leads.

Financial services and fintech

• Journey: Eligibility check and document collection in WhatsApp → OTP authentication → advisor handoff with full context → reminders for onboarding, payments, and statements.
• Features: Authentication templates, secure messaging, chatbots for KYC FAQs, team inbox routing, verified profile for trust.
• KPIs: Completion rate, time to approval, drop-off rate by step, monthly engagement, CSAT.
• Proof: Financial services use WhatsApp for onboarding and service with strong engagement and satisfaction; Mukuru achieved 80% CSAT on WhatsApp. Angel Broking onboarded 39% of prospects and reached 47% monthly engagement.

Education and events

• Journey: Program matcher in WhatsApp → syllabus and materials sharing → booking and payment → reminders and updates.
• Features: WhatsApp Flows for end-to-end journeys, rich media for documents and videos, reminders via approved templates, agent support for complex queries.
• KPIs: Registration rate, payment completion, no-show reduction, engagement rate, NPS.

Travel and hospitality

• Journey: Trip planning Flow with preferences → tailored offer and booking → receipt and itinerary updates → concierge support in chat.
• Features: Interactive messages, location sharing, transactional notifications, chatbot self-service with agent handoff, omnichannel failover where needed.
• KPIs: Lead-to-booking conversion, upsell rate, response time, CSAT, repeat bookings.

FAQs about WhatsApp Business benefits