New WhatsApp AI tools

At its global conference, “Conversations”, in São Paulo, Brazil, Meta announced new, free, AI tools for its WhatsApp Business users that will improve their experience with the platform, and make it easier for them to connect with their customers.

What are the new WhatsApp AI features?

WhatsApp business users will be able to use Meta’s Ads Manager to create Facebook and Instagram ads that link directly to WhatsApp. This means customers can contact businesses directly from ads, and businesses will be able to remind customers about items left in their shopping cart, and offer bespoke purchase-related discounts.

They’ll be able to create and send targeted messages to sub-set groups of customers, rather than blanket-sending all updates to all customers, strengthening message relevance for key customers.

Meta is testing an AI-powered customer support feature (in India and Singapore, initially) that answers common customer queries, related to FAQs and catalog content, to make it easier for businesses to respond to questions, and help their customers find the information they need, quickly (they are making sure it’s clear that the responses are AI-generated, though).

It’s also introducing Meta Verified badges for WhatsApp business users in Brazil, India, Indonesia, and Colombia. This verification will give them better account support, let their customers know they’re affiliated with Meta, and allow them to use WhatsApp on multiple devices, streamlining customer interaction and communication processes.

Finally, Meta is launching a ‘one-tap’ calling feature for larger businesses that allows their customers to call them directly from WhatsApp, which will help with complex requests like organizing travel arrangements or opening a new bank account, where a live, 121 conversation would be easier and less time-consuming than a back-and-forth text-based conversation.

Why is Meta releasing these new features (for free)?  

Meta is offering these new AI features to business users for free because it sees a huge opportunity in conversational commerce: It wants to leverage AI to help its business users scale their commerce efforts by having more conversations with more customers, as conversations are their biggest revenue driver within the WhatsApp Business platform.

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