Does WhatsApp work at work?

People around the world use WhatsApp in powerful ways. Can it work in business?

WhatsApp has been in the news a lot lately. 

A new update will give you multi-device access to your account across IoS and Android. WhatsApp Pay is on the way, which means you’ll soon be able to send money to your friends and businesses through the app.

 It’s obvious that WhatsApp is changing to suit the needs of its 1.5bn users around the world. But for some reason, businesses just don’t seem to get it. Should you use it? How should you use it? Or, perhaps more pertinently, how should you stop people using it? 

 WhatsApp around the world

The Economist recently reported on WhatsApp’s influence in Africa. It’s the continent’s most-used messaging platform. And in a recent election in Nigeria, every one of its 36 states had WhatsApp broadcast groups for both main candidates to relay campaign messages. 

In India, there are over 200m users too. Each day, 600,000 farmers share farming and cultivation techniques over a WhatsApp group called, “Yes, we are farmers”. This is made possible through WhatsApp’s Business feature, which lets you broadcast messages to lots more people than the ordinary 256-person group limit. 

Meanwhile in business…

 At Santander, a secret WhatsApp group for a select bunch senior leaders was made public. This was after the bank entered a dispute with Andrea Orcel, who was appointed CEO and invited into the group, only for his high-profile appointment to then be withdrawn. 

The 40 or so Santander senior leaders who weren’t part of the group - which was named Promontorio (after the family villa of the Santander chairman) - were not amused. 

 Even more recently, KPMG, which is attempting to repair its reputation after the Carillion disaster, has ousted its Head of UK Consulting. This was after an investigation into his conduct involving messages sent on WhatsApp. 

Should your organisation use WhatsApp?

Teams have to collaborate and communicate in real time, from any device, from any place.  The success of your business depends on it. 

If your internal collaboration tools are not good enough - or non-existent - you create a vacuum, which your employees will fill with WhatsApp (or similar). 

Horror stories like those outlined above show the need to invest in consumer-grade internal comms tools and thinking.  WhatsApp may be quick and accessible for everyone with a device. But your organisation is only one human error away from a PR nightmare.

To stop this happening, organisations absolutely have to transform their internal comms to be consumer-grade communications. In an age of technology at our fingertips, why would people settle for second best,  desktop-first, internal comms and collaboration tools?

One of our clients recently integrated Workplace by Facebook with huge success. They’re using it to share news and engage employees. They have control and governance to manage a million threaded conversations. 

WhatsApp opportunities

I think you can use WhatsApp to build meaningful relationships with your customers.

Netflix recently trialled messaging its customers in India via WhatsApp. KLM, the Dutch airline, now sends booking confirmations through the app. And in Brazil, Hellman’s ran a great campaign where they used the platform to put over 13,000 people in touch with chefs around the country to give them recipe advice.

WhatsApp Business is fantastic for broadcasting messages. And another platform, WhatsApp Business API, lets you respond to users individually too. All you need to do is ask for people’s permission in order to sidestep GDPR regulations. 

Do this and WhatsApp is another powerful tool to help you connect with the people that matter most.

How does your organisation use it?

 People will continue to use WhatsApp in business. For better and for worse. I expect to see plenty more slip-ups. I expect to see plenty more successful creative campaigns, especially in the emerging markets.

Have you ever seen the social platform used well in a business environment? If you have, I’d like to hear it.