WhatsApp Marketing Campaigns that Work!

101 – How to run WhatsApp Marketing Campaigns that Work !

More businesses are turning to rich messaging apps like WhatsApp to engage their customers and clients due to it’s global reach of over 2 Billion+ active users and 600 Million daily users that engage a business using the app every day. At Payemoji, we support many businesses to run WhatsApp Marketing Campaigns and people ask us the key steps to set-up and run an effective WhatsApp Marketing Campaign. Using these key steps we regularly achieve 90%+ open rates, and 30-40% Click Through Rates.  

So here they are …

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1. Get a META Verified Badge (Blue Tick)

One of the best advantages of Business Messaging Apps like WhatsApp is the verified sender that cannot be spoofed, as compared to SMS, and email. A verified badge (Blue tick) on a business profile gives customers more confidence when engaging with a business on WhatsApp, customers know and trust they are talking to the real business and not some fraudster impersonating the business.

The steps to get your META verified badge for your WhatsApp Business Account

• Apply for verification here. You must have Meta Admin permissions.  

• You must provide supporting documentation links

• Articles, blog posts or independent reviews that show your business is well-known and recognised by consumers.

• Do not include the following i.e. Your website , Your Facebook or Instagram page, Self-published, paid, or promotional content

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2. Opt-In for WhatsApp communication

One of the key messages I always tell people is to add a clause to allow your business to contact customers and prospects via WhatsApp and any other messaging apps added to your Terms & Conditions. Unlike email and SMS marketing where you can (technically, not legally) send unsolicited messages to prospects, WhatsApp marketing requires explicit Opt-in before sending a marketing message otherwise your WhatsApp business account will be flagged. And even blocked.  

It's critical therefore for WhatsApp marketing to build up Opt-in contact lists  

• Opt-In Forms: Add a WhatsApp button on your website or landing pages, allowing users to opt-in for updates, offers, or exclusive content.

• Social Media: Promote your WhatsApp contact number on your social media profiles and ask followers to reach out for more personalized service or offers.

• Contests & Giveaways: Use contests as an opportunity to collect WhatsApp numbers. Let people enter by sending a message to your business via WhatsApp.

• QR Codes: Generate a WhatsApp QR code that leads directly to your business account, making it easier for customers to connect.

• WhatsApp Opt-in campaigns: You can also run a campaign to all customer numbers updating your T&Cs and offering customers to Opt-in or Opt-out of future communications.

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3. Understanding daily WhatsApp messaging limits

META / WhatsApp have introduced a concept of maximum number of businesses initiated messages (business to user) a WhatsApp business phone number can open within a 24 hour (moving) period. The goal here is to protect users from excessive messaging from a business (e.g. Spam, unsolicited communications). Also, these controls are an incentive to businesses to ensure messages are relevant as they do not want to have their account blocks.  

All businesses start with a daily limit of 250 business initiated messages, and this can then be automatically scaled as follows based on quality:

• 1K business-initiated conversations

• 10K business-initiated conversations

• 100K business-initiated conversations

• An unlimited number of business-initiated conversations

This is why it’s key to work with a WhatsApp Business Platform partner like Payemoji to ensure you can scale your messaging limits and avoid being blocked or restricted. You can learn more on WhatsApp messaging limit restrictions here.

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4. Always monitor WhatsApp Messaging Quality

When running WhatsApp marketing campaigns, it’s essential to consider messaging quality as rated by WhatsApp. According to META, messaging quality is determined by a combination of quality signals from conversations between your business and WhatsApp users. Examples include user feedback signals like blocks, reports and the reasons users provide when they block a business. Also, how many messages a user receives in a 24 hour window.  

You can find the quality rating below the Phone numbers tab in your Meta WhatsApp Manager. The Quality rating column displays the quality states, including:

• Green: High quality
• Yellow: Medium quality
• Red: Low quality

You can become eligible for more features when your business maintains a High quality rating. When the user blocks your business, they can select a block reason, including No longer needed, Didn’t sign up, Spam, Offensive messages or No reason. If your quality rating is medium or low, you can hover over the rating in the WhatsApp Manager to view the insights into the block reasons if they're available. This can help your businesses understand the details around user block reasons, avoid continuing to send low quality templates and mitigate the risk of more customers blocking your phone number.

It is normal for WhatsApp Business numbers with high traffic to experience quality changes (e.g. High – medium – Low) within short intervals (even within minutes). We believe it’s critical to monitor these signals and schedule campaigns over a 24 to 72 hours depending on the campaign size and the message limits set for your business.

Your business phone number's status, quality rating, and messaging limits are displayed in the WhatsApp Manager > Account tools > Phone numbers panel.

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5. Allow customers to Opt-out

Unlike other channels such as SMS and email, customers can at anytime block a WhatsApp Business account and this can have an adverse impact on your WhatsApp business account quality and message limits.  

This is why Payemoji always recommends adding a ‘Not Interested’ Call To Action Button or ‘Unsubscribe’ option. It is far better for your WhatsApp business quality which will not be impacted if customers click ‘Not Interested’ vs. blocking the WhatsApp Business which will impact quality of your account. Of course, any customers that do click on ‘Not Interested’ must be removed from the campaign or listed as Opt-out in your CRM.

6. Make campaigns visually attractive e.g. Multimedia Content

The beauty of WhatsApp is that you can engage your audience with images, videos, voice messages, and even documents, making your campaigns more dynamic and engaging. You pay the same price for a text based or multi-media based business initiated WhatsApp market message, but the engagement rates are far better for multi-media based campaigns  

• Images: Share an image relevant to your campaign or business e.g. weekly 2 for 1 special.  

• Product Demonstrations: Share short videos showcasing how your product works or its benefits.

• Exclusive Discounts: Send personalized image-based coupons that users can redeem in-store or online.

• Customer Testimonials: Share videos or voice notes from happy customers to build social proof.

Multimedia content can increase engagement rates and make your messages stand out in a crowded inbox.

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8. WhatsApp with fallback to SMS or other channels.

While WhatsApp is by far the most ubiquitous business messaging app, in the UK and Ireland 80% of people have WhatsApp on their phone or may not have access to internet on their phone (e.g. are roaming internationally and have mobile data turned off). As such it’s critical to offer a fallback option to SMS when the end user does not have WhatsApp. While the campaign message over SMS will not be as interactive and support multi-media like WhatsApp it will ensure your engagement rate remains high compared to missing the customer. You can also ask the customer to enable WhatsApp and opt-in to communications.

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9. Segment Campaigns by your Audience

This is a generic recommendation that is applicable to any good marketing campaign. Not all customers or prospects are the same, and sending the same message to everyone can hurt your engagement rates and also your WhatsApp business quality. Segmenting your audience based on interests, demographics, buying behaviour, or other relevant factors allows you to send highly personalized messages that resonate with different groups. For example,  

• By Purchase History: Send personalized offers based on a customer’s past purchases.

• By Location: Send location-based offers or event updates for customers within a specific region.

• By Engagement Level: Send more targeted and exclusive offers to highly engaged customers, and re-engagement campaigns to dormant users.

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10. Craft Personalized WhatsApp Messages

Another recommendation that is not specific to WhatsApp, but to any marketing campaign is Personalization. WhatsApp unlike email and SMS is a more personal channel and it’s crucial to take advantage of this by crafting messages that speak directly to your audience's needs. For example, the following recommendations to make your WhatsApp campaigns more personal.

• Use the Customer’s Name: Address your customers by their first name to make the message feel more personal.

• Keep it Short and Sweet: WhatsApp is a messaging platform, not an email. Avoid lengthy messages and focus on being concise.

• Include Emojis: Emojis can help convey emotion and make your messages more engaging. However, don’t overdo it—balance is key.

• Clear Call-to-Action (CTA): Every message should have a clear CTA, such as "Click to shop," "Reply to this message for details," or "Click here to get 10% off."

The more you make your customers feel like they’re receiving a message specifically tailored for them, the higher your chances of driving conversions.  

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11. Use WhatsApp Status for Updates

The WhatsApp Status feature lets users share images, videos, or text updates that disappear after 24 hours. This can be a great tool for sharing limited-time offers, new product launches, or behind-the-scenes content. This can help make your campaign more effective by offering

• Exclusive Offers: Share time-sensitive promotions that encourage immediate action.

• New Product Launches: Keep your audience updated on new arrivals or services.

• Customer Stories: Highlight customer stories or testimonials to inspire others.

Be mindful of how frequently you post. Over posting can be a turn-off, so ensure your updates are valuable and relevant. This can have an adverse effect again on message limits and quality.

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12. Automate WhatsApp Messages

Automation can save you a lot of time and ensure a smooth customer experience. WhatsApp Business platforms like Payemoji provide automated features such as quick replies, flows, surveys, catalogs, questionnaires or even WhatsApp AI. For example:  

• Welcome Messages: Automatically send a welcome message when a customer contacts you for the first time.

• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Set up quick replies to handle commonly asked questions, such as business hours or delivery policies.

• Order Confirmations: Automatically confirm orders or bookings via WhatsApp, which adds a personal touch while saving you time.

• Product catalogs: supercharge your web ecommerce by adding WhatsApp naïve catalogs, carts, payments.

• WhatsApp AI or other LLMs: By integrating AI with Call To Actions this can make the campaign more effective and interactive. For example, customer can ask ‘tell me about your specials?’

While automation helps, ensure your customers have a way to reach out to a real person if needed.

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13. Reporting - Measure & Optimize Campaign Performance

No campaign is complete without tracking its performance. WhatsApp provides some basic analytics for business accounts, but you should also track other metrics, such as click-through rates, response rates, and conversions.

• Delivery rates: It’s important to understand how many of your WhatsApp messages are actually delivered. This will be key when measuring engagement rates.

• Open Rates: WhatsApp messages have a higher open rate than emails. Track how many of your messages are being opened and read.

• Response Rates: Monitor how many people are engaging with your messages. A low response rate may indicate a need for more compelling content.

• Conversion Rates: Track how many recipients are taking the desired action, such as making a purchase or signing up for your newsletter.

• Bounce rates / unsubscribed: Also, critical to understand how many unsubscribes you have received. This can help you adapt your campaigns to be more engaging and targeted.

Use this data to refine your messaging, segmentation, and approach over time to ensure continuous improvement.

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Final Thoughts

WhatsApp marketing offers an incredible opportunity for businesses to engage customers on a platform they use daily. By building a targeted list, crafting personalized messages, using multimedia, and leveraging automation, you can run effective campaigns that drive results.

The key to success lies in balancing the personal nature of WhatsApp with strategic, well-thought-out campaigns. Remember, the more value you provide, the more engaged your customers will become, ensuring your campaigns are a success.

If you're ready to tap into the power of WhatsApp for your business, start small, track your results, and optimize your efforts. Get in touch with Payemoji and Happy messaging!  

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