Leveraging Instant Messaging Platforms

Should you treat email, SMS, and WhatsApp the same? Absolutely not. Email is expected. It’s the channel customers check when they have time. It’s passive, it sits quietly in the inbox. SMS and WhatsApp are different - they interrupt. They live next to messages from partners, friends, group chats. You’re not just competing with other brands, you’re stepping into someone’s personal life. If you're going to use those channels, the message has to earn its place. What’s worthy? A product drop with real demand. A time-sensitive, high-impact promotion. A restock alert for something I actually wanted. “New arrivals” and “browse the latest” might be fine for email, but they're lazy content for SMS or WhatsApp. If you’re working across multiple platforms, the question isn’t just what you’re saying, it’s how, where, and when you're saying it. We should be considering: Sequencing: If the customer received the offer via email this morning, should SMS follow up tomorrow if unopened? Or should WhatsApp be used only if they’ve historically engaged there? Suppression logic: Avoid over-messaging. Are we throttling based on frequency and channel mix? Personalisation by behaviour: Does the channel match the customer's engagement pattern? (E.g. only send SMS to those who click and convert from it.) Context-aware content: Messaging should feel native to the channel. WhatsApp shouldn’t feel like an email copy-paste. SMS shouldn't mimic a website banner. Most importantly: your customer is one person. They deserve a joined-up, intentional journey, not three disconnected nudges about the same thing.

I met a D2C founder yesterday who's running a ₹30 Cr ARR of business purely on WhatsApp. No website, no app - just Instagram ads leading a chat. The first advice I give any Ecommerce founder - regardless of channel is, get a good website. It’s the first port of call. Where the customer discovers you. Is that changing? Think about your own behavior. If you have any concern with a brand - what’s your first port of call? Interestingly on research, unicorns like Zepto, Meesho and ShareChat all started from WhatsApp. I bet, it’s the app that you open most in a day (if it’s not, I hope it’s in Instagram 😂) Here's why I believe this channel will enable a lot of commerce: 1/ The Original Quick Commerce Long before apps came in, our local kiranawala and sabziwala were doing business on WhatsApp. Customers WhatsApp their orders, and items are delivered right to their doorstep. 530+ million people and 15 million businesses use this app in india - that’s more than 1/3rd of our population. And, it’s across income segments. 2/ Conversations over Business One stat which I always find fascinating, while emails get just 20-30% opens, WhatsApp messages see 80-90% opens. It pops on your phone - at lease you’ll see it. I saw this at Dr. Vaidya’s. Emails are work like & transactional. While WhatsApp messages are like receiving messages from a friend. That personal touch is what businesses are leveraging. 3/ Building Loyal Communities Most D2C brands struggle with customer retention. But, WhatsApp groups turn transactional customers into community members. Sharing feedback, recommending products to others and even helping each other. The new age word of mouth. There are of course challenges with the platform now. With the opening of business apps, there’s a lot of spam. I have now archived almost every business message. And, cluttered inboxes mean that the open rates may fall. Think about it, it’s now normal to have 100s of unread WhatsApp texts like you do with email. I’d say, the benefits outweigh the challenges. Every single D2C brand in 2025 will need to have a WhatsApp strategy like they do with performance marketing and SEO. I guess WhatsApp is making it even more evident that Bharat buys from people it trusts, not from websites that exist. Thoughts? #Startups #WhatsApp #D2C #marketing #retention

The biggest hack in growing a business in 2025 is understanding consumer behaviour, especially when it comes to platforms. From my research and experience, different audiences interact with content differently and belong to communities in unique ways. Outside the US, WhatsApp is the go-to platform for communication and community. No wonder all the top brands now have WhatsApp channels and communities. To put this in perspective, WhatsApp has over 2 billion global users, making it the leading messaging app in many regions outside the US. Brands are leveraging WhatsApp’s group and community features, which support up to 1,024 members per group and up to 50 groups within a community, to build highly engaged audiences. We conducted a litmus test on community building and engagement. We discovered that email open rates, Slack engagement, and other platforms performed considerably lower compared to WhatsApp. For example, WhatsApp messages have an average open rate of 98%, while email open rates hover around 21-25%. Conversion rates on WhatsApp can reach 45-60%, significantly higher than the 2-5% typically seen with email or SMS campaigns. Now, with the rise of AI, WhatsApp automation and chatbots are helping businesses increase engagement, boost appointment show-up rates, and drive overall sales. Businesses using WhatsApp chatbots have reported up to a 60% increase in sales, 3x higher customer conversion rates, and a 30% reduction in operational costs. These AI-powered tools enable personalised, real-time communication, which 72% of consumers say makes them more likely to engage, and 66% have made purchases after interacting with a brand on WhatsApp. As a founder, you should not only tailor your customer journey to the platforms your audience already uses but also start leveraging AI to speed up conversations and free up your time. Building and managing communities on WhatsApp, using sub-groups, broadcast lists, and polls, keeps engagement high and fosters a sense of belonging. If you’d like to learn more about how WhatsApp can help you scale your business, I’m happy to chat. ♻️ Repost and Share with someone who needs this strategy #socialmedia #digitalmarketing #ai #marketing #growth #community #communitybuilder #whatsapp #aiautomation