Over 1 billion people use WhatsApp on a daily basis in order to stay connected with their friends and family, but it is not the only popular use case that has emerged from the app. WhatsApp users have been increasingly taking advantage of the tool in a number of creative ways for business purposes, utilizing it to contact companies, services or potential clients.

This channel has become a free advertising opportunity for entrepreneurs, but the way it was happening was still quite simple and undeveloped, and consumers sometimes felt insecure when making a purchase through that medium.

For that reason, in the previous months WhatsApp intended to launch new features in Brazil, as a pilot that solved some of these challenges by facilitating communication between companies and their consumers.
With the same target audience as Solomoto, the go-to "Operating System" for SMBs, WhatsApp for Business is primarily targeting small and medium businesses with the aim of helping people connect to the companies they want through a verified, official profile. The app operates in an easy-to-use method, bringing solutions and tools that facilitate professional or business-related contact.

Some of the features you can benefit from are:

1. Free for small and medium businesses to download on Android! (No release via iOS as of yet)

2. A professional business profile which includes a company website, description, address and contact details.

3. Access to messaging statistics such as the number of messages read, delivered and sent.

4.  Sending large-scale, smart notifications (such as delivery confirmations or greetings) and quick saved replies to inquiries.
5. The green checkmark icon next to a contact's name  is said to be available over time: this icon relays that WhatsApp has verified that this contact's phone number belongs to a business account, so the company can be trusted.

Consumers want buying to be more convenient, however, they need a fast-paced, dependable and secure space to make that happen, and that's what WhatsApp is able to be for your business now that their new features are live.

This product shows great promise for being a useful channel for entrepreneurs to reach their consumers, so give it a try!