Meta launches AI for WhatsApp Business: 3 exciting new features from Meta for 2024

Meta has just unveiled exciting new AI capabilities for WhatsApp Business at the Meta Conversations conference in Brazil.

Our co-founder, Artjem Weissbeck, was there to witness the announcements, and we’re thrilled to share the highlights with you.

Here are the top 3 updates we think you should know about.

"I think you're really going to be blown away"

Mark Zuckerberg

CEO, Meta

So you know: these features will only be available in a few countries to begin with (mainly India, Brazil, Singapore and Colombia). Once tested, they're likely to roll out to other markets.

Top 3 new updates for WhatsApp Business

1. WhatsApp AI assistant to save business's time

Meta has introduced a new AI-powered assistant for small businesses using the WhatsApp Business app, designed to streamline customer interactions and improve efficiency. This will roll out first in India and Singapore, and then Brazil.

"We’re training AI to respond to the most popular questions businesses receive on WhatsApp, so they can quickly help customers find the answers they’re seeking" 

Source: Meta

This assistant can handle inquiries, provide personalized recommendations, and even complete transactions, all through natural language processing.

This means businesses can now offer faster, more accurate responses to customer queries, enhancing the overall customer experience.

Plus, this use of AI will minimze the time and resource businesses need to service people in WhatsApp.

Larger businesses not using the app can use software like charles Journeys to set up automated WhatsApp flows to answer questions that can be triggered by certain words used.) 

WhatsApp's new AI assistant helps businesses respond to customers' frequent questions without having to answer them all manually

2. Meta Verified for Business

Another exciting feature announced is Meta Verified for Business – this applies to small businesses using the free WhatsApp Business app in Brazil, Indonesia, India and Colombia for now. We expect it will soon roll out to larger brands (charles customers) using the WhatsApp Business Platform.

This provides a verification badge for businesses on WhatsApp, helping to build trust with customers.

Verified businesses will also get access to enhanced analytics and customer insights, allowing for more strategic decision-making.

A Meta verified badge on WhatsApp looks like this (source). This is why, as we reported, your green WhatsApp Business badge may soon turn blue.

3. WhatsApp voice calling for larger businesses

Meta also announced improvements to calling a business support line on WhatsApp.

Large businesses (in some areas) can now offer high-quality voice and video calls directly through the app, providing another channel for customer engagement.

This feature is particularly useful for consultations, support calls, and even virtual shopping experiences.

7 more WhatsApp Business updates announced

There were also some other updates mentioned:

1. WhatsApp Payments (improved and may reach countries outside Brazil and India soon)
2. WhatsApp Templates library (for WhatsApp Business app users)
3. New features for WhatsApp flows (for app users)
4. AI to create click-to-chat ads on Facebook and Instagram
5. AI message delivery (AI learns about a customers' behavior and sends the appropriate message)
6. Meta AI to appear in other languages (including Portuguese)
7. One-time authentication

We'll let you know more when we hear back from our founder, Addy, who is currently enjoying his time in Brazil :) 

To sum up: WhatsApp Business grows ever stronger

It's clear that WhatsApp Business is essential to any brand's future. Meta is investing heavily in the business arm of its app (the most popular messaging app in the world), in particular in its integration of AI capabilities for businesses.

"Our vision is not just to build a single AI assistant, but also to enable lots of different AIs that can serve different purposes, including for businesses" 

Mark Zuckerberg

CEO, Meta

Improvements like those announced yesterday signal that businesses can continue to grow WhatsApp strategies and conversations with customers far into the future, and continue profiting from this hugely popular app.

We recommend that every brand in Europe takes advantage of the growing momentum around WhatsApp marketing and service in 2024.

Does your brand use WhatsApp?

If so, amazing 🤩 

If not, if you're a small business, you can just download the WhatsApp Business app for free and get started now.

If you're a medium to large business, you'll need to use a platform from a WhatsApp Business Solution Provider, like charles.

We offer WhatsApp automation, marketing and conversations on an easy-to-use interface – combined with excellent support to ensure ROI and GDPR compliance

Talk to us for a free tour of our leading European WhatsApp marketing platform, focused on ROI, GDPR, analytics and excellent customer support. 

Want to know more about WhatsApp Business?

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