WhatsApp unveils new business features – users can soon book appointments, order food via chat

Meta unveiled today (September 20) several new business features for WhatsApp at its global Conversations event.

The tech giant will be rolling out Flows, a feature that enables businesses to offer customised experiences that can support the various needs of its customers, all within chat threads.

“For example, a bank will be able to build a way for customers to book an appointment to open up a new bank account, a food delivery service can build a way to place an order from any of its partner restaurants, or an airline can build a way to check in for a flight and pick up a seat, all without having to leave a WhatsApp chat thread. There are a lot of possibilities here,” Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, elaborated.

With Flows, customers will be provided with a much faster and convenient option to purchase services and products, as compared to having to jump between multiple apps and webpages. The new feature will be rolled out across Singapore in the coming weeks.

Additionally, the company is also bringing Meta Verified to businesses, which allows them to receive verification badges, enhanced account support and impersonation protection from Meta. This provides customers with the peace of mind that they are chatting with the right and authentic business.

For businesses interested in signing up, Meta Verified will also come with additional premium features including the ability to create a custom WhatsApp page that makes a business easily discoverable via a web search and multi-device support, which allows a business to have multiple employees responding to customers.

The company will first begin testing Meta Verified with businesses through the WhatsApp Business app, a free-to-use platform specifically intended for small businesses whose primary need is to communicate with customers one-to-one, prior to introducing it to businesses on the WhatsApp Business Platform in the future.

We’re excited to continue building great features for businesses to improve the customer service and other offerings they provide to people and look forward to hearing how these new updates help establish connections, build relationships and get more done.

Featured Image Credit: Meta