WhatsApp launched a new standalone app for its business users in January, this year. At first, the app was accessible only for the people who have the official invitation from WhatsApp. Later, they opened it for public and anyone with a valid business can use this app on their smartphone devices. Now, a data released by the Facebook reveals that the WhatsApp Business app has over 3 million users globally. That’s a great achievement for such a category specific app on Android ecosystem.
For those who use a business number and a personal one, both the WhatsApp Business and WhatsApp Messenger apps can be used on the same device and registered with your different numbers. WhatsApp Business is also compatible with WhatsApp Web, the app’s desktop web browser client.
“Over the next five years we’re focused on building out the business ecosystems around our apps like Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger,” Zuckerberg said.
The company has recently introduced the support for WhatsApp payments and such business related features. So it will soon become a commercial sales service as well. WhatsApp Business is still being rolled out, but conversational commerce through things like payments on Messenger will also be important to the social media giant.
“I think what you’re going to start to see are people interacting with Pages that you follow, Pages on Facebook or Instagram,” Zuckerberg said. “You see content from that Page, and you can click through to a message thread, and then you can either get customer support or complete a transaction or do a follow-on transaction, and that will be very valuable for businesses so we view the payment in that context, not as the goal but as something that’s helping the business and the person succeed at having a transaction or doing what they’re trying to do.” – Zuckerberg told Venturebeat.