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It’s common knowledge now that Whatsapp is one of the most widely used messaging platforms today. It has over 2 billion monthly active users, securing the position of the number one messaging app. This goes to say that at least 90% of your Shopify store’s customers are using the chat app and that means a big marketing opportunity for you.
Many marketers have come to appreciate Whatsapp’s huge base and operation model. Whatsapp isn’t necessarily a broadcasting service, nor is it a traditional messaging platform like SMS. It allows more interactive, media based conversations whilst retaining the personal space emails fail to offer.
Well, more brands are slowly identifying the innumerable marketing opportunities this simple chat app has to offer. But, many miss out on the full potential of Whatsapp by using it for very limited campaigns like one time promotions.
The truth is, you can do so much more with this platform.
With the help of smart automation apps that offer Shopify whatsapp integration like QuickReply.ai, you can realize the true potential of Whatsapp.
Right from customer engagement to recovering abandoned carts, promoting your latest deals and more, with QuickReply.ai, you can do it all on WhatsApp.
But to give you a headstart, we have compiled a comprehensive list of ways you can leverage Whatsapp marketing for Shopify stores.
Let’s get right into it.
Types of WhatsApp Messages Your Shopify Store Should Be Sending
Remember, we’re just giving you ideas on how to use WhatsApp for your Shopify store marketing or customer engagement strategies. The type of messages you do send across will vary based on what your goals are, who your customers are and what they expect to hear from you. Remember, tailor these WhatsApp marketing strategies as per your goals.
1. Abandoned Cart Messages
According to this study, in 2019, the global average cart abandonment rate was 77.13%. Imagine, all those shoppers went through all that trouble to pick and select what they wanted and left it! There could have been a number of reasons for this.
But think about this, what if this 77.13% could be recovered and converted? Leveraging Whatsapp for abandoned cart messages, is possibly the best way to recover carts lost. Here’s how you do it.
Abandoned Cart Reminder
Start by sending your customer a gentle reminder after 15 minutes.
Something like, “Hey, your cart is missing you!”.
This is the first message you send them in the process of Whatsapp cart recovery. It could be that the customer simply got busy with something else and totally forgot about their cart. That’s when a gentle reminder like this can pull them right back in.
Come Back To Cart Reason
After 20 hours, if your customer still hasn’t made that purchase, maybe they are still looking for a reason to buy all that. So, that’s exactly what you give them.
Send them an infographic explaining the many benefits of the products they selected. You could also talk about your store in general and why they should buy from you. This could be a variety of things depending on your industry and market.
Say you are a vegan snacks store, then your Whatsapp cart recovery message should mention keywords like: eco-friendly, natural, organic, 1-day delivery, freshly made, made to order, 5 star reviews, authentic tastes etc.
This type of Whatsapp cart recovery message carries a little more weight than a gentle reminder. Here, you are trying to convince the customer of making that purchase. And by giving them a little info, you are removing any purchase anxiety they might have.
Cart Recovery Message To Create FOMO
But, if that doesn’t work. You create FOMO around your products. FOMO or the fear of missing out is a simple marketing technique to nudge your prospects into conversions. FOMO messages will generally be sent two days after the initial cart abandonment. This message should be something like:
“Hey, a product in your cart is running low on stock. Click on the link below to complete your purchase!”
This creates that fear of losing out on all the hard work the customer did to select this product. And stocks running low implies other people are also buying that product. All the more reason for the customer to complete that purchase.
Cart Recovery With Discount
One of the reasons customers drop their carts could be that they found a better offer somewhere else. Or they are busy doing more market research to find that offer. That’s why after about 4 days, it is recommended that you send them a Whatsapp text with a surprise offer.
This is a special discount, just for them. If they are looking at other stores for better discounts, this will be their reason to complete the purchase on your store!
“Hey, the product is still waiting for you in the cart. Use DISCOUNT10 to get an additional 10% off on the cart total today!”
Abandoned Cart Reminder With Discount And FOMO
And hey, if they still don’t make that purchase, it’s clear they are getting a better deal (or they have completely dropped the idea of buying that product). So, after about 7 days from initial abandonment, offer them a higher discount. But this time with a limited validity. So they don’t wait on it anymore.
Here’s an example:
“Hey, we want to give you an exclusive 20% discount on the ABC product in your cart. Offer valid only for 24 hours. Use the code DISCOUNT20!”
Ask For Feedback On Abandoned Product
At this point, you’ve given the customer enough reasons to convert. And since you are texting them on Whatsapp, it is highly likely that they have seen your messages. If they still haven’t completed that purchase, it’s time to find out why.
After the limited period of your discount runs out, send them a feedback form. This could be a full fledged form or just a simple question like “Why didn’t you complete your purchase?” with options like:
- Too expensive
- Shipping costs too high
- Not required anymore
- Didn’t like the reviews
You can add options best suited for your industry and audience. But use their feedback to analyze what exactly is wrong. In fact, once you have enough data on abandoned carts, run an analysis on it and try to make adjustments on your store accordingly.
Nurture Cart Abandoners On WhatsApp
Anyway, just because the customer didn’t make the purchase this time, doesn’t mean they never will. Every one or two months, be sure to hit them up on Whatsapp and tell them about the latest offers or collections.
This could be a sequence of messages like.
“Hey, how’re you doing? Long time, no see? We have some exciting launches coming up. Click on this link to find out!”
“Hi, our fall season sale is live! All your favorite products at flat 30% off! Click here to avail the offer.”
“Hey, remember us? We are happy to announce a new summer launch...”
“We heard you! We have taken your feedback into consideration. Check out the new update on our website!”
And there you have it. The key is to keep the customer engaged and look for ways to subtly bring them back to the abandoned cart.
QuickReply.ai lets you set up the above cart recovery sequence on WhatsApp in minutes. To know more, book a demo today.
PS. If you want to learn more about abandoned cart recovery on WhatsApp, you can also read our complete guide here: WhatsApp for abandoned cart recovery.
2. Transactional Messages
Sometimes, SMS is just not enough. Text messages often get missed and customers continue contacting support for updates!
But other than that, SMSs are only text messages with limited characters. WhatsApp actually allows interactive media messages - a bigger text message with buttons and images, that is definitely hard to miss.
Order Alerts
This is especially useful whilst sending order updates and alerts, like:
“Hey your payment for Order No. is in process, please wait while we process it.”
Order and payment related updates are generally sensitive information that you need to send quickly to the customer. This is also the time when most online shoppers feel anxiety about the order going through or not.
Since Whatsapp offers end to end encryption, and is lightning fast at getting your message across, it’s a great platform to keep the customer updated.
Order Placed
Further once the order is placed you can send the customer a simple message like:
“Order Placed! Congratulations, your order for items XYZ has been successfully placed! You can track your order here.”
Reduce NDR UsingCOD Confirmation
There are times when online shoppers may place an order for COD by mistake. In this case you don’t want to be facing NDR or non-delivery charges when you treat it as a confirmed order. Use WhatsApp to get confirmation.
“Confirm order. Hey, we have received your order for items XYZ with payment mode, cash on delivery. Please confirm this order here.”
Reduce NDR on Non-delivery For COD Orders
Additionally for COD payers who didn’t receive the order in the first attempt, offer them a cashback or coupon to receive the order to reduce your NDR. This is always a good way to complete that purchase. Send them simple text like:
“Hey, we are sorry you couldn’t receive your order! Here’s an exclusive 10% discount on your order. To get it delivered tomorrow, click here!”
COD to Prepaid Campaigns
You can also go a step further and give the customer an incentive to prepay or complete the payment online for a COD order placed on your store.
“Your order number XX is confirmed for COD. Pay online now for a discount of 10% more on your order total! Click here to pay now.”
Order Cancelled
Sometimes, orders have to be cancelled. Either because the payment didn’t go through, or you ran out of stock. In such a case, it is best to incentivize the customer with a discount coupon for a repeat purchase. Send them a simple Whatsapp text like:
“Order cancelled. Hey, unfortunately, your order for items XYZ has been cancelled due to ABC reasons. However, we have some good news! You can repeat this order with a 10% discount. Here is a 10% off coupon code from us for the inconvenience. Click here to make your repeat purchase.”
Order Dispatched/ Order In Transit
Similarly you can send them a message when the order has been dispatched with a tracking link. This lets the customer know the status of their order, keeping their post-purchase anxiety at bay.
“Hey, your order for the ABC product is on its way to you. You can track your order here <link>”
Order Fulfilled/ Order Delivered
And an order delivered message when it has been successfully fulfilled.
Order delivered messages can also include exclusive coupons valid on further purchases. And also a feedback form on Whatsapp that they can instantly reply to, to rate your service.
“Hey, your order has been delivered. Did you like shopping with us? If you had to, how would you rate the experience on a scale of 1-5?”
Order Feedback
Also, always get general order feedback after 5 days of delivery. So the customer also reviews your product. Whatsapp is a great way to collect reviews, since most customers are used to the UI and can conveniently reply.
“Hey Jane, your order has been delivered. We hope you’re enjoying the product. On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate the product?”
3. Upsell, Cross-sell And Re-sell
Whatsapp is a great platform to get your customers to interact with you more. And by that we mean, buy more from you or buy again from your store. In fact, if you have data on subscribers who haven’t yet made the purchase, you can even trigger upsell campaigns to increase your average order value.
Upsell WhatsApp Message
When you know what a buyer is interested in, use that information to introduce them to something better.
“Hey Jane, we see you liked the 13” TV on our store. But we think the 15” TV with LED display will suit you more. It comes at a 15% discount as well!”
Cross-sell WhatsApp Message
You know what a buyer has bought from you. If there are products that go alongside their purchase, introduce them to the buyer! Set up a smart cross-sell campaign a few days after the delivery of their order.
“Hey, you just bought item XYZ from our store. Customers usually pair it with an item ABC! Click here to add this item to your cart and get an exclusive 10% discount from us!”
Repeat Purchases
Or once your customer has made an order, you can send them a gentle reminder after a few days to repeat the order.
This works especially well for routine orders like paints for example. Send them a simple message with a 1 click link to repeat the purchase, and that can also be clubbed with exclusive offers.
“Hey, you might be running out of Green Acrylic Paint you purchased last month. Click here to repeat that purchase and avail a 10% discount just for you!”
You can also send customers recommendations for their recent purchase. These could be complimentary products, generally bought with an item. Here’s an example:
“Hey, these natural fibre brushes go well with the Green Acrylic Paint you recently bought. Click here to order with your next batch!”
4. WhatsApp Broadcast Messages
Even if you don’t have anything exciting happening at your store, you can still keep the customers engaged through Whatsapp messages.
Feedback Broadcast
Occasionally send them feedback broadcasts to analyze what you should improve. Be it in terms of the storefront experience or the range of products you offer.
“Hey <name>, thank you for being our customer. We just wanted to know if there was one thing you could help us improve, what would it be?”
Also, if you are seeking some deep interaction, talk to your customers with a two-way campaign using QuickReply.ai; automating some messages and stepping in when needed!
Host Giveaways/ Contests/ Similar
Organize giveaways or freebie campaigns to let users win something based on their past purchase.
You can do a spin a wheel contest, or a social media write in! Simply send them a Whatsapp message announcing the campaign, inviting them to participate.
“We’re hosting a spin the wheel event on our store. Come and participate to win upto 50% off on your next purchase.”
Upcoming Discounts And Sales
If you’re planning to launch a sale campaign or discount on a product range, use WhatsApp broadcasts to build up interest or announce them.
“Hey, our ABC collection is going on 25% off in 3 days. Save the date and don’t miss out on big discounts on your favorite products!”
Get Started with WhatsApp Marketing On Your Shopify Store!
That’s not all.
Due to its instantaneous and conversational nature, WhatsApp can be used in a number of ways to nurture your subscribers as well as keep your current customers engaged.
In times when the competition is fierce, you need to ensure that your brand stays on top of the consumer’s mind. With internet users being exposed to an average of 5000 ads per day, you don’t want them walking away simply because they don’t remember you or couldn’t recollect what they bought from you.
At QuickReply.ai, we’re helping Shopify stores turn their WhatsApp marketing strategies into something as powerful and in-depth as their email campaigns.
With our custom flow builder, we enable you to create two-way conversations with customers over WhatsApp; irrespective of what your goal is.
We help you put the best practices in place and make sure that your WhatsApp marketing campaigns never become spammy, add value to your customers and get you actual sales.
FAQ-
1. Are WhatsApp messages used for marketing purposes?
Ans: Yes, WhatsApp messages are used for marketing purposes. In fact, many businesses use it as their primary means of communicating with customers. Companies use it to promote their products or services to potential customers by sending messages through their customer service department or sales team members who work directly with clients on a regular basis. They can even use a bot feature if they want more advanced functionality without having someone spend hours typing out long messages every day!
2. How do I send bulk WhatsApp messages?
Ans: To send a group WhatsApp message, go to the Broadcast module and select Add Broadcast. Then, give the bulk message a name and select WhatsApp as the channel. Tags make it simple to send targeted WhatsApp bulk messages.
3. How can I get free traffic to Shopify Store?
Ans: Simply sharing quality content on social media on a regular basis can bring you consistent free Shopify traffic. You can share product videos on YouTube and Facebook, as well as podcasts on occasion. While publishing content, you should also keep an eye out for the most recent news.
Want to see how QuickReply.ai works for Shopify WhatsApp marketing? Install the WhatsApp marketing app on your Shopify store.
Or Book a demo today
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