Enhancing Customer Engagement and Streamlining the Shopping Experience With Facebook Instant Messaging Apps
Facebook's instant messaging apps, such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram Direct, rank among the top 5 most widely used social media platforms in Hong Kong. There is a growing trend of utilising these messaging apps for business growth, further facilitated by Facebook's integration of e-commerce tools across its platforms. This integration allows businesses of various scales to leverage social media for commercial purposes, streamlining the shopping experience for customers. Consequently, customers can communicate conveniently and make payments directly through these messaging apps.
Simplifying the process of acquiring proactive customers
Engaging in direct dialogues with clients via instant messaging applications once they've spent time knowing your brand simplifies the customer acquisition process. You may also integrate Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp website plugins into your site, allowing clients to contact you straight from the site and reducing the customer journey.
Increasing opportunities for successful transactions
Allowing customers to communicate with online salespeople in real time improves the purchasing experience. Sales professionals that respond quickly to inquiries and make tailored product suggestions assist in developing brand confidence and improve cross-selling and upselling prospects. Facebook has launched "Facebook Pay," a payment service that allows users to use PayPal or credit cards to conduct purchases and transactions on Facebook Messenger, Instagram Direct, and WhatsApp. This function, however, is presently unavailable in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Facebook users are supposed to have a smooth purchasing experience once it launches.
Showcasing your sales services to customers
Using instant messaging apps as a customer service station allows customers to communicate directly with businesses according to their needs and preferences, providing quick solutions to queries. Customers can reach out to business premises directly from Facebook or Instagram, saving time searching for contact methods on websites or using email, which may not guarantee immediate responses. Moreover, conversations are preserved within the instant messaging app, making it easy to follow up in the future. Facebook's customer service center engages in instant discussions or guides users to solve issues on Messenger after they leave a question, exemplifying excellent customer service.
Real time communication
Customers and companies may have real-time dialogues regarding the shopping experience and product specifics, which leads to product or service reservations. Furthermore, firms might give incentives to encourage clients who enquired but did not complete purchases in the past. Using chat chats also allows for better post-sales assistance, which helps increase client support and loyalty.
Chatbot for automated responses
Pre-programming commonly requested questions and answers into chatbots decreases customer wait time for inquiries, shortening the customer journey and reducing the likelihood of consumers leaving in the middle of an encounter. Facebook Business Suite allows you to customise automatic replies or use alternative automated reply solutions for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, such as Chatfuel, Chatstify, and Wati.
Messenger Ad for real-time conversations
Through product previews and introductions, Messenger Ads boost possibilities to engage potential buyers and obtain real-time inquiry answers. Advertisements may be scheduled to display on Facebook and Instagram, with connections to Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram Direct.
Facebook Messenger's default chat settings
1. Setting up automated responses
You may set up simple automatic answers in Facebook Business Suite by selecting "Inbox" from the left list and clicking "Automated Responses" on the top right to begin modifying. Greetings, departing messages, and default inquiries are examples of commonly used automated answers, each with its own set of options. These automatic answers are available on both Facebook Messenger and Instagram Direct, with different options for each.
2. Greetings and departures
Creating welcoming answers provides messages to new users, introducing your brand and encouraging them to enquire about your products and services. You may also set up departure messages to notify consumers that you are temporarily outside of office hours and unable to react promptly. These automatic answers can be timed to ensure that companies are not bothered during off-hours.
3. Frequently asked questions
Shops frequently receive repeated inquiries regarding company hours, locations, quotes, new/promotional goods, and appointment times. Businesses save time by automating replies to commonly requested queries. Following the establishment of these questions, a list is supplied for clients to ask further questions or access connections to the business's website, making it easier for them.
When users click on adverts, Facebook assesses which instant messaging program (Facebook Messenger, Instagram Direct, WhatsApp) they are most likely to use and immediately leads them there. Customers who are comfortable with and often use their favourite instant messaging program, according to Facebook, will find it simpler to have pleasant chats with companies, promoting successful purchases. Currently,
Facebook is testing a new Messenger tool within Facebook Pages that utilises short surveys to collect consumer requests for products or services and contact information for companies to follow up with. This enables businesses to grasp fundamental information before contacting clients, allowing them to filter prospective business prospects and save time for both sides. On Instagram profiles, brands can add WhatsApp buttons, enabling customers to inquire about product details and address shopping-related questions directly through WhatsApp, gradually leading to completed transactions.
The Facebook instant messaging apps are popular in Hong Kong. If businesses can proficiently utilize them, it can bring more business opportunities, while customers can enjoy a seamless shopping experience, benefiting both parties.