On Thursday, Meta introduced services ranging from verifying and authenticating businesses to integrating its own AI into customers’ chats on WhatsApp Business. The features are being tried out first in India and Brazil. In the coming months, they will be rolled out to more countries, Meta’s vice president of business messaging, Nikila Srinivasan, said in a media interaction.
Meta is launching these new services for WhatsApp Business in its largest markets, starting with India and Brazil. These enhancements aim to improve business verification and customer interaction through AI, with plans to expand to other countries after the initial rollout.
Meta Verified Launched to Combat Fraud
Announced at Meta’s Conversations 2024 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Meta Verified aims to reduce fraud and ensure users interact with genuine businesses. It also protects businesses from impersonation. The feature will be available in India, Brazil, Indonesia, and Colombia first and will expand to other countries over time.
Meta’s vice president of business messaging, Nikila Srinivasan, said that a thorough verification process will be used to grant businesses the Meta Verified badge. This badge will be visible on their channel and custom WhatsApp page. Verified businesses will receive better account support from Meta and can use WhatsApp across multiple devices for their employees.
New Tools for Small Businesses
Small businesses will be able to use an ‘Ad Manager’ tool to send relevant messages to the right users, improving their return on investment and allowing for more meaningful engagement. This feature is being tested in countries like Mexico and Indonesia. Meta is enhancing WhatsApp for businesses by introducing AI into chats, which can be activated by the business to use resources more efficiently. Consumers will be informed when they are chatting with AI. The WhatsApp Small Business App will also get an AI assistant to help businesses create ads for Instagram and Facebook.
Additionally, AI tools will help businesses follow up with customers on purchases, assist in finding products or services, and offer discounts.
Anti-Spam Feature on WhatsApp
Spam messages are increasing on chat platforms like WhatsApp. To combat this, Meta’s AI tools will optimize marketing and help businesses avoid spamming potential customers.
“We hear from businesses that they won’t achieve their goals by spamming people,” said Nikila Srinivasan. “They want to reach people who will engage with and want to receive their messages. Investing in improving user experience on WhatsApp remains a top priority for us.”
Expanding AI and Calling Features on WhatsApp Business
Meta aims to create various AI assistants tailored to different business needs, aligning them with specific products and services. This will help businesses scale more effectively. Currently, the AI is being tested with a few English-speaking businesses in India and Singapore, with plans to expand to Brazil soon, according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg at the event in Sao Paulo.
A calling feature within WhatsApp Business chats is also being tested in India and Brazil. This feature allows consumers to call large businesses directly to resolve issues. Previously available only for small businesses, this feature will now help consumers with complex requests that need customer care assistance.
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