Dec. 23, 2024
is the most popular communication app in the world! Hong Kong has approximately 2 billion active users worldwide and 5.94 million monthly active users. It has the highest penetration rate of any communication platform.
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Many SME merchants efficiently handle customer inquiries using the free personal version of or Business. The free version, however, has limited functionalities. Do you frequently find yourself copying and pasting responses to customer inquiries? Do you require store staff to handle customer inquiries?
Business API is designed to support businesses in resolving these issues by offering a variety of business communication features. Unlike the free Business, merchants must use third-party applications that connect with official suppliers to use API extensions. Third-party applications include VIMOS, a top-notch Marketing Customer Service Solution.
But, how does the Business API differ from Business in terms of functionality? What is the difference in the functionality offered by the myriad of API providers in the market? Read this article and leverage the power of Business API!
Further reading: Useful Functions: 12 Tips to Provide Unparalleled Service
Chatbots are automated software programs that, instead of a human customer service agent, respond to customer inquiries. It can send personalized promotions, reminders, and other messages to customers, which helps to strengthen customer relationships.
Since Apple tightened its user privacy policy in , going through mainstream channels like Facebook and Google is not as ideal as it once was. At this time, the development of , a new marketing channel, does not only encourage customer interaction. In addition, it promotes businesses easily and efficiently! You can simply create a chatbot process whether you are an expert in marketing or new to running an online store! Procedures can be tailored to your needs in order to provide a more enjoyable shopping experience for your customers.
For instance, the online store can pre-set a welcome message, automatic reply, etc. using a chatbot. When a customer inquires, even if live support is unavailable, the chatbot can respond immediately. This saves time and money on customer service while increasing customer loyalty to your brand.
Repetitive questions from customers are normal in a long-standing business. Online stores frequently receive repetitive questions, such as price inquiries, the latest promotions, coupon discounts, etc. In fact, online stores can delegate common queries to keywords autoreply to solve automatically.
Online stores can pre-list some common consumer inquiries and pre-write responses based on those questions. Then, upload the response on a API platform and include relevant keywords like &#;price, color&#; and so on. If there are preset keywords in the customer&#;s query, an automatic reply will be triggered, and the query will be answered immediately.
Further reading: 3 Benefits of Business to Boost Online Store Sales
Interactive messages are also known as template messages. You can also use interactive buttons to answer FAQs or drive more traffic to your online store. According to , merchants must use an approved template message if they want to initiate a conversation with ordinary users.
In contrast to the keyword automatic reply, the other party must enter the specified key phrase to initiate the reply. When customers make inquiries, merchants can add up to three buttons below the message content. This prompts customers to click and answer frequently asked questions by themselves. The buttons in the template message are roughly divided into two categories: &#;Quick Reply&#; and &#;Call to Action (CTA)&#; buttons:
It will be a challenge for eCommerce if Business only allows one person to log in to an account. The customer service team will find it difficult to cope with a large number of inquiries daily. Apart from that, the online store will be unable to meet the demands of multi-person collaboration. By opening the Business API, merchants can use multiple logins to handle conversations together. To manage the progression of conversations effectively, they can assign or transfer discussions to the proper staff.
Business API can also help replacement staff effectively track the progress of the customer&#;s dialogue and understand its context. In the customer data, there is also a &#;Notes&#; section for the follow-up staff to record the consumer&#;s detailed information.
Businesses can use the Business API&#;s tagging feature to categorize and segment their large customer base. Employees can segment customers according to their buying preferences, intentions, demographics, etc., and use these classifications effectively when conducting remarketing.
Following the addition of tags, merchants can create distinct groups for various target customers based on these labels. This allows businesses to send personalized messages to these individual customers.
Customer classification not only assists the team in understanding the needs of various customers. Nevertheless, customer tags enable the team to send broadcast messages to specific customers. Companies can send personalized broadcast messages based on the purchasing behavior or preferences of consumers in different customer groups. Furthermore, they can promote or prompt messages based on their needs.
Further reading: Tips to Increase Customer Engagement via Broadcast
The expansion of Business API can undeniably provide significant benefits to merchants. Given the abundance of Business API providers on the market, how should merchants select the best one for them? In reality, not all suppliers offer the same extension functions and solutions. Before making a decision on a supplier, you must carefully consider whether the solution meets your business needs.
VIMOS compiled a list of functions, communication channels, services, and support offered by major Business API providers for your convenience.
The above information is for reference only
Choose VIMOS and experience complete customer service support in addition to enjoying the functions above. EVERYTHING, from instruction manuals to specialist support, helping you plan a complete online store operation, marketing strategy &#; we got you covered!
In addition, VIMOS users can receive our professional sales and marketing team&#;s &#;Mastering Conversational Marketing in 6 Steps Checklist&#;. In the form of a checklist, the content will share more than 50 conversational marketing tips covering:
The content will be updated on a regular basis to ensure that you never fall behind in conversational marketing!
Extended reading: 3 Ways Chatbot Makes Marketing and Customer Service Easier
VIMOS Sales Dialogue Smart Reply is an automated chat commerce platform designed specifically for SMEs. Our team has created a series of customer management, automatic, and remarketing tools to meet the needs of online customer service, marketing, and sales teams as part of the digital transformation. VIMOS hopes companies will yield more benefits from conversational marketing while also providing their customers with a caring and personal experience.
Functionality is just as important as the brand of your provider! Learn more about the VIMOS Platform by booking a 15-minute demo with us and enjoy a free trial afterward. Let us collaborate to create the best marketing solution for you!
Have you been thinking about using API for business but are unsure what it is or how it works? We have created this first-hand guide to answer all your Business API questions. Here, you&#;ll learn how to create an account, manage contacts and send a message successfully.
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API, also known as Business Platform, is designed for medium to large companies looking to use for messaging at scale. Unlike the Business App, the API does not have a front-end interface and must be connected to a messaging software to send and receive messages.
This gives businesses the freedom to choose a software solution that fits their business needs and have access to advanced features, such as automating conversations and appointment booking, AI tools, sending broadcasts, and more to create personalized customer journeys.
If you're still deciding between API and Business App, the next section is for you. However, if you've already decided on the API and wish to learn more, feel free to skip ahead.
The Business App is intended for micro to small businesses, as it comes with limited multiuser, broadcast and automation capabilities. This makes it difficult for you to handle high volumes of messages and contacts.
Comparing the two Business productsThe API, on the other hand, supports unlimited users and high volumes of broadcasts. When paired with the right API software, businesses can manage conversations with advanced AI and automation and ensure smooth contact synchronization with e-commerce platforms and CRMs, among other advanced capabilities.
Now that you know what you can do with the API, let&#;s see if it's right for your business.
We&#;ve compiled a list below to help you decide if you should get API:
1. Business size and message volume: If you&#;re a medium to large company that deals with a high volume of messages, then the API is your best choice. This will allow you to manage messages efficiently by connecting it to an AI-powered customer conversation management software like respond.io.
2. Integration with e-commerce platforms: Unlike the Business App, you can integrate API with popular e-commerce platforms such as Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce and Magento.
3. Use cases: API is the right choice if you plan to conduct marketing, sales and customer support at scale. For instance, you can create a drip campaign and use AI to automate lead qualification and sales and support inquiries.
4. Verticals: API can benefit businesses in all verticals. In our experience, it has worked well for businesses in the food and beverages (F&B), hospitality, healthcare, education, real estate and retail industries.
5. Regions: If you&#;re operating in regions where is among the most popular messaging apps, such as in Malaysia, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Mexico or the United Kingdom (UK), API allows you to reach customers at the scale required for business growth and success.
<call-out> By using API and respond.io, Qobolak doubled lead conversions. Read the full story here <call-out>
In the next section, we&#;ll show you the features of API that you need to be aware of.
Your business can use API to chat with leads and turn them into customers. While it doesn&#;t have these features natively, software like respond.io have built these features to ensure businesses can maximize API to increase their productivity and revenue.
The API is designed to support a large number of agents. This means you can manage conversations concurrently to handle high message volumes. It also allows various team members to work on incoming inquiries without delay.
Each agent can view real-time updates, access previous conversations, and maintain continuity, ensuring that customers receive prompt, informed responses. With this multi-agent support, businesses can scale their customer service efforts, keeping up with demand and minimizing response times.
If your business faces a large number of inbound messages, your agents might not be able to reply to all of them. To free up their time, you can set up auto reply to instantly respond to lead inquiries.
But that&#;s not all, you can also automatically qualify leads, route them to the right team, or even use AI agents to respond to their inquiries.
As a result, agents are free to perform more important tasks like closing sales or following up with prospects.
API also allows for integration with third-party tools such as CRM systems, e-commerce platforms, and automation software. These integrations can facilitate follow-ups, view the status of a customer in a lifecycle and automate tasks like lead capture.
It fills in the gaps to make your sales and marketing efforts holistic, ensuring that no customer falls through the cracks.
Track metrics like delivery rates, read rates and response times to provide a clear picture of customer engagement. These insights help optimize communication strategies, ensuring messages effectively reach and resonate with the target audience.
More importantly, it allows you to identify underperforming agents or weak processes to improve them. This leads to higher customer satisfaction, better retention rates, and an overall improvement in brand reputation.
When handling sensitive customer information, there&#;s no room for compromise. API is built with strict compliance and security standards, and end-to-end encryption is used on all messages. This ensures only the sender and recipient can read the content
Furthermore, complies with data privacy regulations such as GDPR, helping businesses meet legal requirements for customer data protection. By maintaining high-security standards, businesses using the API can assure customers that their information is safe, building trust and enhancing the brand&#;s reputation for secure communication.
With that said, let&#;s look at how you can get quick API access.
While businesses can get API access directly from Meta, the more popular and convenient way is to access it through Business Solution Providers (BSPs) that offer messaging software. This method, however, affects the pricing and application process.
It is compulsory for businesses to have a Meta Business Portfolio (formerly known as Meta Business account) and a number that is not tied to any Account when applying for API.
What you need to apply for a Business API AccountYou still need one more thing before you can set up a API account: a Business Solution Provider.
Once you have a number and a Meta Business Portfolio account, you need to choose a Business Solution Provider (BSP). It is a third-party company that helps you get access to API.
They are approved by and often provide solutions to enable businesses to send messages, manage customer interactions and integrate with other business tools. So, what do you need to know to pick one?
First, consider a BSP that integrates with Cloud API so that you can enjoy the latest API updates. You&#;ll also avoid expensive set-up, hosting and maintenance fees. Most importantly, choose a partner that doesn't apply markups on messaging.
Respond.io fits these criteria and is the perfect choice as a BSP. Other BSPs include Sleekflow, Wati and Trengo.
<call-out> Respond.io is also a badged Meta Business Partner, which means it is recognized by Meta for its expertise in business messaging. <call-out>
Next, let&#;s look at the steps to get a API account.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website API Providers.
Now, it&#;s time to set up a API account. We&#;ll show you how easy it is to set it up on respond.io.
If you need more guidance, explore our dedicated blog that explains the application process step-by-step.
doesn&#;t allow businesses to message customers anytime to prevent spam. That is why customers must message a business first, and only then can a business start conversations with customers who have previously messaged them.
This leads us to the two types of conversations allowed on the API: user-initiated conversations, also known as service conversations and business-initiated conversations.
Service conversations are initiated by customers. When they message you, a 24-hour customer service window will open for you to reply to them. Once the 24-hour window ends, you can no longer reply to customers unless they send you a new message, which will reopen the window.
Business chat API: Service conversationsBusinesses can send any type of message during the 24-hour window, provided they abide by &#;s Business Messaging Policy. To message customers outside the 24-hour window, they must use message templates.
Message templates are pre-approved messages used to reopen the 24-hour customer service window or start a new conversation. After 24 hours from the contact&#;s last incoming message, this is the only way businesses can initiate conversations.
However, there are limits to how many business-initiated messages you can send. If you just created your API account, you&#;ll start with 250 business-initiated conversations in a rolling 24-hour period.
Business-initiated conversation: How it worksOnce you&#;ve verified your business, it&#;ll increase to 1,000 and can eventually reach unlimited sending capacity.
You must pay fees to use API. These fees depend on factors like the type of conversation (service- and business-initiated conversations), region, the volume of messages sent and markup on API fees. To get an idea of the fees you&#;ll need to pay, you can use this API pricing calculator.
To avoid additional costs on top of &#;s compulsory charges, choose your BSP wisely. Respond.io offers API without charging any markups or additional fees. Next, let&#;s look at the common uses of API.
The features that API offers to businesses open up a ton of possibilities. Its versatility allows companies to integrate into their core operations, enhancing everything from sales and marketing to customer support. Let&#;s look at the five most common API use cases.
If bulk messages isn&#;t for you, then consider API to generate leads and automating your sales processes. Gain more leads at the top of your funnel and then efficiently process them to ensure your agents talk to the most promising leads.
can be leveraged to generate leads through tools like chat widgets, click-to-chat ads, and QR codes. These entry points make it easy for potential customers to connect with businesses, starting a conversation that can be guided toward conversion.
When a lead reaches you, qualify them with AI or chatbots and then lead them via chat routing to your sales team
You can also nurture leads efficiently to reduce no-shows and increase the number of converted leads. By using scheduled broadcasts, businesses can send appointment reminders and follow-ups to customers.
With a 98% message open rate, messages are an excellent way to market and promote your products. It&#;s almost certain that your messages will be seen and acted upon, making it a powerful tool for customer engagement and marketing campaigns.
Business can achieve this by using broadcast, a bulk messaging feature. They allows businesses to send targeted promotional messages to a wide audience, enabling them to reach customers effectively and efficiently. Messages can include rich media such as images, videos, and links, which enhance engagement and make the communication more dynamic and appealing.
<call-out> broadcast should be sent to customers who have opted-in to receive your marketing messages. Sending cold messages could get your account banned. <call-out>
Common use cases include announcing product launches, events, or running time-sensitive campaigns.
API enables business to improve customer satisfaction by offering faster response times. 83% of customers expect to interact with someone immediately when they contact a company. Businesses can meet these expectations by leveraging API&#;s advanced capabilities.
With features such as message templates, automation, and even AI integration, businesses can streamline processes and handle customer inquiries with greater efficiency.
Lastly, you can use API to collect customer feedback to drive continuous business improvement. The feedback collected can be analyzed to uncover actionable insights, helping businesses identify areas for improvement and align their offerings with customer expectations. This proactive approach fosters customer satisfaction and loyalty while supporting long-term growth.
Businesses can collect feedback through surveys sent post-purchase or after customer support interactions.
Still not convinced? Then read how API enabled businesses of various industries to find success.
Integrating the Business API with your CRM can supercharge customer engagement by enabling businesses to leverage &#;s direct communication channel alongside robust CRM capabilities. This integration simplifies communication, improves customer relationship management, and enhances the overall experience for both customers and businesses.
With a CRM integrated into API, you stand to gain these benefits:
And the list doesn&#;t end here. You can achieve so much more if you use an AI-powered customer conversation management software like respond.io.
Integrating API with platforms like respond.io is straightforward. Here&#;s how to get started:
It&#;s essential to have a API account as it is not possible to integrate Business App with a CRM. Learn how to create Business API account with respond.io.
Using your chosen integration method, configure the data you want to sync. This ensures seamless information exchange between your CRM and respond.io, allowing you to message customers on without switching platforms.
To make the most of your integration and ensure smooth implementation, here are a few best practices.
For most CRMs, every lead or customer must have a unique identifier, like their address or number. Luckily, when a lead contacts you on , you get their number automatically. If you need an address as well, set up an automation to ask for it. Then, sync these important details in your respond.io contact list and your CRM.
Often, a lead may contact you on a different channel other than , e.g., web chat, Facebook Messenger, and you&#;ll want quickly identify this. Respond.io recognizes duplicates automatically if you get contacts with the same or number and you&#;ll be prompted to merge. When you integrate with a CRM, you can reflect these updates in your CRM as well.
Sending information from your CRM to helps you identify target audiences for bulk messages. CRMs are often used to segment audiences for emails, but by integrating with , you can get valuable segmentation details to group contacts for broadcasts.
Next, let&#;s look at the challenges and solutions in using API.
While API integration offers immense value, it also comes with certain challenges. Addressing these proactively can help you make the most of this powerful tool.
API charges based on conversation tiers, which can quickly add up if not managed well. Here are some strategies to manage costs:
Maintaining compliance with &#;s policies is crucial to avoid your account being suspended or banned. Here&#;s how to ensure adherence:
Now that you&#;ve equipped yourself with everything that you need to know about API, let&#;s look at the businesses that won big with it.
Using API has tangible benefits for businesses, allowing them to achieve their business goals from increasing conversion rates to improving customer satisfaction.
Find out how these businesses achieved their business goals through API.
Qobolak, an education placement company, leveraged the Business API via respond.io to streamline communication and boost student lead conversions.
A key factor in their success was the use of broadcasts to promote events and updates to a wide audience effectively. Over eight months, Qobolak achieved a remarkable 95% increase in lead conversions.
800 Storage, a Dubai-based self-storage company, enhanced its customer engagement and operational efficiency by using API . This integration enabled multi-user access, allowing sales and support teams to manage a high volume of inquiries effectively.
By implementing automated conversation routing and assignment, 800 Storage ensured that customer messages were directed to the appropriate teams promptly, increasing conversions by 30%.
Lamarsa Coffee, a leading coffee equipment retailer in Malaysia, significantly enhanced its sales and customer engagement. This integration enabled multi-user access, allowing multiple agents to handle sales conversations simultaneously, thereby improving response times.
It also implemented automated routing to directed customer inquiries to the appropriate teams based on the nature of the request, reducing manual handling and accelerating response times.
Additionally, the company utilized segmentation tools to send targeted bulk messages about promotions and updates, effectively nurturing leads throughout the sales cycle. These strategic initiatives led to a 50% increase in sales across six countries within a year.
API has a lot more to offer businesses to achieve their various goals. Next, let&#;s look at the API Business profile.
A Business Profile provides customers with more information about your business. Businesses can optimize their profiles by updating their cover photo, description, address, and website. However, API Business Profiles are not searchable.
Overview of a Business Profile in a deviceIf you have a Catalog, it will also be displayed in your business profile. Note that for API users, you need to set up your catalog on the Meta Commerce Manager and connect it to your messaging software, like respond.io, to display the Catalog.
To add credibility to your Business Profile, verify your business or apply for the coveted green tick, both of which we will discuss further below.
Businesses can now get their Business Display name to appear in customers&#; chat inboxes. To do so, verify your business in Facebook Business Manager so customers can easily identify who they&#;re talking to.
To further enhance business credibility on , verify your account. This will give you the status of an Official Business Account and a green tick will appear alongside your display name.
Verified business vs Official Business AccountTo get your API account verified, you need to fulfill &#;s requirements. This includes abiding by 's Business Messaging Policy and being a notable business. Now that you know everything you need to set up your account, you are ready to start chatting with customers.
Respond.io is an AI-powered customer conversation management software provider that aims to help businesses generate leads and enable sales conversions through conversations. It has enabled businesses worldwide to gain more qualified leads, improve sales conversions and achieve a high degree of customer satisfaction.
Using the conversation-led growth framework with respond.ioIt has also developed a conversation-led growth framework to help businesses maximize business results through conversations. Below are some key highlights of how you can use API with respond.io:
Interested in experiencing these capabilities firsthand? Try respond.io Business API for free and take your messaging to the next level.
No, it&#;s not. These are the costs you can expect: A number, a messaging inbox to receive and send messages and &#;s conversation-based pricing charges.
There are multiple partners in the market, and the count keeps going up. To avoid incurring unnecessary costs, we suggest you work with a BSP that doesn&#;t add markups per message sent or received. Also, avoid BSPs with account setup or maintenance fees.
Fortunately, it is getting easier and easier. Applying for an account through respond.io only takes a few minutes. If you face any blockers, our support team is here to help.
This depends on your BSP&#;s plan. If you are a respond.io user, you can choose between four types of plans and pay only for what you need.
Indeed! Respond.io users can access Respond AI, which consists of an AI chatbot builder, AI Assist and AI prompts, which are a set of tools to help agents reply promptly, professionally and accurately.
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We hope you found this ultimate guide useful. Check out these articles if you want to learn more about business messaging.
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