WhatsApp announces the launch of its communities

With one billion monthly active users, WhatsApp has become one of the main sources of communication for many businesses to reach their customers. Recent updates to the app on Android and iOS now allow users to create multiple groups within the same community and bring them together in a dedicated space.

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Communities: groups within groups

These communities are an additional tool for groups that want to better organize their conversations. These groups are generally made up of people with a common interest. They allow for private communication in real time. 

The recently announced “communities” feature in WhatsApp is an easy way to communicate with your customers or employees, especially when they are interested in a specific topic. For example, if you are a clothing shop, creating a community around clothing with different groups such as: tips, inspirations, colouring, promotions for example, is a good way for your company to communicate and therefore generate interest. 

As you have understood, it is no longer necessary to send individual messages to each member of your community, you can now send a mass message that will be sent to everyone at the same time. 

What is the purpose of joining to a community?

This is a beneficial perspective that could really help companies stand out in the competitive landscape by finally reaching out to known behaviours among connected consumers. 

Depending on the interest and interactions regarding a certain publication on the different groups, it will be easier for a company to point out the trends in its market.

These companies could even decide to promote their communities with the aim of making them popular and sharing as much relevant content as possible. And let’s not forget, belonging to a group means strengthening the trust and closeness between the company and its employees

We share with you 3 advantages of using WhatsApp communities:

• More power for the admins: They are in charge of creating the communities and deciding which groups to join. Admins are able to remove groups or people from a community, but also to remove inappropriate or abusive messages.
• More control for group members: members will be able to easily report abuse, block accounts or even leave communities if they feel it is necessary. It will also be possible to leave them discreetly, without members being informed.
• End-to-end encryption and phone number confidentiality: WhatsApp continues to deliver on its promise to protect messages with end-to-end encryption. Given the often private nature of discussions within organizations, this technology seems indispensable. And WhatsApp understands this.

How do I create a community?

1. Via iPhone, click on “new discussion” and then “new community”. Via Android, click on the menu and choose “new community”.
2. Make sure you fill in the profile with the name, description and a photo of course.
3. Click on the arrow to create a group or to integrate existing groups. You can add up to 10 new groups

Please note: the name of your community cannot contain more than 24 characters. Your description should be clear so that it can be easily understood by the different members.

How do I add groups to my community?

1. Click on “create a group” or “add an existing group”.
2. Enter the name of the group, for example “La Niche – Marketing stuff”.
3. Add a brief description of the group
4. To add an existing group, you will need to be the current admin of that group. Simply select the groups in question and then click on the green arrow.

There is no doubt that features and applications like WhatsApp, based on social interaction and community building, offer a wide range of possibilities for businesses or any other smartphone user. And why not try using this functionality to get closer to your collaborators, partners or customers on a daily basis?

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