Just like other industries, the BFSI sector has been growing rapidly year on year owing to digital transformation. But what is also increasing is the competition for consumer attention and their ability to keep them engaged with personalized experiences. That’s where WhatsApp for BFSI has been making waves.

As per research, the BFSI market size was valued at $52.44 billion in 2019. It is projected to reach $164.08 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 15.4% from 2020 to 2027. While there is a clear surge in demand for BFSI products and services, there is also a steady increase in the expectations that consumers hold from these companies.

Two of these expectations being the ability to contact them easily as compared to traditional customer support route and personalization.

In this blog, we’re going to walk you through why WhatsApp is becoming a leading choice for BFSI companies to deliver engaging customer experiences.

Why use WhatsApp in BFSI?

Banking, financial services, and products may look like a ‘serious’ purchase decision that should not be done over casual chats. But there’s also the fact that these are often the purchases that overwhelm buyers due to their complex nature, leading to slower responses and very long sales cycles for the companies.

Here’s why WhatsApp in BFSI is becoming popular:

• Wide and active user base – WhatsApp has more than 2 billion monthly active users, with a wide user demographic. This helps BFSI companies easily reach and engage prospects and customers across different age groups and intent easily.
• Higher open rate – Most people use WhatsApp every day, opening the messaging app a number of times every day. This has resulted in an open rate of almost 98% on average for messages sent by businesses.
• Higher click-through rate – Owing to active use of the platform and high open rates, companies can also see click-through rates of almost 45-60% across campaigns; which is much higher as compared to traditional channels like email.
• Better engagement – WhatsApp is, by default, a conversational platform, and that opens a whole new opportunity for BFSI companies to engage their customers. By giving them an option to reply to messages with ease, BFSI companies can make campaigns more two-way and natural in nature.
• Higher conversion rates – With all of the above combined, BFSI companies can drive much higher conversion rates on their campaigns. WhatsApp delivers a higher ROI as compared to other channels across the funnel.

How to use WhatsApp in the BFSI industry?

With the WhatsApp Business API and solution providers making it simpler for companies to tap into the different features of the messaging platform and set up automation, there is no one way to use WhatsApp in the BFSI industry.

But here are some ways in which we have seen leading companies in the BFSI industry starting to use WhatsApp to streamline and simplify communication with customers as well as prospects:

1. Follow up with and nurture prospects

As you start to run multiple campaigns to drive traffic to your website, let prospects share their phone numbers and opt-in to be followed up on WhatsApp. This saves the prospect from having to answer calls or emails at hours that don’t fit their schedule.

With the help of WhatsApp automation, you can follow up with prospects on WhatsApp with a quick welcome message notifying them that you have noted their interest along with a catalog where they can find more information. You can also give them the option to reply with a day and time you can call to explain the product or service in detail.

2. Simplify document sharing

A number of products and services in the BFSI sector require back and forth of documents. Right from evaluating if someone is eligible for a loan to processing the loan request and issuing a bank release for the amount, it typically requires multiple interactions between an agent and the customer. These interactions include having to print multiple copies of documents and collecting them one by one, often leading to errors and disgruntled experiences.

WhatsApp offers an encrypted channel on which BFSI companies can ease document sharing between them and the customer. From identification documents to process requests like PAN cards, Aadhar cards or sharing KYC forms, one can easily attach and send documents on the messaging platform.

3. Optimize purchase journey

The ease of document sharing and collection also further helps with optimizing the purchase journey for customers. With the help of the WhatsApp Business API, you can also create checkout links to collect payments for the products or services they’re opting in for or purchasing from your BFSI company.

For example, if they are buying life insurance from you, you can encourage them to pay for their first installment on WhatsApp itself with a checkout link or UPI. This can help your BFSI company reduce drop-offs during the checkout process.

4. Send regular updates

Once a purchase has been made or a process is underway, BFSI companies can also use WhatsApp for automating updates and notifications. This helps ease consumer anxiety and their need to call or visit the banking facility for every little update.

For example, if their loan is being processed, use WhatsApp to send them notifications on which part of the process their application has reached. This helps them also plan the first installment of payment for which they have requested the loan.

5. Send personalized recommendations

Based on event and interaction data, BFSI companies can also use WhatsApp to upsell and cross-sell their products and services. With the help of catalog and recommendations, you can introduce them to other products and services that can benefit them through WhatsApp.

For example, if they have recently taken a car loan from your company, you can reach out to them on WhatsApp to suggest a car insurance that consumers commonly take right after. While this helps you get another sale from the same customer, it also ensures you’re adding more value to them.

6. Educate prospects, clients and customers

BFSI companies often go off-radar once a prospect turns into a customer. But with consumers becoming more information driven, it’s important for them to continually feed their need for educating themselves.

They can use WhatsApp to structure out what we call a format of the traditional email newsletters. The idea being that you use the messaging app to send them informative content on and around the products or services they have purchased. For example, if they have recently invested in stocks, sending them articles on how to manage a portfolio or when to expand their portfolio can help them with the next steps they need to take. This also helps improve loyalty as you become their go-to source for information.

7. Promote new products and services

WhatsApp is a great channel to promote new products, services, deals and discounts. With a high open rate on campaigns, we also recommend BFSI companies to make the most of WhatsApp broadcasts.

With WhatsApp broadcasts, companies can send over a quick message around what is new. They can attach a quick PDF with more details or a video around the campaign that helps add more context to the promotion. The company can also include a clear CTA on their broadcast campaign to lay down the next steps for the recipient.

8. Simplify scheduling calls and visits

Some product or service purchases require BFSI companies or even customers to schedule a physical interaction. With the help of WhatsApp, you can share an easy way for customers to schedule these appointments.

You can either share calendar links or simply ask them to revert with a time and day that suits them the best for the call or visit. Giving customers this flexibility shows how your company cares about experiences and does not want to rush them through the process.

9. Gather customer feedback

Consumer preferences are continually changing. To be able to meet them more proactively, BFSI companies often rely on market research – but it’s also important to take inputs from their existing customers.

Companies can use WhatsApp to gather customer feedback on their overall experience interacting with agents or making a purchase. The two-way conversational nature of WhatsApp helps understand feedback better.

10. Request reviews and ratings

Social proof is important even for BFSI companies. Consumers need to feel assured of the products and services they’re going to commit to.

Companies can automate a review and rating request message on WhatsApp to segmented customer lists. You can link the message to a directory, Google, Facebook or even your website for the customer to quickly submit their review on.

11. Offer customer support and service

With the help of WhatsApp Business API, BFSI companies can also provide proactive customer support and service. They can automate responses to frequently asked questions around each of their products and services.

This helps address consumer queries and concerns faster, helping them move them along the sales funnel faster.

How to get started with using WhatsApp in BFSI?

Irrespective of the type of campaigns your BFSI company wants to get started with on WhatsApp, you will need access to the WhatsApp Business API for automations.

This is where working with an omnichannel marketing platform like WebEngage comes into play. Using the official WhatsApp Business API, we help BFSI companies set up personalized campaigns with custom workflows on the messaging app, leading to better engagement and conversions.

Ready to see how WhatsApp in BFSI can help grow your company?

Book a demo of WebEngage today.