There are plenty of vacation spots around the world that are known as destinations favoured by the rich - the Amalfi Coast, the Maldives, Dubai.
How Whatsapp Flows Could Pave the Way for Personalized Travel Experiences
22.09.2023 - 04:11 / skift.com / Peden Doma Bhutia / Mark Zuckerberg
Meta’s WhatsApp will be introducing a new service called Flows aimed at businesses worldwide for creating personalized experiences directly within chat threads.
The idea is that a customer could complete a range of tasks — selecting airline or train seats, placing meal orders — without leaving the chat interface.
The announcement of Flows comes as WhatsApp continues to expand its suite of services for businesses, particularly on the WhatsApp Business Platform. The service is expected to roll out globally in coming weeks.
WhatsApp has already been testing Flows with range of business partners, including travel service provider redBus.
Speaking exclusively to Skift, Prakash Sangam, CEO of redBus, said other than bus booking, the company has integrated Whatapp Flows to collect ratings and reviews after trips.
“We’ve built this flow in both English and Hindi and this feedback is shared with bus operators to improve service levels. The customer response rate is 80% higher on Whatsapp Flows compared with normal notifications where a user is redirected to other pages or sites,” Sangam said.
Through the integration of WhatsApp Flows for bus bookings, redBus aims to create an end-to-end booking experience on the WhatsApp platform.
“The experience is designed in a way to lower the user’s cognitive load and help them make faster decisions. This integration will help us reach out to the large base of bus users from Tier 2, 3 and 4 markets, who are comfortable using WhatsApp but typically transact offline today,” Sangam said.
Since the integration of Whatsapp Flows for bus bookings last month, redBus has noted 17,000 conversations initiated with 35% users selecting Hindi as their preferred language option.
The introduction of Flows is poised to benefit travel companies, as it allows them to upsell and cross-sell additional services, according to Yoknath Rajan, product manager (travel and hospitality) for Publicis Sapient.
“All of this can be achieved seamlessly within the WhatsApp chat environment, eliminating the need for users to switch to other apps or websites,” Rajan said.
In its second quarter earnings call, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg highlighted the significance of business messaging in their monetization strategy. He noted that the 200 million users of the WhatsApp Business app can now create click-to-WhatsApp ads for Facebook and Instagram without needing a Facebook account.
This simplifies the process of bringing businesses online, particularly in regions where WhatsApp serves as a gateway to digital engagement, Zuckerberg said.
With over 500 million users, India stands as one of the largest markets for WhatsApp globally. The travel industry in India has embraced WhatsApp as a preferred messaging platform
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