Delivering Money Using WhatsApp

Delivering money advice using WhatsApp is unlike other channels. It can be thought of as a hybrid of email and webchat. The convenience and flexibility that the platform offers clients mean some will message in with the expectation of a back and forth instant messaging scenario, much like webchat.

Others may wait hours or even days in between responses with the chat more closely resembling email.

Here some good practice you can try to incorporate to help manage this.

Setting client’s expectations - it should be made clear on your website or wherever there is information about the service how long clients can expect to wait before a response to their message. We used two working days and found this offered a nice balance.

Encourage client to provide initial overview of problem - to avoid something along the lines of “hi, hello” and nothing more in an initial message. This was something we encountered quite frequently and it meant that it took longer to give the client the advice.

Managing chats - It is important to use your own personal judgment when managing chats. Some clients will be more open and provide a lot of information up front, all at once. Others may be more closed and provide information in smaller chunks, resulting in some longer back and forth conversations. Try and apply a consistent rule such as if a client has not responded within a set time (such as a few days) the chat can be ‘closed’.

By closed, we mean that:

● the content of the chat is copied into your case management system

● any shared documents are downloaded and attached to the client’s case file

● the conversation is deleted from the phone

● the client is sent a message to confirm that their enquiry has been closed