b2b.store

How can WhatsApp offer an all-singing-all-dancing communications service to nearly three billion global users without charging a single penny for it? After Zoe Kleinman raised the issue in her piece on the BBC website last week, b2b.store CEO Rob Mannion explains how a little-known commercial model holds the answer 🕵

We enjoyed another thought-provoking day at The Federation of Wholesale Distributors' Diversity in Wholesale event yesterday. Lots of brilliant speakers, panellists and, most importantly, stories shared that really shows why being an inclusive business is so important.

A tick appeared on Bestway Wholesale's WhatsApp today as their channel earned verified status – the seal of approval from Meta that they're kind of a big deal. The verified badge gives customers more confidence when engaging with a business on WhatsApp, showing their activity and reputation is of a high enough level to warrant the accreditation. We've been working behind the scenes with Bestway to achieve verified status for a while, so it was a welcome start to the week to see it finally rubber-stamped. A big tick for the start of the week ✅

💬 We've noticed a huge uplift in sales and it's freed up our staff's time to concentrate on finding new customers and maintaining existing relationships 💬 These words from North West Wholesale Ltd MD Tom Lumsden were music to our ears when we went to visit him to film a video for the Sugro UK conference recently. He's one of several members who use our online-ordering platform, support the eLoyalty rewards scheme and uses B2B WhatsApp to promote it, so is seeing the true benefit of embracing technology across the business. But don't let us tell you how great it is, take a few minutes to see what Tom has to say for himself. Lights, camera, action 📽

A big thank you to Erudus for inviting our CEO Rob Mannion along to speak at its user forum earlier this week – championing the benefits of using B2B WhatsApp as the best communication method to reach customers. It's another great example of how people are sitting up to take notice of the level of engagement our platform is offering businesses and open to finding new ways to make it work for them. We always love getting out on the road to chat to different people in the sector, so feel free to get in touch if you'd like to hear more about we can do for you.

Sugro UK members can now integrate their b2b.store online-ordering platforms to all major ERP providers thanks to a deal with Vision33 – removing many of the common barriers to selling online. https://lnkd.in/eThMb2bG

Is a paid-for WhatsApp solution really worth it? The free WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business apps are great for casual use and small businesses, but our B2B WhatsApp solution, which uses the WhatsApp Business API, is better suited for medium and large businesses. Here's why investing in a business-grade WhatsApp solution will pay back dividends. #whatsapp #whatsappbusiness #whatsappmarketing #businesscommunication #customerengagement #businessgrowth

If you've been soaking up the long-awaited summer rays in the past week, there's a new place you can go to find out how long the high temperatures are going to last... if you're a Bestway Wholesale customer, anyway. That's because we've added a new weather widget to the wholesaler's ordering app, so retailers can make their purchasing decisions fully informed about what the forecast has in store for them. And by the looks of the next few days, we hope everyone is stocked up with cold drinks and ice creams 🌤

We've just helped our tenth B2B WhatsApp client go live, so it's time to celebrate 🎉 The platform continues to go from strength to strength as more businesses recognise the impact a B2B WhatsApp channel will have on customer engagement. There are loads of reasons why it's proving so popular – from the sky-high message read rates and high audience retention numbers, to the conversion of a healthy ROI. It's been a landmark couple of months for B2B WhatsApp, with the client and messaging milestones we've hit and being a finalist at the Grocer Gold Awards. And with a significant platform update on the way in the coming weeks, there's no sign of that momentum slowing.

Anyone still suffering from a post-Euros hangover? The football might have ended (and England may have fallen agonisingly short of bringing home the trophy), but there's still plenty to be proud about from the past month – and we're not simply talking about what happened out on the pitch 👀 Throughout the tournament, our clients' channels were awash with Euros content as they attempted to cash in on the footie frenzy. Some of the best examples were on Bestway Wholesale's eCommerce platform and WhatsApp channel, with activations aplenty to get their customers spending. In the words of Alan Partridge, back of the net!