Meta has launched a new feature on its direct messaging platform, WhatsApp. The Broadcast Channels feature will allow users to receive important updates “from people and organisations”, offering another avenue to social media marketers.
The move from Meta is indicative of the continued push towards direct messaging apps, which are close to outperforming their social media alternatives.
Channels are “a one-way broadcast tool”, where marketers can push text, photos videos, stickers and polls. Users can select channels to follow that adhere to their interests and also receive updates from organisations.
It’s almost as though Meta is giving WhatsApp a news feed. Indeed, the published screenshots on its launch promo would back this up, with a row of contacts that look like reels, followed by Broadcast Channels’ latest posts to scroll through.
The new addition of Channels allows for more topic-based conversation starters between followers.
This isn’t an entirely new concept. Meta has already tested it out on Instagram, which is also known as Broadcast Channels. However, its use on Instagram makes more sense than that of WhatsApp, where there is an established precedent for connecting with strangers, and features come and go every day. WhatsApp was built for one niche purpose: to connect with people you already know.
Either way, marketers can enjoy another platform to upload their content and gain new eyes on their campaigns.
