The retail industry is facing a new reality: customers are changing faster, becoming more impatient, and demanding instant interaction. Websites are often slow to access, apps are rarely downloaded, and email? It is almost never opened.
The result? Many retailers are losing sales opportunities simply because they are not present on the channels their customers use every day.
With rising competition and mobile-first shoppers, one question remains: where can retailers truly stay close to customers? The answer is simple: WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Will Overtake Websites & Apps
WhatsApp is no longer just a private messaging app. In many countries—including Indonesia—the platform has evolved into the primary “digital meeting point” between brands and consumers.
Global trends show WhatsApp is moving toward becoming the third most important digital channel in the world after Google and social media. In emerging markets (Southeast Asia, India, LatAm), WhatsApp has already become a “super-app” for transactions, consultations, and customer service.
Why is WhatsApp so dominant? Here are three crucial reasons for the retail industry:
1. WhatsApp is Everywhere & Used by Everyone
Websites require typing. Apps require storage and intention. Emails require effort to open.
But WhatsApp is already installed, opened daily, and used by nearly every retail shopper—with more than 2.8 billion people checking it multiple times a day.
Because it’s natural and frictionless, it becomes the easiest place for customers to ask questions, browse products, and make decisions. Integrating an AI Chatbot lets retailers instantly recommend products, answer FAQs, manage hundreds of chats at once, and close sales 24/7—capacity that human teams alone simply cannot match.
2. The Marketing Channel with the Highest Conversion
In many markets, customers don’t open emails, rarely download apps, and don’t consistently check websites. As a result, WhatsApp has become the most responsive marketing channel, with open rates of up to 98%.
An AI Chatbot helps retailers fully capitalize on this by automating:
- Promo alerts, restock notifications, and pickup reminders
- Follow-ups for abandoned carts to recover lost sales
- Post-purchase engagement like thank-you messages, tailored recommendations, and exclusive offers
Everything is sent automatically, contextually, and in real time—creating human-like interactions that boost personalization, conversion, and strengthen loyalty without adding workload.
3. WhatsApp Makes Selling Faster, Easier, and More Human
Customers prefer buying through conversation—conversational commerce—and WhatsApp is the most comfortable place for it.
With AI, WhatsApp evolves from a chat app into a fully automated sales engine that can:
- Showcase products and catalogs (PLP) instantly
- Follow up without delay to upsell or cross-sell
- Handle the entire purchase flow—from stock checks to payment—within a single chat
Every chat becomes a sales opportunity, delivered in a fast, personal, and consistent experience that customers actually enjoy.
Time for Retail to Switch to WhatsApp
In retail, being on the wrong channel means losing sales. WhatsApp offers what websites or apps cannot: proximity, speed, and conversations that lead directly to transactions.
With an Agentic AI Chatbot, WhatsApp transforms from a mere chat channel into a digital store, a sales engine, and a 24/7 service center that can scale interactions without limits.
If retailers want to remain relevant in 2025 and beyond, they must be where customers are most active. WhatsApp is the place—and Mimin AI Chatbot is the key to maximizing every opportunity within it. Start today—your customers are already waiting on WhatsApp.
ABOUT MIMIN
Mimin is a platform that helps businesses to create conversational customer journeys with Artificial Intelligence. With Mimin, businesses can effortlessly build chat journeys and establish a positive customer experience.
The applications that can be generated include, amongst others, the ease of running chat commerce, chat campaigns, customer automation, omnichannel inbox, and Generative-AI chatbot.
With Mimin, businesses can deliver superior customer experiences, strengthen customer relationships, and build stronger customer loyalty.
Learn more about Mimin by contacting:
Mimin
PT. Admin Pintar Kita
Graha Charis Siem
Jl. Tanah Abang 5 No. 21, Central Jakarta
Phone: +62 856 0322 5212
Email: halo@mimin.io
