7-6-2024 (SAO PAULO) In a move that could potentially reshape the advertising landscape on one of the world’s most popular messaging platforms, Meta has unveiled its first AI-driven ad targeting program for businesses on WhatsApp. The announcement, made on June 6 at a conference in Sao Paulo, Brazil, marks a significant shift for the encrypted chat service, which has long prided itself on its privacy credentials and steered clear of the targeted advertising tools that have fueled Meta’s other apps, such as Facebook and Instagram.
The groundbreaking initiative was unveiled by none other than Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself, who delivered the news in a video presentation displayed during the event. This strategic move comes as the social media giant seeks to tap into the vast revenue potential of WhatsApp, which boasts an enormous user base but has thus far contributed only a fraction to Meta’s overall revenue.
While Meta has been steadily introducing commerce and payment features on WhatsApp in recent years, including “business messaging” tools that allow companies to conduct customer service chats and send marketing materials to users who have shared their phone numbers, these tools have previously lacked the sophistication of targeted advertising. With the introduction of AI-driven targeting, businesses will now have the ability to optimize their ad delivery to reach the customers most likely to engage with their messages, provided those customers have opted in and use the same phone number across Meta’s various platforms.
Guilherme Horn, WhatsApp’s head of strategic markets, explained the significance of this development, stating, “This is very important for business because they are paying for those messages.” The AI tools will leverage user behavior on Facebook and Instagram to pinpoint the most receptive audiences for targeted messaging, opening up new avenues for businesses to maximize the impact of their marketing efforts on the platform.
Meta’s push to monetize WhatsApp, which it acquired for a staggering $22 billion in 2014, has been a long-standing priority. Despite the app’s immense popularity and massive daily user base, it has thus far contributed only a sliver to Meta’s total revenue. This latest move represents a strategic effort to unlock the untapped potential of the platform and drive new revenue streams for the company.
Alongside the AI-powered ad targeting program, Meta also introduced a new AI chatbot designed to answer business inquiries directly in chat. This early test of Zuckerberg’s vision to convince businesses to outsource their communications to automated tools will assist users with common requests such as finding catalogs or consulting business hours, akin to existing AI-powered customer service platforms.
Additionally, Meta announced the integration of Brazil’s instantaneous digital payment method PIX into its WhatsApp payment tool in the country. PIX, once seen as a potential competitor, has represented about 39% of transactions made in Brazil last year and offers similar services to WhatsApp’s payment tool, such as money transfers between individuals and purchases from companies. This move follows a similar strategy implemented by WhatsApp in India last year, where it began offering payment services from rival providers.
