WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, used by over 2 billion people. The app allows users to send messages, photos, videos, documents and more to individuals or groups. While the standard WhatsApp application is designed for personal messaging, WhatsApp also offers a separate app called WhatsApp Business which is tailored specifically for business use.
What is WhatsApp Business?
WhatsApp Business is a free to download app that was launched by WhatsApp in 2018. It provides businesses with tools to better connect with their customers. Key features of WhatsApp Business include:
- Business profile – Businesses can create a profile with key information such as a description, email, store address and website.
- Messaging tools – The app provides messaging tools to automate, sort and quickly respond to messages.
- Analytics – Business accounts get access to analytics about messages sent and received.
- Away messages – Businesses can set away messages to let customers know if they are currently unavailable.
WhatsApp Business is designed to be used by all types of businesses, from large enterprises to small shops and local services. It enables companies to establish an official presence on WhatsApp and use it as a communication channel to interact with customers.
Do WhatsApp business accounts have read receipts?
One key difference between standard WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business accounts is that read receipts are disabled by default for business accounts. This means if a customer messages a business on WhatsApp, the business will not be able to see if or when the customer has read the message.
There are a couple of reasons why WhatsApp has disabled read receipts for WhatsApp Business by default:
- Privacy – WhatsApp wants to protect the privacy of users who message businesses. Read receipts can reveal when a user has opened a message, which some users may not want businesses to see.
- Remove pressure – Without read receipts, customers don’t feel pressured to immediately read and respond to business messages.
So in summary, if you message a WhatsApp Business account, they will not be able to see if you’ve read their message or not. Your read status and last seen status will not be visible to businesses.
Can businesses turn on read receipts?
While read receipts are disabled by default, WhatsApp Business account owners can optionally turn them on. Here are the steps for a business to enable read receipts:
- Open WhatsApp Business and go to the Settings menu.
- Tap on Account > Privacy.
- Enable “Read receipts”.
Once enabled, the business will be able to see read receipts and last seen status for all of their WhatsApp conversations with customers. This can help them see if a message has been read.
However, customers will also be notified when read receipts are turned on by a business. When the business first messages a user, there will be a notice that reads “[Business Name] has read receipts on.” This gives customers full transparency.
Should businesses use read receipts?
Whether businesses should make use of read receipts is debatable. Here are some pros and cons:
Pros
- Confirmation – Read receipts allow businesses to see if a message has been delivered and read by the recipient.
- Better service – They can follow-up with customers who haven’t read important service messages.
- Analytics – The data can be used to analyze customer engagement and response times.
Cons
- Loss of privacy – Customers may not like that businesses can see when they’ve read a message.
- Appears intrusive – Read receipts can come across as intrusive to some customers.
- Open to abuse – Businesses could potentially abuse the feature by frequently checking if users have read messages.
Ultimately it comes down to an individual business’s preferences and needs. Disabling read receipts maintains more privacy for customers, but enables businesses to provide better service if enabled. Companies need to evaluate the pros and cons and decide if using read receipts will benefit their business and customers.
Do personal WhatsApp accounts show read receipts to businesses?
If a personal WhatsApp account messages a WhatsApp Business account, the default setting is that the business will not be able to see read receipts or last seen status for that user. The user’s privacy is maintained.
However, users can optionally turn on “read receipts” in their WhatsApp settings. This will enable read receipts for all of their WhatsApp conversations, including those with businesses. So personal WhatsApp users do have the option to allow businesses to see their read status, but it is disabled by default.
Can I hide my online status from businesses?
In addition to read receipts, personal WhatsApp users can also hide their “last seen” and “online” status from WhatsApp Business accounts. Here’s how:
- Open WhatsApp Settings.
- Go to Account > Privacy
- Tap on “Last Seen” and choose “Nobody” to hide your last seen from everyone.
- Tap on “Profile Photo” and choose “Nobody” to hide your online status from everyone.
This will prevent any businesses from being able to see your last seen or online status. You can select “My Contacts Except…” and exclude business accounts only if you want to show your status to personal contacts but not businesses.
Conclusion
To summarize:
- WhatsApp Business accounts have read receipts disabled by default.
- Businesses can optionally turn on read receipts to see when their messages are read.
- Users are notified when a business turns on read receipts.
- Personal users can hide their “last seen” and “online” status from businesses.
- Reading receipts come down to personal preference – they can be useful for businesses but some users prefer privacy.
In general, WhatsApp provides businesses with the tools to communicate effectively with customers but balances this with letting users protect their privacy. Customers ultimately have control over what a business can see about their activity and status on WhatsApp.
| Feature | Default for Business | Can Business Enable? | Default for Personal User | Can Personal User Enable? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Read Receipts | Disabled | Yes | Disabled | Yes |
| Last Seen Status | Disabled | No | Disabled | Yes |
| Online Status | Disabled | No | Disabled | Yes |
The table summarizes the default settings between WhatsApp Business accounts and regular WhatsApp users, as well as what options are available to enable read receipts and status visibility.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I stop a business from seeing when I’m online?
Yes, you can block a WhatsApp Business account from seeing your online and last seen status. Go to WhatsApp Settings > Account > Privacy and change the settings for “Last Seen” and “Profile Photo” to “My Contacts Except…” and select the business accounts you want to exclude.
Why don’t my read receipts work for a business?
If you don’t see read receipts or last seen status updating for a WhatsApp Business account, it’s likely because the business has disabled read receipts on their end. Unlike regular WhatsApp accounts, businesses have read receipts turned off by default.
Can businesses see if I screenshot their WhatsApp messages?
No, WhatsApp’s screenshot detection only works for personal accounts. Businesses are not notified and cannot see if you screenshot their messages.
How do I hide my personal WhatsApp account from businesses?
You can hide your online status, profile photo, about info and last seen time from specific businesses by going to WhatsApp Settings > Account > Privacy. Tap on each option and select “My Contacts Except…” to exclude business accounts.
Is there a way to read business messages without showing as read?
Unlike personal accounts, there’s no way to privately read a business’ messages on WhatsApp without triggering the read receipt if you have it enabled. The only option is to disable read receipts which will prevent businesses from seeing any read status.
WhatsApp Business Tips
Create a complete business profile
Make sure to fully complete your WhatsApp Business profile with a description of your business, profile photo, email, address and website link. This helps customers learn about your business.
Use quick replies
Set up quick reply buttons to frequently asked questions to streamline customer communications.
Organize chats with labels
Use labels to tag and organize different types of conversations, like sales, support, general inquiries etc.
Automate with APIs
Use the WhatsApp Business API to automate complex flows like notifications, support bots and more.
Analyze conversations
Monitor performance with built-in analytics to see metrics like message read rate, response times and more.