WhatsApp for Business is here: Features, availability and everything you need to know

WhatsApp has made its WhatsApp for Business app live. So far, the all-new app is available in select countries. The new app will allow small businesses to interact with customers and manage presence on the platform. The Facebook-owned company announced the app in September last year. The company then also registered some businesses for the beta version of the app. Now that the app is officially out, here is everything you need to know about it ...
1. What exactly is WhatsAppBusiness app WhatsApp for Business app aims to make it easier for enterprises to communicate with their customers.
2. WhatsApp Business has a different logo The logo of the app has also been modified to show a 'B' inside the WhatsApp logo, clearing out the app’s intention. This will also help users to recoginise that the message is from a business account.
3. WhatsApp for Business' top features: Verified Profiles, Quick Replies, Greeting Messages, Away Messages WhatsApp for Business is build on the same platform as the WhatsApp Messenger, it however, boasts of some additional features as well. These include verified profiles along with features like Quick Replies, Greeting Messages and Away Messages. They can also access messaging statistics for a given period of time.
4. Pilot program started in September 2017; in India BookMyShow and Makemytrip are beta partners WhatsApp started the pilot program in September last year. In India, the company reportedly tested the feature with BookMyShow and MakeMyTrip.
5. Available on Android only; Not for iPhone users for now WhatsApp for Business app is so far available only for Android users. However, the company has said that it plans to roll out the app to other platforms as well. However, it has so far not given any timeline for this.
6. It's totally free Yes, WhatsApp for Business is completely free for now. The app can be downloaded free of cost from Google Play Store and there is no in-app purchases to access restricted content or features.
7. Users don’t need to download anything to use WhatsApp for Business If you are not a business owner, you don’t need to to download any new app on your smartphones to access this. Users can continue using the existing WhatsApp app to get in touch with the business’ accounts. The businesses, however, will need to download the app and register themselves before getting in touch with their customers.
8. Countries it is available currently include US, UK, Italy, Indonesia and Mexico The Facebook-owned messaging company has introduced the platform in select countries including the US, UK, Italy, Indonesia and Mexico. It is likely to arrive in more countries in the following months.
9. India and Brazil are biggest markets for WhatsApp so the app should launch here soon In the official blog post, the company has said that the India and Brazil are two of its biggest markets. So we assume that WhatsApp for Business will soon be reaching India and Brazil as well.