A simple guide for UK small businesses
Your customers already use WhatsApp every day. Here’s how to set up the free WhatsApp Business app properly, from choosing the right number to the auto replies that make sure nobody is left waiting.
Henny Maltby25 years in marketing · Growth Hub Premier Partner!Getting started takes about 15 minutes. Setting it up well is what brings in the bookings.
WhatsApp is how lots of people in the UK message their friends and family, so for many customers it feels much easier to send you a quick WhatsApp than to fill in a form or ring you.
The free WhatsApp Business app gives you a proper business profile, opening hours, a catalogue of what you sell, labels to keep track of customers and messages that go out for you when you’re busy.
I’ll take you through the whole set up in plain English, then show you how to get customers messaging you from your website, Google and social media.
Make it easy for people to get in touch, and more of them will.
Free prompt
Writing your greeting, away message and quick replies is the bit most people put off, and it’s the bit that wins the booking. This prompt writes the whole lot in one go, in a friendly voice that sounds like you, so you can answer in seconds and nobody gives up waiting and books elsewhere.
Pop your name and email in to get the full prompt, then copy it into ChatGPT or Claude and fill in the gaps in the square brackets. It takes about ten minutes and saves you hours of typing the same answers every week.
Act as a friendly UK small business owner who wants more bookings from WhatsApp. Write the messages for my WhatsApp Business account in a warm, relaxed tone that sounds like a real person, not a robot.
My business: [business name]
What I sell: [your main products or services]
Where I am: [town or area]
My opening hours: [hours]
How people usually book or buy: [for example by phone, online booking, deposit]
The questions customers ask most: [list them]
Please write:
1. A greeting message under 40 words that welcomes people and tells them what to send me so I can help quickly
2. An away message under 40 words that says when I will reply and gives them a link to book or buy in the meantime
3. Ten quick replies for my most common questions, each under 50 words, each with a one word shortcut
4. A business profile description of no more than 2 short lines that says what I do and where
5. A friendly follow up message for someone who asked about a price but did not book, that does not feel pushy
Use plain UK English and British spelling. No jargon, no emojis unless I ask for them. End every message with one clear next step.
Before you download it
A few quick decisions now save you a headache later.
The set up
This is a 6 step process and it works the same way on iPhone and Android.
Using WhatsApp on your computer? Once the app is set up on your phone, open Linked devices in Settings and scan the code on WhatsApp Web or the desktop app. It’s much quicker for typing replies.
Business tools
You’ll find all of these in Settings, then Business tools. These are the ones I’d set up on day one. If you’d like your replies and follow ups to run themselves, that’s exactly what my Every Enquiry Followed Up, Automatically course in the AI Marketing Academy shows you, and a WhatsApp and text marketing course is on the way too.
Getting people to message you
Setting it up is only half the job. Here’s how to put it in front of the people who want to book.
Is it right for you?
For almost every small business, the free app is all you need. It works on your phone and you can link it to your computer and a few other devices, so a small team can reply from one number.
The WhatsApp Business Platform is the version for bigger firms. It connects to a CRM or a helpdesk, lets lots of staff reply at once and can send booking reminders automatically. It’s set up through a provider and you pay per message, so it only makes sense once you’re handling a lot of conversations.
Whichever you choose, the rules are the same. Only message people who have asked to hear from you, and make it easy for them to say stop.
Losing enquiries when you’re too busy to reply?
You’ll set up fast replies and friendly follow ups that go out in your voice, so every enquiry hears back from you, even on your busiest day. The AI Marketing Academy opens on 14 November.
The AI Marketing Academy
Build an AI marketing team that works for your business. You teach it, your agents do the work, and you stay in control.
WhatsApp gets people talking to you, and the Academy makes sure every one of those conversations gets a fast, friendly follow up that turns it into a booking. The course that covers it is Every Enquiry Followed Up, Automatically.
It’s real marketing, powered by AI, and it opens on 14 November.
Your questions answered
The questions business owners ask me most about getting started on WhatsApp.
Yes. The WhatsApp Business app is free to download and use on iPhone and Android. There are optional paid extras, such as Meta Verified for a verified badge, and the larger WhatsApp Business Platform charges per message, but most small businesses never need them.
Yes. Enter your landline number when you sign up, let the text message code fail, then choose Call me. You’ll get an automated call with your six digit code. The app still runs on your mobile, it just uses your landline number.
Yes, as long as each one uses a different number. A dual SIM phone is the easiest way, or you can use your landline for the business account.
Yes. When you set up WhatsApp Business with the same number, it offers to bring your chats across. Your personal WhatsApp then stops working on that number, and your friends and family will see your business profile.
Want to talk it through first?
My private 1:1 marketing sessions are worth £150 an hour, and your first hour is free. We’ll look at how customers get in touch with you and make every route easy.
Pink Elephant AI Marketing Academy
Learn marketing and build your own AI team. Or let our experts build it with you.
