WhatsApp commerce

For many Indian consumers WhatsApp is the default way to contact a business, so brands run commerce there. Through the WhatsApp Business API a brand can send catalogues and templated messages, receive orders, collect payments, confirm delivery and handle returns and reorders. An AI agent connected to the order-management, inventory and logistics systems can answer product questions, place orders, track shipments and process exchanges within policy, handing over to a human when needed.

The mechanics include opt-in and template approval, conversation-based pricing, session windows, and integration with the storefront or ERP so that WhatsApp orders are real orders. Personalisation, such as reorder prompts and next-best-offer messages, depends on an event pipeline and consent.

It is not a broadcast tool. Bulk promotional blasts without relevance get blocked by customers and penalised by the platform. The value is in two-way conversations that resolve or sell, measured by completed orders and resolved queries rather than messages sent.

• Founder / CEO: a channel customers already use, with conversion and repeat-purchase behaviour different from web and app.
• Support manager: order-status, returns and exchange queries are resolved in-channel by an agent that can see the order.
• Product manager: catalogue, cart and payment flows must be designed for a chat interface, not copied from the web.
• Compliance officer: opt-in, message templates and personal data handling under DPDP are enforced by the platform and by your own design.

Customers message businesses on WhatsApp whether or not the business is ready, and unanswered messages become lost sales and poor reviews. WhatsApp commerce exists to make that channel a proper storefront and service desk connected to real systems, rather than a phone held by one staff member. The trade-off is that the channel has rules, costs per conversation and a low tolerance for spam, and an agent that can place orders and issue refunds must be policy-gated and tested before it acts. Done well it shortens the path from question to purchase; done carelessly it damages a brand quickly.

• A D2C brand's agent handling orders, exchanges and reorders on WhatsApp, connected to Shopify and the courier partner.
• A grocery or pharmacy chain taking repeat orders from a saved list with UPI payment links.
• A distributor accepting dealer orders on WhatsApp that flow straight into its ERP with credit-limit checks.
• An education provider selling course enrolments and handling fee queries in-channel.
• A logistics company's shipper agent confirming pickups and sending proof-of-delivery on WhatsApp.

Technique / practiceA channel-specific application of customer-service and personalisation agents. Eazyware builds it under Customer Service Agents with order-system integration, policy-gated actions for refunds and exchanges, and consent-based personalisation.

Eazyware service that covers it: AI Customer Service Agents. Starting prices are on the pricing page.