Today, Mark Zuckerberg's popular messaging service has 1.5 billion active users every month: this means that almost one in seven people on Earth uses WhatsApp to communicate with their contacts. The credit goes to its qualities, but also to the foresight of its creators (former Yahoo employees), who were able to foresee the great potential of messaging apps, bringing the product to the general public.
WhatsApp, thanks to its simple and functional interface, is the preferred messaging app for users who send 60 billion messages every day . It is free and, in addition to supporting the sending of emojis, images, files and animated gifs, it also allows you to call and video call. But is this all that users need?
Why Telegram is better than WhatsApp
some of Telegram's features (source: telegram.org)
Telegram, created in 2013 by the Durov brothers, has conquered about 170 million people, aiming at a young but still niche target. However, the data speaks of an incredible growth, ranging from 350 thousand to 600 thousand new users per day.
The basic elements of its DNA are speed and security . In addition, the reasons that could persuade users to prefer Telegram are different:
Encrypted Chats are a guarantee of greater security and privacy , considering that they are impossible to decipher. In addition, Telegram offers a secret chat service: you can send messages or australia telegram phone number list that, after being opened and viewed, self-destruct. The company is so confident in its security that it has announced a contest with a prize of $300,000 for anyone who manages to violate its data. No one has succeeded!
Telegram allows you to send large files , up to 1.5 GB in size. WhatsApp files can reach a maximum of 16 MB.
Broadcast lists without limits : Telegram offers the possibility of scheduled multiple sending of a single message without limitations, while the maximum number of possible recipients on WhatsApp is 256.
To use Telegram, all you need is your username . This allows you, for example, to chat with other people without necessarily having to share your phone number. Telegram also has the ability to delete your account, a useful feature in the event of theft or to avoid the risk of data loss.
It allows you to enlarge the text in chats or in the application itself, as well as change the language settings.
Telegram allows you to save messages, images, and files in the cloud simply by forwarding them.
You do not need to download images received in chats to view them. They are directly viewed remotely.
Notifications distinguish between regular messages and messages you've been tagged in or replied to, allowing you to jump straight to them within the chat. This is especially useful in crowded chats with dozens, if not hundreds, of new messages.
source: Telegram blog
Still undecided?
Telegram is characterized by an intense use of BOTs (including chatbots ) , allowing to further improve the user experience. Among the most useful Bots we have for example Transcriber Bot , which automatically converts voice messages sent in a chat into text. Or Track Bot , which allows you to track shipments with couriers, national and international, sending a notification every time there is an update in the shipment.
Furthermore, many telephone operators such as Tim, Vodafone and Wind use such BOTs, accessible via chat on the operator's website, in order to resolve - or at least clarify - problems or doubts of subscribers.
Telegram for your business
In the business environment, considering the disadvantages of WhatsApp, Telegram has what it takes to be a leader in the market.
First of all because Telegram is a cloud-based service and therefore does not occupy the memory of the devices and it is not necessary to have the smartphone always connected to the internet, even using other platforms. In fact, the tool is multiplatform, since it allows access from mobile apps (both Android and iOS), from desktop apps (both Windows, Mac and Linux) and directly from web browsers, constituting a fundamental advantage for structured and non-structured business realities.
Anyone who has worked – or works – in a small or medium-sized Italian company knows that one of the biggest problems is internal communication , as there is a tendency to organize companies into watertight compartments.
Here then is where Telegram can represent a valid answer to various needs:
within groups or supergroups it is possible to insert up to 100,000 users, in addition to being able to mention the recipient of the message
using hashtags to create labels and retrieve messages related to a topic (e.g. #complaints, #orders, etc.).
You can pin an important post to the top, so that it is always visible at the top of the chat, even when scrolling through chat messages.
As an alternative to creating a group, on Telegram you can create channels to share updates with followers, who in the case of B2B could be sales agents, points of sale or even employees and workers.
When interacting with customers and consumers, Telegram channels and groups allow you to constantly update users, send streams and receive continuous feedback from them (bots also allow you to create multiple-choice surveys), considerably increasing engagement and loyalty. In addition to companies, it can also be an additional channel to exploit for influencer marketing !
The latest useful new feature introduced last month for companies is the Telegram Login widget which, if inserted on your website, allows you to log in to the site with your Telegram account and gives the company that owns the site permission (obviously with authorization) to contact you via the messaging app.
