From Instagram to Telegram to WhatsApp: The most important instant messaging apps for businesses

WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, Apple Business Chat, or WeChat: What are the most important instant messaging apps for businesses worldwide? What business options do the respective messengers offer, and what about costs? A (global) overview!

For a long time, internet-based messenger apps such as WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger were primarily intended for private communication. In recent years, however, business use has increasingly come to the forefront. Just on WhatsApp, for example, about 175 million people message a business account each day, and 1.8 billion Apple users can be reached through Apple's business chat. 

But which instant messaging app is the best choice for your business? In the following, we'll take a look at the most relevant messenger apps worldwide and show you which of them are best suited for commercial use.

Why use instant messaging apps for business at all?

There's been a significant shift in digital communication in the past years. Users have moved from more public forums like social media networks to more private channels like messaging apps. That's also how many of them prefer to interact with businesses. 

In the Meta universe alone, one billion people contact a business every week on one of their messaging apps. 

Aside from meeting your customers on their preferred channels, instant messaging apps bring some unique advantages to businesses.  

• You're in the same familiar environment as friends and family, which makes chatting with customers much more familiar and personal (and it converts better!)
• Your messages land on the lock screen and get full attention here (no distractions from algorithms or thousands of emails in the inbox).
• You can use multimedia features, which makes your communication much more engaging.
• Almost all messaging apps offer features to send out marketing messages and broadcasts. With open rates over 90% that's an incredible opportunity for campaigns. 
• Your conversations aren't limited to a single exchange. Instead, you can use the same chat over and over again, making it easy to reactivate "cold" contacts.

Of course, it's important to consider which messengers your target group uses and which channels offer your company the most advantages. On WhatsApp, you reach the largest audience, but on Telegram you can send broadcasts for free, and on Apple Messages for Business you can easily integrate in-chat shopping and payments. LINE or WeChat offer you a direct channel to consumers in Japan or China. So, depending on the target group, company and business goal, one messenger may be more advantageous than the other. Or maybe, you even want to combine multiple instant messaging apps for your business. 

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WhatsApp: The world's most popular messenger

The WhatsApp messenger has been around since 2009. In 2014, Meta bought the chat app for around 20 billion US dollars. Currently, Meta owns three major messenger apps: WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Instagram Direct. And Meta's latest venture, Threads, already has over 100 million users! 

WhatsApp is used worldwide by over two billion users. In many countries like India, Brazil or the UK, WhatsApp is installed on almost every smartphone and people use it daily. WhatsApp is used by a wide range of age groups, but is most popular with people under 45. 

WhatsApp is widely used for marketing messages, customer support, and sending transactional notifications. WhatsApp is currently working on providing a full shopping experience to help businesses make sales over the app! This is available in India and Brazil and being expanded to other countries soon.

For businesses, there are two options for commercial use: the WhatsApp Business App and the WhatsApp Business API. The private app is not allowed for commercial use.

While the WhatsApp Business App is free of charge, it lacks some of the scalable business options that the WhatsApp Business API (official name: WhatsApp Business Platform) offers, such as the integration of chatbots or sending unlimited bulk messages. 

For businesses, WhatsApp is also one of the most versatile instant messaging apps, as you can use it for marketing, customer service, sales, and re-engagement. 

If you're using the API, you pay a cost per message. The price depends on the type of message and on the country code of the recipient's phone number. 

💡How to use WhatsApp Business: The ultimate guide

Facebook Messenger: Lead generation and service

Facebook Messenger (officially called "Messenger by Meta") has been around since 2011. Previously, it was called Facebook Chat and was part of the Facebook app. It can be accessed both as standalone app and as part of the Facebook network. Facebook Messenger is still one of the most popular messenger apps in the world, with over 900 million active users.

Especially in North America and Australia, Facebook Messenger is very popular. And since 2023, it also offers end-to-end encryption. 

While Facebook as a social media platform tends to skew a bit older, the Messenger is very popular with many age groups, especially 25 to 36 year-olds. The Messenger from Meta is a versatile channel that finds its biggest uses in customer support and commerce. Especially when combining the Messenger with a chatbot, it's a great channel not only for support, but also for lead generation, as so many users still discover new brands on Facebook. 

In 2022, Facebook opened the marketing messages back up to all businesses. Before, only certified media companies were allowed to use it. Now, the "recurring notifications" can also be a great tool in your company's marketing portfolio.

For businesses, the use of Facebook Messenger is free of charge, but Meta charges for running ads on Facebook (including click-to-chat ads). 

💡How companies get the most out of the Messenger from Meta

Instagram Direct Messages and API for Instagram

Instagram is more of a social network than a messaging app, but through Instagram's Direct Messages you get access to the sites more than two billion users. And it's worth it! 

90% of Instagram users follow at least one brand, 60% say they discover new brands and products on the social media platform, and that's exactly where many of them actively reach out with questions through Instagram DMs. That's why, especially for e-commerce or hybrid brands, Instagram's instant messages are an ideal starting point for conversational commerce. 

With newer features like in-chat payments and marketing messages, Instagram is becoming increasingly interesting for businesses, even beyond its usage for customer service. 

👉 How to use Instagram Direct Messaging for your business

Telegram: The rising star

Telegram Messenger has only been online since 2013. The LLC is currently based in Dubai and was founded by the two brothers Pavel and Nikolai Durov, who previously successfully founded the Russian Facebook counterpart Vkontakte.

As of 2023, it has a user base of 700 million. The average Telegram user is younger than 35, tech-savvy, and often not on other instant messaging apps, which makes Telegram an interesting channel to reach an untapped audience. 

For companies, Telegram offers interesting features with chatbots and marketing messages. Telegram currently offers most of its features free of charge, but it did introduce a premium subscription where users can pay for some upgrades. 

Telegram can be used for customer support and also for marketing. The e-commerce company SportSpar, for example, regularly sends bargains to its Telegram subscribers, with top results. 

Apple Messages for Business: 365 degree messaging service

Apple Messages for Business is available on all
Apple devices. Apple devices are particularly
 popular in some countries like the US and Canada, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, and Switzerland, and are used by people for all ages up to 65.


Apple Messages for Business launched globally in October 2018 and is available through official Apple solution providers. Sinch Engage is an official Apple solution provider and officially supports Apple Business Chat.

Apple Messages for Business is exciting for businesses for several reasons. For one, it gives you access to Apple's 1.8 billion iOS users (no need for country-specific SIM cards). 

You'll also reach a premium audience that typically generates higher revenue. Another plus: With Apple Pay, the messenger offers the possibility to pay directly in the chat - a big advantage over many other instant messaging apps for businesses.

And: you can also send marketing messages (with equally high open rates as WhatsApp)! It's important to know that you can't just use Apple Business Chat for marketing alone, you also have to offer support.

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Viber: Exciting for communication in Asia, cental, and eastern Europe

The Viber messenger was launched in 2010. The company Viber Media, which was founded in Tel Aviv, has been around since 1998. Since 2017, Viber has officially been called Rakuten Viber, as the Japanese e-commerce giant acquired a majority stake in 2014. Viber is particularly popular with users in central and eastern Europe, some Asian countries, and Russia. In Russia, Viber has overtaken WhatsApp with 100 million users. 

In its key markets, Viber is heavily used. The messaging app counts more than 70 million interactions per hour and reports 250 million monthly active users. 

In contrast to the LINE universe, Viber largely relies on the original chat app, which is supplemented functionally accordingly. For example, it is also possible to send bulk messages and make payments in the chat. Viber is therefore particularly attractive for companies that want to address customers in Viber markets. The international group MyProtein, for example, uses Viber specifically for customers in the Czech Republic and Croatia.

Businesses pay for sending messages on Viber. The cost depends on the amount of messages sent per months, and on the users' country code. 

Discord: Specific target groups

As of January 2023, Discord counts around 560 million registered users and 154 monthly active users, that's a growth of almost 200% in eight years. It might not be on many businesses' radar yet, but Discord is Gen Z's go-to app. So anybody who wants to connect with a younger target audience should be on Discord.

Discord unfolds its strengths particularly in the area of direct customer communication and in building a loyal customer community. Digital niche products in particular (gaming, sports, music, etc.), which are more quickly lost on larger social media channels, are very successful on Discord.

Special target groups such as gamers and streamers like to use the Discord messaging boards called "servers" for live streaming and discussions. But young users are also increasingly discovering Discord as a chat app. Chatbots can also be easily integrated here.

💡These are the coolest Discord bots right now

In theory, this also offers exciting opportunities for companies. However, the operators of Discord servers are often not very careful about data protection. For example, there is no end-to-end encryption. Businesses can use Discord for free. There is a premium version that costs ten US dollar per month (Nitro) for some additional features, but that only offers minor upgrades, like more avatars. 

WeChat: Dominates in China

The WeChat messaging app has been around since 2011, and its parent company, Shenzhen Tencent Computer System Co, Ltd (Tencent for short), was founded in 1998. Incidentally, the QQ Messenger chat app, which also belongs to Tencent, was launched in the same year.

WeChat currently has 1.2 billion users, and 83% of China's population is on WeChat, with 50% of users following ten to 20 official business accounts. So, if you do business in China, you need to be on WeChat!

To make clear the importance of WeChat compared to all other messenger apps: It's much more than a simple chat app.

By combining official accounts and mini-programs, WeChat can map all the relevant steps in a company's business model directly on one platform for numerous industries: from marketing (via WeChat influencers or through content marketing) to consulting and sales to the after-sales process.

You can also pay through the chat, order food, or a taxi, so in China, virtually everything works via WeChat, which makes the app a role model for other messenger apps as well.

While it's free for businesses to use WeChat, you typically have to factor in some time for content creation.

LINE: THE messenger app in Japan

The LINE messenger went online in 2011. LINE Corporation is a subsidiary of the South Korean Naver Group. What's most exciting about the LINE universe are the other activities. LINE Messenger earns its money with stickers, various mobile apps, games, LINE Friends (various characters on stickers), LINE Taxi, LINE Pay and LINE Wow (access to delivery services for food, etc.).

LINE has 195 monthly active users, and around 70% of LINE users are aged below 50, and tend to spend more online. 

Overall, the messenger app has grown profitable over the years, and is the number 1 chat app in Japan, but also popular in Taiwan, Thailand, and even Turkmenistan. The app is available in 17 languages.

LINE can be used for all sorts of use cases for businesses, such as
 broadcast marketing, pre-sales chat
consultations, and support. Businesses pay per amount of messages sent. 

Wickr: Amazon's Messenger

Wickr is a messaging app that is comparable to Signal messenger app in terms of its approach and objectives. Special variants for corporate use have been available since 2016 and are also used by US government organizations, among others.

Wickr has been focusing on the public sector and administration for years and therefore enjoys an excellent reputation, especially in the USA, with regard to compliance with IT regulations. 

For companies, Wickr offers subscription-based pricing. There's a free three-month trial, and then there are different price packages of five and fifteen US dollars per month. There's also an enterprise version available. 

KakaoTalk: The messenger for everything in South Korea

KakaoTalk was launched in 2010. The South Korean parent company, Kakao Corporation, was founded in 2014 and emerged from a merger with the Daum Internet group, also from South Korea. Incidentally, one of the first investors in KakaoTalk was the Chinese company Tencent.

In South Korea, KakaoTalk dominates the messenger market. Comparable to LINE in Japan and WeChat in China, the messenger is used almost everywhere in everyday life: from chatting to ordering food and cabs to making payments. Anyone who wants to address customers in South Korea can therefore score points with KakaoTalk.

KakaoTalk has 53.5 million users worldwide, and 97% of Koreans use the chat app. Every day, one billion messages are sent on KakaoTalk. 

KakaoTalk can be used for any application
 including, marketing, pre-sales chat consultations, support, and transactional notifications. However, businesses must have a legal entity in South Korea to use KakaoTalk for business. 

KakaoTalk charges businesses based on the type of message they send. 

More than one instant messaging app for your business?

As a company, you're of course not limited to a single messenger app. In fact, it may often make more sense to offer multiple channels. 

The Indian online betting company Dafabet, for example, uses Instagram Direct Messages to connect with users that find them on Instagram, but also sends out regular marketing messages on Telegram. 

Similarly, Indian retailer Orion Mall is available for customers on Facebook Messenger as well as on WhatsApp, and even leads users from one app to the other, depending on the customers' preferences.

With a multi-messenger approach, however, it's important to rely on a technical solution that doesn't require you to constantly switch between applications, because that's a huge extra effort for your team. Professional platforms can be a good solution, as some software programs allow you to manage all messages from all centrally in one inbox, no matter what messenger app they came from. 

Sinch Engage is one of these platforms that allows you to use the most relevant messaging apps like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Apple Messages for Business, Telegram, and Viber for marketing, sales, and customer service. And the best part is: this is a ready-to-go solution, so it doesn't require any IT skills!

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