Infobip Case Studies Unilever's Innovative Product Promotion Using WhatsApp Business Chatbot

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	Unilever's Innovative Product Promotion Using WhatsApp Business Chatbot Infobip

Unilever's Innovative Product Promotion Using WhatsApp Business Chatbot

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Applicable Industries	Consumer Goods Retail
Applicable Functions	Sales & Marketing
Use Cases	Chatbots
Challenge	Unilever, a multinational consumer goods corporation, was faced with the challenge of promoting a new line of products from their leading fabric softener brand in Brazil, Comfort. The new products included a washing powder and a washing liquid with improved capabilities. Unilever sought a unique and disruptive approach for their promotional efforts that would guarantee a significant impact. They wanted to approach customers in a way that mimicked how products are organically recommended and in a manner that the customers were familiar with. Read More
About Customer	Unilever is a multinational consumer goods corporation and one of the largest in the world, owning over 400 brands. The company has a significant presence in Brazil, where it has been operating for 90 years. Unilever's products are found in almost every Brazilian home. The company was looking to promote a new line of products from Comfort, its leading fabric softener brand in Brazil. Read More
Solution	Unilever decided to leverage the popularity of WhatsApp, the world's most used chat app, to connect with consumers in a familiar way. In August 2019, they launched a WhatsApp Business campaign where they displayed 1,000 posters around Sao Paulo with teaser messages and a WhatsApp number. When consumers contacted the number, a chatbot named MadameBot provided advice on clothes care and introduced the new products using rich media like audio and memes. At the end of the chat, customers were offered a 50% discount on the new products and free shipping. The self-service keyword chatbot was built on Infobip’s Answers platform. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Applicable Industries

Consumer Goods

Retail

Applicable Functions

Sales & Marketing

Use Cases

Chatbots

Challenge

Unilever, a multinational consumer goods corporation, was faced with the challenge of promoting a new line of products from their leading fabric softener brand in Brazil, Comfort. The new products included a washing powder and a washing liquid with improved capabilities. Unilever sought a unique and disruptive approach for their promotional efforts that would guarantee a significant impact. They wanted to approach customers in a way that mimicked how products are organically recommended and in a manner that the customers were familiar with.

About Customer

Unilever is a multinational consumer goods corporation and one of the largest in the world, owning over 400 brands. The company has a significant presence in Brazil, where it has been operating for 90 years. Unilever's products are found in almost every Brazilian home. The company was looking to promote a new line of products from Comfort, its leading fabric softener brand in Brazil.

Solution

Unilever decided to leverage the popularity of WhatsApp, the world's most used chat app, to connect with consumers in a familiar way. In August 2019, they launched a WhatsApp Business campaign where they displayed 1,000 posters around Sao Paulo with teaser messages and a WhatsApp number. When consumers contacted the number, a chatbot named MadameBot provided advice on clothes care and introduced the new products using rich media like audio and memes. At the end of the chat, customers were offered a 50% discount on the new products and free shipping. The self-service keyword chatbot was built on Infobip’s Answers platform.

Impact #1	The WhatsApp Business campaign exceeded all expectations, with the engagement level far surpassing the initial goal of 600 interactions. The success of the campaign led to its extension from three days to a week. The conversational approach of the campaign proved to be a huge success, resulting in a significant increase in sales and positive feedback from customers. The campaign was so successful that Unilever had to bring in external partners to meet the demand. The company also received numerous calls at their call center praising the campaign. As a result, Unilever is now considering adding a WhatsApp number directly to the product package.

Impact #1

The WhatsApp Business campaign exceeded all expectations, with the engagement level far surpassing the initial goal of 600 interactions. The success of the campaign led to its extension from three days to a week. The conversational approach of the campaign proved to be a huge success, resulting in a significant increase in sales and positive feedback from customers. The campaign was so successful that Unilever had to bring in external partners to meet the demand. The company also received numerous calls at their call center praising the campaign. As a result, Unilever is now considering adding a WhatsApp number directly to the product package.

Benefit #1	14 times higher product sales than on ordinary days
Benefit #2	Over 290,000 messages exchanged in 7 days
Benefit #3	6,335 unique users interacted with Comfort’s chatbots in the first 12 hours

Benefit #1

14 times higher product sales than on ordinary days

Benefit #2

Over 290,000 messages exchanged in 7 days

Benefit #3

6,335 unique users interacted with Comfort’s chatbots in the first 12 hours

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Overview

Unilever's Innovative Product Promotion Using WhatsApp Business Chatbot

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit