Telegram, a messaging app that is not as popular as WhatsApp, is now offering businesses the option to create business accounts to communicate with customers. By converting their account, businesses gain access to features like displaying hours of operation on their profile, pinning their location on a map, and customizing their start page to showcase products and services.
Customers can easily see if a business is open or closed and get a glimpse of what they offer through the displayed information. Telegram Business accounts can save preset messages for quick replies to inquiries and set up greeting and away messages to automate responses. They can also use a Telegram Bot to chat with customers, though human interaction is preferred in customer service.
All these features are available for free with a Telegram Premium account, which costs $5 a month. Additionally, Telegram is sharing 50 percent of ad revenue with channel owners who have at least 1,000 subscribers. These developments suggest promising growth for Telegram in the near future. Company founder Pavel Durov has expressed confidence in the app’s financial prospects, aiming for profitability next year and considering a future initial public offering.
