Gone are the days when a good ad needed to convince the customer to click, open a website, fill out a form, and only then wait for a salesperson to contact them. Today, just two taps on the screen are enough to start negotiating—literally.
With the rise of ads featuring the ‘Click to WhatsApp’ button, or simply ‘Click for WhatsApp,’ Brazil’s most-used messaging channel has become a direct bridge between desire and purchase. Instead of redirecting the consumer to a page full of forms, clicking on an Instagram or Facebook campaign already initiates a direct conversation with the brand on WhatsApp. It’s fast, simple, and highly effective.
“Businesses of all sizes are discovering a new shortcut to connect with their consumers, shortening the buying journey and turning the green messenger into the new sales counter of the Brazilian internet. It’s like opening the store door with a click. The customer is right there, calling you. It’s up to you to know how to respond,” summarizes Alberto Filho, CEO of Poli Digital, a Goiás-based company specializing in automation of customer service channels for SMEs.
Here’s how it works: when a user sees an ad on Instagram or Facebook and clicks, instead of being taken to a traditional landing page, they’re directed straight to a WhatsApp chat with the brand. And the impact is real. According to Opinion Box, three out of ten Brazilians expect a WhatsApp response within five minutes. HubSpot goes further: responding to a lead within 5 minutes can increase conversion chances by up to 21 times.
“This simplicity completely transforms the consumer journey. You reduce friction, humanize the experience, and speed up closing the sale,” summarizes Alberto Filho.
In practice, the impact is measurable. During the pandemic, Espaçolaser implemented Click to WhatsApp ads and, in three months, recorded a 396% increase in WhatsApp conversions and a 137% increase in revenue through the channel. Meanwhile, the brand Reserva reported a significant improvement in ROI by integrating personalized messages, although the exact percentage was not publicly disclosed.
But to handle the high volume of interactions resulting from this type of campaign, willpower alone isn’t enough: ‘Automation, integrated catalogs, payment links, and re-engagement tools are essential to ensure smooth service and continuity in the journey,’ explains Filho. ‘WhatsApp allows you to handle pre-sale, sale, and post-sale—all in the same channel.’ However, it’s important to note that these automations, CRM, payment systems, and the use of Meta’s Conversion API are only possible through a specialized platform like Poli, which operates via the Official WhatsApp API provided by Meta to BSPs (authorized partners).
Moreover, with Meta’s Conversion API already integrated into Poli’s platform, it’s possible to connect what happens on WhatsApp with the Facebook Ads Manager. In other words: if the sale happens after the click, the system identifies it, sends the information to Meta, and optimizes campaigns based on real results—even offline. This advanced integration is only possible thanks to the use of the Official WhatsApp API, available exclusively to authorized partners like Poli.
“What was once just a messaging app has become a sales channel, customer service, CRM, and post-sale hub. With open rates far higher than email and SMS, WhatsApp has established itself as the preferred channel for Brazilian consumers and the most efficient for those who want to sell more,” says Poli Digital’s CEO. He emphasizes that all this efficiency and automation is only possible thanks to the use of the Official WhatsApp API, which enables complete and secure integration through specialized platforms like Poli.
For Alberto Filho, the secret lies in strategy: ‘It’s not just about adding a button. You need to understand how this channel integrates into the entire journey. Test, measure, adjust. And above all, be present where the customer already is.’ He adds: ‘Because, at the end of the day, selling today is about this: responding quickly, speaking right, and being available at the exact moment—with just one click.’
