WhatsApp's single main life-changing thing for me was not having to pay exorbitant roaming charges to receive calls from hotels (mainly to tell me that my room is ready) while on a trip.
There's always been methods to contact customers using data instead of VoLTE, but WhatsApp is simple and ubiquitous enough for businesses to adopt, since a lot of people outside the US use it in a personal capacity as well.
As non WhatsApp user or any other app for that matter. It annoys me that services expect me to install yet another app to get basic customer service.
I haven’t used WhatsApp in 10 years , one time I tried to install it because of some stupid service provider who I really needed to get info made me do it , they said my number is suspended or blocked whatever .
I have no interest to chase their non existent support or change my number! to resolve this issue. You don’t have this problem with telecom providers even if AT&T refuses to do business with you , there two other actual and dozen other MVNOs who will .
Businesses should absolutely stick to open standards and protocols for essential communication and not ask customers to also have service with another specific company for basic communication . Delivery is the first consideration, not some value added functionality.
Depending on the county, that IM app could WhatsApp , WeChat , telegram, Douyin or something else. You don’t know what the other person uses if any at all.
SMS and phone just works out of the box everywhere and given a phone number the both likely will always work.
If you were traveling abroad you would put a mobile roaming plan in the first place. It is not that expensive.
I am not that big traveller perhaps do 5-6 international trips a year to few countries on my standard T-Mobile roaming plan I get 5GB data unlimited calls and texts on roaming almost in every country I visit out of the box no extra cost.
It is just $10 extra per month, It is only expensive if you travel without doing that small change
WhatsApp would need internet to work, WiFi is not ubiquitous everywhere or easy to use, many public ones have some captive app that needs something or other like local phone number - I have seen in some airports(!).
To get reliable internet on your phone abroad you need data roaming in the first place, if you have that then there is no benefits of WhatsApp over call/sms.
I don’t have a problem if there is extra communication or features in their IM workflow versus sms or voice , but places just assume you have what they use although you are not from there even in tourist friendly places, that is just rude.
> WhatsApp would need internet to work, WiFi is not ubiquitous everywhere or easy to use, many public ones have some captive app that needs something or other like local phone number - I have seen in some airports(!).
> To get reliable internet on your phone abroad you need data roaming in the first place, if you have that then there is no benefits of WhatsApp over call/sms.
I buy eSIMs, which often don't come with a local number. But I get data.
I don't need to receive normal calls apart from the rare hotel call. Receiving SMSes while roaming tends to be free, while calls aren't.
Places do not assume you have Whatsapp, but they can contact you there if you have it which is a win/win to me.
> To get reliable internet on your phone abroad you need data roaming in the first place, if you have that then there is no benefits of WhatsApp over call/sms.
Not true at all, those are two separate concerns. You may have data roaming plans for few euros per week and yet, a single phone call may costs you as much.
> I am not that big traveller perhaps do 5-6 international trips a year
Jesus, it's more than the vast majority of the world's population does in a decade (and more than I have done in my entire life). You're very well traveled by global standards.
It is all relative perhaps. My travels are a function of distributed family and work and being a first gen immigrant.
In comparison to digital nomads and leisure travelers who travel a lot for the sake of traveling and experiencing new things and so on, my knowledge of travel do's and don't are more amateur and limited is what I meant to convey.
There is no new standard required , sms, rcs(apple dragging their feet apart) and POTS are already well established , that leaves only video calling, some form of WebRTC and SDP with more rigid signaling requirements could work there
There's always been methods to contact customers using data instead of VoLTE, but WhatsApp is simple and ubiquitous enough for businesses to adopt, since a lot of people outside the US use it in a personal capacity as well.
More hotels should get onto WhatsApp.