London: WhatsApp, the world’s largest instant messaging service, has launched a new feature to make it possible to search for businesses within its app for the first time.
The test in Sao Paulo, Brazil, which allows WhatsApp users to find shops and services through a directory within the app, is the latest feature in Facebook Inc.’s drive to bolster ecommerce on its services. It includes thousands of businesses in categories like food, retail and local services across certain Sao Paulo neighbourhoods. India and Indonesia are seen as the next good candidates to expand the feature.
“This could be…the primary way that people start a commerce process in WhatsApp,” Matt Idema, Facebook’s vice president of business messaging, said in an interview this week.
