Facebook-owned WhatsApp is an ad-free messaging service, but things are about to change from 2020 onwards. At the annual Facebook Marketing Summit held in the Netherlands, Facebook has confirmed that in-app ads will be displayed in the messaging app starting from 2020.
Users will see ads within the ‘Status’ feature of WhatsApp as confirmed by the presentation during the summit. It will be similar to Instagram where sponsored content is displayed in stories and users can swipe up to visit the content associated with the ad.
When a user will click on a status, the name of the advertiser will be shown instead of the contact’s profile picture and name. Unlike other social media platforms, WhatsApp will display a full-screen ad which is kind of intrusive.
Coming Soon to @WhatsApp…
– WhatsApp Status (Stories) to get Ads in 2020
– WhatsApp for Businesses to get richer messaging format options
– WhatsApp product catalog to be integrated with existing Facebook Business Manager catalog
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at #FMS19 pic.twitter.com/Z5LsbADNbP— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) May 21, 2019
It isn’t a surprise that ads are coming to WhatsApp. It has been long anticipated that Facebook will find a means to monetize the world’s most popular messaging platform. WhatsApp has 1.5 billion users in 180 countries and the platform has 0.2 billion more users than its counterpart – Facebook Messenger.
Nonetheless, I feel that Facebook is doing it the right way. Instead of displaying ad while messaging someone, ads will be shown only in a particular feature which is not as intrusive as it sounds.
What do you think about Facebook’s decision to cram ads into WhatsApp? Would it force you to drop the app and look elsewhere? Tell us in the comments.
