Viber E-Commerce: How to Drive Sales and Customer Engagement

E-commerce has brought a paradigm shift in how retails interact with their customers.

As e-commerce trends continue to become the new norm in how customers shop, a great site design and lower prices are no longer sufficient.

This marks the advent of e-commerce messaging for Viber.

Today, with more than 1.6 billion registered accounts and open rates of up to 90 percent in more than 190 countries, Viber gives e-commerce sites a chance to directly address customers in their most comfortable space.

This stands in contrast to email where messages often go unopened and SMS that only has a 160 character limit.

This guide explains how e-commerce companies can use Viber Business Messages to handle cart abandonment recovery, order-related communications, customer service optimization, and ultimately facilitate conversions.

What is Viber for eCommerce?

Viber e-commerce refers to the intentional use of Business Messages via Viber for facilitating e-commerce transactions.

This includes a wide array of tasks such as marketing and promotional activities to dealing with customer service and notifications.

What sets Viber apart from other messaging services is that it seamlessly brings together a wide reach, rich media support, and marketer flexibility.

Here are some factors that make this service ideal for e-commerce:

• Enhanced messaging capability: ability to send a message with a maximum of 1,000 characters compared to SMS with 160 characters
• Support for rich media: adding quality pictures, videos, GIFs, PDFs, and click-to-action buttons
• Business profiles verification: showing of business logo and details with a blue checkmark to build user trust
• Marketing-friendly: Unlike WhatsApp, promotional messages are allowed in Viber; thus, it can be used for marketing purposes
• Detailed analytics: trackability for delivery, reading receipts, and click-through data for optimal performance

There are three types of Viber Business Messages: transaction messages (e.g., order confirmations and delivery notifications), promotional messages (examples include sales notifications and newly arrived products), and conversational messages (customer service interactions within a 24-hour time frame).

E-Commerce Use Cases for Viber Business Messaging

Viber's versatility makes it valuable across the entire customer journey.

Here are the most impactful use cases for online retailers.

Marketing and Promotions

Viber's marketing capabilities go far beyond what SMS can offer.

E-commerce brands can create visually compelling campaigns that showcase products in their best light.

• Rich media campaigns: Send product images with CTA buttons linking directly to purchase pages
• Flash sale announcements: Create urgency with time-sensitive offers delivered instantly
• Personalized recommendations: Suggest products based on browsing history or previous purchases
• Seasonal promotions: Holiday sales, clearance events, and exclusive member offers

For example, a footwear retailer used Viber to deliver personalized rich media messages featuring tailored offers based on customer preferences.

The visual nature of the messages, combined with one-tap purchase buttons, drove significantly higher engagement than their email campaigns.

Abandoned Cart Recovery

Cart abandonment remains one of the biggest challenges in e-commerce.

Industry data shows abandonment rates ranging from 50% to 98% depending on the sector, resulting in an estimated $18 billion in lost annual sales globally.

Viber provides a powerful tool for recovering these lost sales.

Its advantages over traditional recovery methods include:

• Timing control: Set time-to-live (TTL) parameters to reach customers while they're still in buying mode
• Higher visibility: 90% open rates compared to 20% for email means your message gets seen
• Visual product reminders: Include images of abandoned items to trigger purchase intent
• Incentive delivery: Attach discount codes or free shipping offers to close the sale

One particularly effective approach is an omnichannel abandoned cart sequence: send a Viber message 20 minutes after cart abandonment, follow up with email if no action is taken, then use push notifications as a final reminder.

A spare parts retailer implementing this Viber-first strategy saw a 1,872% increase in recovered orders and a 3,983% increase in trigger profitability.

Order Notifications and Shipping Updates

Transactional messages are where Viber truly excels.

Customers expect real-time updates about their purchases, and Viber delivers these with rich detail that builds trust and reduces support inquiries.

• Order confirmations: Send detailed receipts with product images, order numbers, and tracking information
• Shipping updates: Real-time notifications when orders ship, with carrier tracking links
• Delivery alerts: Notify customers when packages are out for delivery or have arrived
• Delivery window reminders: Reduce missed deliveries with timely reminders

These notifications do more than inform—they reduce anxiety about online purchases and decrease the volume of "where is my order" support tickets.

The visual nature of Viber messages makes order information easy to reference, and customers can pin important messages for quick access.

Customer Support and Conversational Commerce

Modern shoppers expect instant answers.

Viber's two-way messaging capabilities transform customer support from a cost center into a revenue driver.

• Pre-purchase assistance: Answer product questions in real-time to eliminate buying hesitation
• Chatbot automation: Deploy bots for 24/7 responses to common queries like sizing, availability, and return policies
• Live agent handoff: Seamlessly transfer complex issues to human support
• Post-purchase support: Handle returns, exchanges, and complaints in a familiar messaging environment

Conversational commerce on Viber also enables upselling and cross-selling.

When a customer asks about a product, support agents or chatbots can suggest complementary items, turning a simple inquiry into additional revenue.

Loyalty and Re-engagement

Retaining existing customers costs significantly less than acquiring new ones.

Viber helps e-commerce brands maintain ongoing relationships with their customer base.

• Back-in-stock alerts: Notify customers when wished-for items become available
• Reorder reminders: Prompt repeat purchases for consumable products
• VIP exclusives: Reward loyal customers with early access to sales or special offers
• Feedback collection: Request reviews and gather customer insights through interactive messages

Key Features That Make Viber Ideal for E-Commerce

A grasp of Viber's capabilities can go a long way in unlocking its potential for your e-commerce site.

• Rich Media Messages: Enable rich media messaging to send images, videos, GIFs, files, and buttons.
• Business Profiles Verified: The presence of a blue checkmark and a Business Profile gives customers instant verification.
• CTA Buttons: Use buttons with action-oriented calls-to-action such as "Shop Now", "Track Order", and "Contact Support".
• Delivery & Read Receipts: Track deliveries and opens with precision for better campaign optimization.
• SMS Fallback: Customers without Viber should be sent messages via SMS fallback.
• Session-Based Dialogue: Engage in a two-way dialogue within 24-hour time periods (or 60 messages maximum).

How to Get Started with Viber for Your E-Commerce Business

Getting started with Viber Business is easy when interacting with a certified messaging partner.

Opening a Viber Business Account

You would need your business name, contact information, and a use case description.

This verification process may take 5 to 7 business days when done via a provider for a CPaaS offering such as Dexatel.

You can read about the full process here.

Pick a Messaging Partner

The integration with Viber directly remains largely a feature of corporations sending millions of messages a month.

Otherwise, for most firms, access to a partner for messaging via API and other forms of support remains a better option.

This allows for faster assistance without necessarily requiring much technical expertise.

Assemble Your Contact List

Viber requires consent before sending any messages.

Customer consent can be collected via opt-ins using pop-ups, check-out forms, QR codes, and/or existing customer lists where consent has already been obtained.

Developing Message Templates

Make templates for your frequently used cases such as order confirmations, shipment notifications, cart abandonment notifications, and promotional messages.

You can use placeholders for personalization (customer name, order number, and product information).

Viber vs. Other Messaging Channels for E-Commerce

This comparison of Viber with other channels allows for informed decisions to be made when choosing a channel.

Specifically, flexibility regarding marketing freedom stands out as a strength for Viber when customer servicing in Eastern Europe, Middle East, Southeast Asia regions, or when rich-media capabilities with more flexibility regarding promotional messages are considered.

Best Practices for Viber E-Commerce Campaigns

To achieve best possible results for e-commerce on Viber, keep in mind:

• Timing: A cart abandonment messages needs to be sent 20 to 60 minutes after a possible purchase.
• Personalize everything: Use customer names, include product images from their cart, and reference purchase history
• Be mindful of frequency: Do not send too much messages to avoid opt-outs.
• Test and Optimize: A/B test message content such as text and pictures. Additionally, buttons for calls-to-action and sending messages can be optimized.
• Enable SMS Fallback: This feature ensures that customers who are not using Viber receive messages.
• Ensure Compliance: Act promptly to comply with opt-out requests. Also, follow Viber content policies.
• Validate contacts: Number lookup to ensure valid and existing Viber accounts before sending any messages to avoid charges for sessions.

Measuring Success: Key Metrics for Viber E-Commerce

Use the following data to appraise and optimize your messaging on Viber:

• Delivery rate: The ratio of messages delivered to recipients.
• Read rate: Messages received opened (services such as Viber offer read notifications)
• Click-through rate: Percentage of people who click buttons or hyperlinks labeled with CTA.
• Conversion rate: The number of message recipients who made a purchase.
• Cart recovery rate: This refers to the number of recovered carts using Viber messages.
• Cost Per Conversion: Total cost of messaging ÷ Number of conversions

The e-commerce messaging feature of Viber offers e-commerce websites a powerful means of reaching out to their customers.

Whether for reminding customers about abandoned carts and providing orders with thorough updates or for providing customers with live customer support and building loyalty, Viber outperforms email and SMS.

There are 1.2 billion registered users with a 90 percent open rate.

Noticeable adoption in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia make Viber a great opportunity for e-commerce brands who want to reach customers via their preferred messaging service.

Firstly, a successful campaign needs a strong emphasis on use cases such as abandoned cart recovery notifications, transaction notifications, and promotional campaigns.

Gradually build out based on customer response.

Thinking of adding Viber to your e-commerce messaging channels?

Dexatel offers everything you need to get started: easy Viber Business account creation, API integration, SMS fallbacks, and analytics with clear pay-per-message fees with no charges for setting up.

Start your free trial today and send out your first message via Viber in no time.