WhatsApp is ‘most used chat app in Nigeria’

WhatsApp is the most used chat app among Nigerians, a study that reveals consumer preferences across five countries has revealed.

Nigeria, which is home to a booming user base for chat apps has 187,026,517 subscriber lines representing 97.98% coverage of the population; 140,488,490 active internet connections and 75,569,442 broadband connections estimated to have reached 39.59% as of May, this, according to official market information. 

Meanwhile, in Nigeria, over 80% of consumers just like in China, Brazil and India use chat apps for brand engagement, according to the survey by global omnichannel communications solutions provider, Mitto. 

Mitto’s study reveals insights into consumer preferences and use of chat apps across five countries including Nigeria, U.S., China, India and Brazil. 

The findings from 600 respondents in each country show increased consumer use of messaging platforms and apps for both personal use and to engage with brands, which are seeking new channels to effectively interact with their customers where they are and in ways that fit seamlessly into their lifestyle, according to the authors of the study.

A key finding is that Nigerian chat apps users’ engagements are significantly higher than in the U.S. (51%), highlighting for U.S. brands the importance of using chat apps to effectively reach consumers abroad.  

Mitto’s research found that over 80% of consumers in China, Brazil, India and Nigeria use chat apps for brand engagement, significantly higher than in the U.S. (51%), highlighting for U.S. brands the importance of using chat apps to effectively reach consumers abroad. 

Mitto found strong parallels globally among the chat apps consumers report using the most for personal use and for brand engagement, suggesting chat apps are used interchangeably for both purposes. 

WhatsApp ranked top for brand engagement

The study also found the most popular chat apps used to engage with brands outside the U.S. were WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. In the U.S, however, Facebook Messenger ranks as the most popular chat app for brand engagement, followed by WhatsApp and Discord.

Which of the following chat apps do you use regularly to engage with brands?

“Mitto’s expanded A2P business messaging support for chat apps will give our clients the ability to connect with global consumers where they’re already at: on their phones, on their preferred chat apps,” Sandro Stupar, Director of Product Management at Mitto says. 

“Across the world, consumers are demanding more from the brands with which they engage, and this extends into how and where they communicate. At Mitto, we work with our customers to identify how to best reach their target customers and we ensure quality delivery over the best channel. Chat apps represent massive opportunities for brands to organically drive positive customer experiences.”

With billions of users worldwide, chat apps present critical and robust engagement channels for brands to reach their customers. 

Since the start of COVID-19, Mitto’s research found a rise in the use of chat apps for brand engagement among consumers in all five countries surveyed, however the rise has been most prominent in India (73%), Nigeria (71%), China (66%) and Brazil (61%). In the U.S. only 32% of consumers report using chat apps more since the pandemic began.

According to Mitto’s research, consumers engage with brands on chat apps across a range of industries:

What industry do you most often engage with on chat apps?

When asked what types of messages they’d like to receive more from brands on chat apps, consumers were especially opinionated on promotions/sales, satisfaction surveys and order updates:

What types of messages would you like to receive more of from brands on chat apps?

Mitto says its business messages, brands seeking to engage their customers via chat apps can send content-rich messages of up 3,000 characters, depending on the specific app — compared to 160 with SMS — that include images, videos, expressive content, interactive buttons and links, and live message status updates, all in a native and brand-safe environment.