It appears like WhatsApp is being used by everyone in the United States. Once considered a global phenomenon, the app saw a 9% increase in daily users in the United States in 2023, according to Apptopia, and is becoming more popular among iPhone users.
It’s become the go-to messenger for many, a stress-free substitute for the blue vs. green bubble battles between Apple and Android, and a quick method to stay in touch with connections across the globe. It was previously unimaginable, but if the current trend continues, WhatsApp might even challenge Apple Messages as the most widely used messaging app in the nation.
However, WhatsApp’s success in the US wasn’t coincidental. It was part luck, timing, and strategy. Here’s a look at the reasons why the most widely used messaging app in the world is finally taking off in the US:
Apple Enables Entry
Tim Cook gave Meta a present when he insisted that Apple’s Messages didn’t sync well with Android. With the addition of reactions and special effects to text messages, using SMS apps on both platforms became increasingly annoying. While the text bubbles in blue and green were bearable, the fact that “X Friend Liked Your Message” was displayed in plain text without a thumbs up turned off some users of traditional messaging apps. When people began searching for something cross-platform (iPhone users included), they discovered WhatsApp. According to the company, the majority of WhatsApp users in the United States today are iPhone owners, indicating that Apple’s devoted following is shifting away from the company’s default software and towards alternatives that are compatible with Android.
The Development of Big Messaging Groups
Email chains have largely been replaced by large messaging groups, where WhatsApp has become indispensable. One common WhatsApp use case nowadays is for parents of school-age children to join groups on the platform. Parents gossip, plan events, and monitor their children through these groups. Once friends, they use WhatsApp for private messaging, which increases the app’s usage. One of the main reasons WhatsApp is so helpful for groups is that it is compatible with multiple OS. Additionally, the platform has infrastructure built in to support growth, such as subgroups.
Growing Number of International Trips
In 2023, a record number of Americans went on vacation, with many of them going overseas. Popular destinations such as Mexico City, Santorini, and the Amalfi Coast saw an influx of American travellers driven by stimulus funds combined with a desire for travel for retribution. These tourists discovered that WhatsApp is an essential tool for personal and professional communication while they were outside of the US. They continued to use it after the international introduction, staying in touch with contacts overseas and attempting to establish a similar connection with U.S. businesses.
An Amazing App for Business Correspondence
Businesses adore using WhatsApp to communicate with their clients. The app is less cluttered, less intrusive than a phone call, and more dependable than the inbox. People use WhatsApp to make restaurant reservations, purchase automobiles, and request information about goods and services outside of the United States. Businesses in the US are now implementing that feature. Apptopia reports that after a 122% increase in 2022, the app’s daily business users climbed by 80% in the United States in 2023. People return to businesses that they know are active on WhatsApp.
Energy Shifting Towards Messaging Apps from Social
A significant amount of sharing that used to happen publicly—in the Facebook News Feed, for example—now happens within messaging apps. In the latter part of the 2010s, Meta “pivoted to privacy” after witnessing the initial phases of this change. That’s what happened because the company wanted to encourage more sharing within messaging apps. WhatsApp is stealing some of Facebook’s growth in the US, which has essentially plateaued. The app now has familiar broadcast sharing thanks to new features like Channels, in which I’m involved, though it has less virality overall—which is probably a good thing.
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A Reliable Desktop Programme
In the last two years, WhatsApp has updated its desktop software for Windows and redesigned its Mac version. Though it’s essentially a given now, the desktop communication feature plays a significant role in the app’s popularity in the United States.
What WhatsApp Is Attempting
WhatsApp is attempting to expand in the US following years of rapid international growth. This includes a significant campaign for the brand in 2022, another in 2023, and possibly one or more this year.
Meta is working hard to capitalise because it wants this to succeed and sees momentum. And so, it’s possible that this results in WhatsApp taking on the prominent position it currently holds worldwide in the United States. The likelihood is not as remote as it was, even not so long ago.
