WhatsApp: Social Media or School?
When it comes to social media in Nigeria, WhatsApp is the undisputed king. With over 85% of Nigerian internet users using the app, almost every Nigerian you meet has a WhatsApp account.
As with other social media platforms, it has quickly become used for business. WhatsApp has a number of advantages that make it attractive for entrepreneurs. The first and most important advantage is that the app is almost entirely organic. There are no algorithms and analytics that you need to trick, which means that users can simply focus on marketing their products and services, rather than things like hashtag research and other tricks that are necessary on other platforms.
One practice that has exploded on WhatsApp in recent times are “online classes, masterclasses and other forms of classes”
With the group feature on WhatsApp, you can get people to pay, send them a link to join your “online class” and boom, you’ve made money. Unfortunately, because it’s so easy to do, anybody and everybody is doing it. This means that any shmuck with copywriting skills can get you to pay for a class and provide a sub-standard experience.
This has lead to many people rubbishing the entire idea of “WhatsApp classes” as being another ‘get rich scheme.’ And honestly, they have a point. Many people are teaching things that they have no idea or experience of, just to make a quick buck. Many prospective ‘students’ have been left disillusioned with the entire structure.
But, does that mean that the whole idea of holding classes on WhatsApp is bad? Let’s not throw out the baby with the bathwater. The problem, methinks, is not with WhatsApp or any other platform, rather, with those that use it.
WhatsApp, and any social media platform really, provides you with the opportunity to learn from people. This means that you have to carefully select who you learn from.
Don’t get sucked in by fancy copywriting. Take the time to study the facilitator. Every decent teacher I know has free content that you can consume. Consume a lot of it. Figure out who you are paying to, before you care about what you are going to learn. The teacher is far more important than the topic that they’ll teach, so take your time to select one well.
As a teacher, ensure that you teach to the best of your abilities. Teach what you know and have proved. It’s tempting to pass off information that you know nothing about, yet pretend to an expert in. Don’t do it!
WhatsApp can help you learn almost any skill that you need to, and give you the connections you need. You can even make money on the platform if you know how to.
Personally, I’ve taken numerous courses on various topics and skills on WhatsApp that have helped me tremendously. One that stands out is the WhatsApp Monetization Course by DABA. If you are serious about monetizing your WhatsApp, without falling into the trap that many people do, then you should take this course. Interested? Send me a DM on WhatsApp and let’s talk
