Shipping companies · WhatsApp marketing
Use WhatsApp for sailing notices, document reminders and the quick question from a forwarder.
WhatsApp marketing for a shipping company means using the app forwarders and exporters already open to share sailings, collect rate details and send disruption notices. GullySales sets up the business account, the message formats and the rules for consent and record keeping.
Scope, fee, reporting and term are agreed in writing after we have read your brief and spoken to you.
What WhatsApp marketing means
WhatsApp marketing is sending updates, offers and reminders to customers on the app most Indian buyers already check daily. GullySales sets up business WhatsApp, writes the message templates and keeps the list consented and current.
Last updated 18 Oct 2026.
For shipping companies
Where it usually goes wrong, and what we would do.
“Forwarders already live on WhatsApp”
A forwarder's desk asks for space and a cut-off in a chat with the line's executive. If that chat is on a personal phone, the history leaves with the person; a business account keeps it with the company.
“A broadcast should carry a sailing, not an advertisement”
A list message saying a vessel is open on a lane with a cut-off date earns a reply. A list message of greetings and slogans gets muted.
“Documents travel in chats”
Draft bills of lading and delivery orders get sent as photographs and PDFs. Without a rule on what is sent in which chat, corrections go missing and the wrong version is used.
“Consent protects the list”
People should be added to a broadcast list only after agreeing to it, and be able to leave. Check the platform's current rules on business messaging before sending anything in bulk.
What we do
What we deliver for shipping companies.
Every deliverable, what it covers for you, and the result it is there to produce. Nothing here is an extra.
Business account set-up
A business profile with company details, hours and a short catalogue of services.
Result: A shipper sees a company account, not a personal number.
Quick-reply library
Saved replies for rate requests, document lists, free-day questions and the details needed to quote.
Result: Every executive asks for the same details in the same way.
Sailing and disruption broadcasts
Formats and a consented list for new sailings, schedule changes and port notices.
Result: A rolled vessel is reported in a clear message to the affected list.
Chat-to-CRM routine
A rule for logging a rate request from a chat into the CRM with the lane and equipment.
Result: A chat request is a recorded lead, not a lost message.
Staff guidance
Short guidance on what staff may send, which chats to use and how to hand over.
Result: The team follows one set of habits.
How the result is measured
- Messages delivered
- Reply rate
- Enquiries from WhatsApp
Recorded as a baseline before work starts, so every later report has an honest comparison.
Who it is for
This is written for these shipping companies.
- Container shipping lines serving Indian ports
- NVOCC and consolidators selling LCL and FCL space
- Ship agents handling port calls and husbandry
- Coastal and feeder shipping operators
- Bulk and break-bulk charterers moving commodities
- Project cargo and out-of-gauge shipping specialists
- Ro-ro and car carrier agents
- Inland waterway and short-sea operators
How it works
From your first message to the first report.
No open-ended retainer. Every step gives you something in writing.
First
Your brief
You tell us what you need in a few short steps: your business, what you want, where enquiries come from and how they are handled.
After the brief
A conversation and a written scope
We read it, then talk with whoever handles your enquiries. If you want our help, the scope, the fee and the reporting come in writing, and nothing starts before you have read them.
Before work starts
Baseline recorded
The numbers this work is meant to move, such as enquiries, quotations, orders, visits or renewals, written down so every later report has an honest comparison.
After the baseline
The first fix goes live
The fix we agreed to start with is put in place and measured against the baseline, whether that is a reply, a follow-up, a page, a listing or the handover between marketing and sales.
As agreed
Report against the baseline
What moved, what did not, and what changes next, in plain words. How often you get it is set in writing before work starts.
At renewal
Renew on the numbers
The term ends and you decide whether to continue from the results. The length is agreed in writing before anything starts.
How the whatsapp marketing work runs
- 1
Understand current WhatsApp use
We review how customers currently message you and how consistently, if at all, it is answered.
- 2
Audit common questions
We identify the questions that come up repeatedly, which decide what should be automated first.
- 3
Set up automation and templates
An automated first response and quick reply templates are built for the most common needs.
- 4
Connect to the CRM
Conversations are linked to customer records so context carries over between team members.
- 5
Measure and optimise
We track response time and conversion, refining automated responses based on what customers actually ask.
Why us
Why owners pick GullySales over an agency.
Marketing and sales, as one job
Most agencies stop at the enquiry. We also fix what happens after it: the reply, the follow-up, the quote and the CRM.
The person on the first call does the work
No account managers in between. You are never handed to someone you have not met.
A baseline before anything starts
Your numbers are written down on day one, so every later report compares against something honest.
The fee in writing, split three ways
Our time, your media spend and production on separate lines. You always see what goes to us.
No guarantees we cannot keep
The term is agreed in writing and never a default twelve months. We never promise a ranking or a lead count, because nobody controls those.
One office, and we say so
Nagarbhavi, Bengaluru. We work across India by call and WhatsApp and travel when a session needs to be in person.
#257, 3rd floor, Sri Nanjundeshwara Complex, Nagarbhavi 8th Block, Outer Ring Road. How we work.
Your brief
Tell us what you need, and we will read it before we call.
Eight short steps about your business, what you want and who decides. Most questions are a tap, and you can skip any you would rather answer on the call.
FAQ
Questions owners ask before they call.
Not here? More answers, or ask on WhatsApp.
Can we send rates on WhatsApp?
Will broadcasts annoy forwarders?
How much does it cost?
How long is the contract?
How soon will we see results?
Who will actually do the work?
What do you need from us?
What if we are not happy with the work?
More for shipping companies
Everything else we would do for you.
Or start from the overview: sales and marketing for shipping companies.
Your next practical step
Tell us what you are trying to grow, and we will read it before we call.
Eight short steps, mostly taps. Skip anything you would rather answer on the call.