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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.

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Scope, fee, reporting and term are agreed in writing after we have read your brief and spoken to you.

Realistic editorial illustration of freight and transport companies at work in India

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.

Also for shipping companies

Sales and marketing for shipping companies, the overview.

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.

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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.

Read the full WhatsApp marketing and automation page

What to capture or send

Send these on WhatsApp and keep rates and documents on safer routes.

Sailing notice for a lane
A message with the vessel, port pair and cut-off as confirmed by operations, sent to forwarders who agreed to receive lane updates.
Document reminder
A note naming the missing shipping instruction or invoice and the cut-off it affects, with the desk contact for questions.
Disruption notice
A message about a delay or a rolled vessel, with the plan and the person to call, sent from the business account.
Quick answer to a forwarder
A reply on whether space exists on a sailing, with the booking reference noted in the CRM afterwards.
Consent to broadcasts
A forwarder's reply agreeing to lane updates, saved with the lanes they chose so a list is built by route.

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

Not for

It is not the right fit if.

  • Forwarders have not agreed to receive broadcasts, so a list built from visiting cards would invite complaints.
  • Staff would send contract rates to chats on personal phones, which no one can later find or retrieve.

How it works

How the whatsapp marketing work runs

The work itself, in order. How an engagement starts, from your brief to a written scope, is set out on our method page.

  1. 1

    Read the chats you already have

    We read how customers write to you, which questions repeat and where a chat goes quiet. The repeated questions decide what gets automated first.

  2. 2

    Sort the list and the permission

    Contacts who asked to hear from you are separated from numbers that only sit in a phone book. We agree the wording new contacts will see before they say yes.

  3. 3

    Choose the app or the API

    One phone and a small team can stay on the ordinary app. Several people on one number, templates or a CRM link need the API through a provider, which is its own piece of setup work.

  4. 4

    Write the replies and the plan

    The greeting, away message, saved replies and handover rule are written in your words and approved by you. The message plan and its templates follow.

  5. 5

    Connect the record and test

    Each link carries its source line and each chat lands in the CRM. We test on real phones, including a customer who asks for a person.

  6. 6

    Read the unanswered questions

    A question the first reply could not answer becomes a new saved reply or a fixed handover. Stop requests are watched too, with the number's quality rating where the API is used, since both show a message plan that has gone too far.

Where this fits

Three pieces of sales work, in this order.

This work sits inside sales process design, at stage 0, foundation. The audit comes before it, and sales management keeps it running.

  1. Step 1

    Sales audit

    Find where deals are being lost and what to fix first.

    Start here if you cannot say where orders are lost.

  2. Step 2 · you are here

    Sales process design

    One written way to sell, from first enquiry to repeat order.

    Start here if every salesperson sells differently.

  3. Step 3

    Sales management

    A target, a review routine and someone who owns the number.

    Start here if the team has targets and no routine.

Tell us what you need Your brief is read before we call. Scope, fee and term in writing.

FAQ

Questions owners ask before they call.

Not here? More answers, or ask on WhatsApp.

Tell us what you need
Can we send rates on WhatsApp?
You can, but a rate sent in a chat is a quote on record. Send it with its validity and conditions, and log it in your system so the desk can see what was offered.
Will broadcasts annoy forwarders?
Only if they are frequent or irrelevant. Send what is useful, such as an open sailing on a lane that forwarder uses, and let anyone leave the list.
Should bills of lading go over WhatsApp?
Send draft copies for checking, not originals. A bill of lading is a document of title, and the chat is neither controlled nor easily audited. Use your documentation system or email for final copies, and use the chat to flag that a draft is waiting.
Can a group include several forwarders?
No. Forwarders compete, and a group shows each one the others' questions and numbers. Use one-to-one chats or a broadcast list where recipients cannot see each other, and set a clear rule on who on your desk replies.
How much does it cost?
There is no price list, because the work differs by business. The fee is scoped after we have read your brief and spoken to you, and put in writing before anything starts, split into our time, your media spend and production.
How long is the contract?
The term is agreed in writing after we have spoken, along with the fee and the reporting. It is never a default twelve months, and renewal is decided on the numbers against the baseline recorded at the start.
How soon will we see results?
It depends on the trade, the channel and what is already in place. After we have read your brief and spoken to you, we say what we would expect to move first and how it will be measured against the baseline. Nothing here is guaranteed.
Who will actually do the work?
The person you speak to before anything starts. We work from one office in Nagarbhavi, Bengaluru, with no account managers in between.
What do you need from us?
Your brief, and a conversation. After that, access to whatever this work touches, such as your website, your accounts or your enquiry record, and time with the people who handle your enquiries.
What if we are not happy with the work?
Tell us and the plan changes. Everything is reported against the baseline, so a number that is not moving is visible to both sides. The term is in your written scope, and the refund and cancellation policy sets out the rest.

More for shipping companies

Everything else we would do for you.

Or start from the overview: sales and marketing for shipping companies.

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