An Analysis of Whatsapp Emoji in Business Interactions between a Malaysian SME and the Turkish Counterparts

Abstract

<jats:p>Social media usage such as Twitter, Whatsapp, and Instagram are widely used by individuals around the globe. Entrepreneurs are among those who use social media as their platforms in selling and marketing their items. Particularly in WhatsApp communication, there are various functions of emoji in social networking that offer various messaging features. The purposes of this study were to identify the usage of emoji in WhatsApp business interactions and to types of emoji employed among Malaysian Small and Medium enterprises (SME) and his Turkish counterparts. This study used Content Analysis to make interpretations about the emoji found in conversational messages between the entrepreneurs in their business interactions. The findings revealed that the Malaysian participant was more technology savvy when it came to the use of emoji compared to his Turkish business counterparts. Thus, the WhatsApp emoji provides a non-verbal communication and other functions in business interaction. Based on the findings, this study recommends that the use of emoji should be encouraged among entrepreneurs and customers to create a cheerful and customer-friendly atmosphere. Additionally, WhatsApp features should be used by both businesses and consumers to promote business processes and help readers understand the meaning of their communications.</jats:p>