Thoughts on Using WhatsApp for Professional Communities?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on using WhatsApp as a community platform for building a professional community. I’ve recently joined a few WhatsApp based communities; but I’m not convinced that it’s a good platform to host a professional, thriving community. I’m however open to ideas, opinions and thoughts.

What works for WhatsApp:

• Most people already have WhatsApp. No new app installs required.

• Easy to onboard members. People join without hesitation.

What worked against WhatsApp:

• Most groups were full of self-promotion

• Only 1 group had some real conversations and real people.

• I had to mute all the communities because of frequency of notifications

• No privacy. I don’t like to share my phone number with strangers.

• The active group was chaotic. Impossible to keep track of good conversations.

I had to mute the groups and even exit most of them. I sincerely believe WhatsApp is not meant for community building.

What are your thoughts on using WhatsApp as a community platform for professional communities?