From Enquiry to Enrolment #2: The WhatsApp Playbook for Nurseries

For nurseries across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), WhatsApp is where most parent inquiries begin. But when those inquiries sit on one person's phone, scatter across channels or wait days for a reply, families slip away. In this second session on the WhatsApp playbook, Karthik Jagannathan, CEO and Co-Founder of Gallabox, joined Anshumaan Bhatt of illumine to look at how nurseries can capture, answer, organize and nurture inquiries so more of them turn into enrollments. This is the written recap. The full recording is at the top of this page.

Key takeaways

Where inquiries leak

Karthik described WhatsApp as "the only show in town" in the GCC. With the features now available on the WhatsApp Business application programming interface (API), teams can run almost their whole customer journey through it. Yet the opening poll showed 57 percent of attendees rely on one person's WhatsApp to handle inquiries. Karthik's view was blunt: families want to talk to your nursery, not to an individual, which is why larger organizations bring those conversations into a team.

Anshumaan outlined where inquiries typically go missing, and Karthik added one more:

A second poll asked who answers inquiry conversations. In 44 percent of cases, it was either the person holding the WhatsApp number or the center manager. Anshumaan noted that center managers are usually the ones responding, alongside everything else they handle.

The three types of WhatsApp

Karthik explained why parents default to WhatsApp: it is tied to a phone number, so if a family knows there is a number to message, they will message it rather than browse a website or call. He then cleared up a common source of confusion:

He also pointed to Instagram as a growing discovery engine. Instagram and WhatsApp are both owned by Meta, and the two can work together: one is where families discover you, the other is where the conversation happens. For background, read our guide to WhatsApp Business versus the WhatsApp Business API.

Convert more of what you already get

Karthik said there is only so much audience available to generate new inquiries, however much you spend. Nurseries should keep investing at the top of the funnel, but the better bet is to convert more of the leads already coming in. Choosing a nursery is a considered process: families shortlist, compare and think carefully. The goal is to stay in their consideration set, understand why they might not choose you and keep explaining why you are the right fit, which happens through conversation.

Leads don't die because of anything else. They die because of delay.

The inquiry journey

Karthik walked through four stages that every inquiry passes through on its way to enrollment:

Anshumaan added that the first two stages are about channels such as Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, making sure families feel heard. The last two are where a customer relationship management (CRM) system comes in, giving visibility of every inquiry and powering nurture campaigns such as newsletters and invitations to events.

Sequences that run on their own

Karthik described how drip sequences work. You segment prospects as they come in and tell the AI agent what to send to each type of family. Messages then go out on a schedule, for example straight away, at the end of the day, one day later and three days later, until the family replies. You set it up once and adjust based on how families respond.

Making Instagram work

One attendee commented that most Instagram inquiries are not genuine. Karthik agreed that many are not, but said the time families spend on Instagram keeps growing, and some businesses now treat their Instagram page as their website. Gallabox's approach is an AI feature that sorts incoming comments into types, such as genuine interest, casual interest, feedback or partnership requests, replies accordingly and invites serious families to continue on WhatsApp.

Anshumaan added that lead quality depends on how mature a channel is for your brand. Results improve as you learn what messaging and targeting work, so keep experimenting, and use qualifying tools to move high-intent families to a channel where you can talk properly. Karthik said his most successful customers move every click, from Instagram, Facebook, Google and their own videos, into a WhatsApp conversation.

A shared inbox and on-brand conversations

Karthik said the shared inbox was the first problem Gallabox set out to solve. When inquiries arrive on staff members' own phones, valuable conversations can leave with an employee, or simply get lost among a hundred personal chats. A shared inbox puts admissions and operations staff in one place, with managers and owners able to see every conversation.

Anshumaan pointed out that nurseries in the GCC put real care into brand guidelines on what to say and how, and that care should show at every touch point. Karthik, speaking as a parent, said families pay close attention to what they are promised, so staff should avoid setting expectations too high or too low: commit only to what you can deliver.

The same inbox can also hold AI voice calls. Karthik gave the example of a Friday evening inquiry that would otherwise sit unseen until Monday. A voice agent can answer after hours, take the details and promise a quick follow-up, with voice, WhatsApp and Instagram conversations all visible together.

How illumine and Gallabox work together

Karthik described the split simply: illumine brings the nursery expertise, including what to say at each stage of the journey, while Gallabox provides the discovery and conversation infrastructure. Anshumaan explained that this connects the marketing team capturing and nurturing leads with the center team holding conversations and following up in the CRM.

A short demo showed a WhatsApp chatbot handling a new inquiry with no staff involvement:

In a short customer video, the leader of a group of seven nurseries said they had been looking for one platform covering marketing, finance, human resources and operations, and found admissions, parent relations and marketing tools, including newsletters that could be sent as emails, in illumine. See how illumine handles leads from multiple sources, automated follow-up and the AI enrollment agent.

Questions from the session

Are most Instagram inquiries genuine?

Often not, Karthik agreed. But rather than ignore the channel, use tools that sort comments by intent and move serious families into a WhatsApp conversation. Anshumaan added that quality improves as you refine your messaging and targeting.

Can other channels such as Telegram be included?

Karthik said Gallabox started with WhatsApp and has added Instagram and AI voice. Other channels were being considered at the time, because families should be able to reach you wherever they start the conversation.

How do you filter and qualify inquiries?

Leads can be captured through forms, guided flows or an AI agent trained on your own knowledge base, which can talk with families much like a person would. You can add rules for spotting low-intent or junk inquiries, so only the families who need attention reach your CRM and your team.

Where do nursery leaders need the most support?

Karthik said nursery owners start their businesses out of passion, and it is unfair to expect them to be marketing experts too. Anshumaan agreed that directors and owners wear many hats, from marketing to parent relationships, operations and compliance, which is exactly why the right systems and partners matter.

Resources mentioned

• One-on-one sessions with the illumine and Gallabox teams to plan a nursery's WhatsApp marketing and inquiry journey.
• The first session in this series, recapped in The WhatsApp Playbook for UAE Nurseries.

What to do next

For more on turning inquiries into enrollments, read our childcare CRM guide or the recap of how nurseries build trust during admissions. To see how illumine supports nurseries, explore nursery management software or book a live demo.