1. Find a WhatsApp business service provider with API access
Your business, a developer or any other company that wants to use the WhatsApp API must get a BSP (Business Solutions Provider) or enterprise solutions service that is a partner of the messaging platform.
Once you have chosen a BSP, you create an account with it to gain access to the WhatsApp API. The goal is to connect your WhatsApp Business account to your BSP account. It is essential that it is a WhatsApp Business account, as this feature is not available for personal accounts.
2. Connect your WhatsApp Business account to the API
If you have been using the WhatsApp Business app and want to switch to the API, you can migrate your phone number and associate it with the API.
If you do not have a WhatsApp Business account (i.e. a commercial account), you can also create one directly in this step from the partner platform.
3. Check your business
Verifying your business on Meta is a mandatory step to protect consumers. WhatsApp needs to verify that you are authorized to represent the brand you are registering. All business accounts go through this process to prevent fraudulent contacts with users.
You can also apply for an official business account for further verification and therefore credibility. This will result in your account displaying a green checkmark next to your business account name. The downside to this option is the difficulty in achieving this advanced verification.
It is important that you specify the company name you will use, so that portugal phone number list WhatsApp can approve it following these instructions . The name will appear in chats instead of the phone number. This option is only available for official accounts.
4. Create message templates and send them via the API
The approval process is usually done using artificial intelligence, so it will only take a few minutes. There are many types of WhatsApp message templates with different uses, as you can see in the following image.
5. Create a list of contacts who have given their consent
Users can give their consent on your website or through a Facebook call-to-action button, QR code, or ad. Here are the consent requirements on WhatsApp.
whatsapp-business-api 2
(source: wwwhatsnew.com )
Features of WhatsApp API
Company profile
A business profile on WhatsApp is like a business card. You can add a logo, address, business hours, and even products directly. This way, users can see this information in the app without having to go to your website.
whatsapp-business-api 3
Source: sevilla.abc.es
Different types of messages sent
It's important to know what types of messages WhatsApp supports to get the most out of the API and budget for costs.
Incoming and outgoing messages
Outbound : These are messages sent by the business to the consumer (also called “notifications” or “message templates”). They can only be sent to contacts who have given their consent and must follow previously approved templates.
Incoming messages : These are messages sent by consumers to contact the company. No consent is required, as when they contact you via WhatsApp, they agree to receive your response. In addition, these messages do not follow templates.
A big advantage of WhatsApp messages over SMS is that they can be multimedia messages (with images, video, attachments, reply buttons, products and lists).
whatsapp-business-api 4
(source: kaleyra.com )
Automatic responses
The outgoing message example shown is an example of an automated message. This means that you can automate WhatsApp messages to save time, especially on repetitive tasks. Automations are responses that are sent when predefined conditions are met. For example, you can schedule an automatic order confirmation response to reach a user every time they make a purchase.
Once you have a Meta-approved WhatsApp template (explained in the previous steps), you can create an automation scenario in which the final action is to send a WhatsApp message. Automatic responses can be very varied: welcome messages, order confirmations, reminders, and much more. These are messages that are widely used, for example, in e-commerce.
In the eyes of users, automated responses will offer a chatbot-like experience. However, these types of messages do not work in the same way. They are responses that are sent when a series of conditions that you have determined are met, but they cannot improvise responses or allow you to converse with a user like a chatbot does.
Ultimately, what the WhatsApp API allows is to take advantage of the benefits of using automation : it can help you delegate repetitive tasks and use your time to define your marketing strategy, explore the potential of this tool, and much more.
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