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WhatsApp Business enables companies to communicate with their customers and provides them an easy way to ask questions, make purchases and seek support. With Freshchat, companies have access to WhatsApp for effectively managing WhatsApp conversations at scale.
Resources
- Read this article to understand a brief overview and pricing
- Kindly read this article to understand the differences between WhatsApp Business API ( the solution we provide) and vs. regular WhatsApp Consumer/Business app.
- WhatsApp's commerce policy: Your integration will be active only if whatsapp approves your number. If you violate any of the commerce policies, your whatsapp account and number will be banned.
How to sign up or integrate your WhatsApp Business number with Freshchat?
You need to be an Admin in Freshchat and your brand's Facebook Business Manager Account to set up this integration.
Note: WhatsApp will run background checks on your brand once you have connected the number to the chat account.
If you violate WhatsApp's commerce policy, your whatsapp account will be banned.
- Go to Admin > Channels > WhatsApp Business.
- Click on the Add Number button and log in to Facebook. If you have already logged in, a window will pop up asking if you would like to"Continue as <your name"? Click to proceed.
- You can log in and continue using your registered email ID or phone number.
- Follow the steps as shown in this video to complete the registration process of your WhatsApp Business number. After verifying your number using OTP, your sign-up will be complete.
Once your number is verified and selected from the dropdown, the status will be marked as Setup Pending.
Once your number is added, it will be marked as ‘Setup pending’ After a few minutes, the status will change to 'Active’. If your business is verified by WhatsApp, you can initiate unlimited conversations. But, if your business is unverified, then here are some of the limitations you will face.
- You can start only 50 business-initiated conversations in a 24-hour rolling window.
- You can respond to customer-initiated conversations without any restrictions.
- You can only have 2 WhatsApp business numbers in an unverified WhatsApp business Account (WABA)
If the business verification is unsuccessful, you can still continue to use the number with the restrictions mentioned above.
If your number is marked with any of the below statuses, then here is what you need to know:
- Pending business verification: You cannot add the number since the business is unverified. You will have to complete the verification process to add the number.
- Pending OTP verification: You cannot add this number since OTP is not verified. Please reinitiate the flow with this number and complete OTP verification to proceed.
Verifying your WhatsApp Business account:
If your Facebook business account is not verified, you may request verification to ensure the Facebook Business Account is authenticated, including proof of legal entity and access to the business. This way, your business will be verified, and you can interact with your customers via WhatsApp without any limitations.
Apart from this, WhatsApp also conducts a couple of checks to ensure the WABA and the display/Business name are compliant with WhatsApp policies. Read more about Verifying your Business in WhatsApp Business Manager here.
Port your number from the existing service provider to Freshchat
You can easily port your existing WhatsApp business number to Freshchat. Please write to support@freshchat.com to port your number.
FAQs:
1. My Meta/Facebook Business Manager Account is not verified. Can I still connect WhatsApp to my account?
Yes. You can still enable WhatsApp API integration with an unverified Meta/Facebook Business Manager Account.
2. What are the advantages of having a verified Meta/Facebook Business Manager Account?
- Only Verified Meta Business Manager Accounts are eligible for WhatsApp verified accounts badge.
- Can send templated messages to 1k/phone numbers / 24 hours with the option to increase the limit. Click here to know more about increasing this limit.
3. The "Add Number” option is greyed out in my account?
The integration is currently available only for accounts with an active subscription from Pro/Garden plans. If you are on trial, please fill this form.
4. I am unable to complete the setup. I'm getting the message -"Error integrating number".
If you get this error, then navigate to your Meta Business Manager Account—> WhatsApp Accounts—> Click on the WhatsApp account you created —> WhatsApp Manager —> Check if the number has been approved. If it shows pending, wait for a couple of hours to see if it gets approved.
Once your display name is approved, please go through the same onboarding process again, and your number will be connected.
5. My Display name got rejected. What are the next steps?
If your display name gets rejected, try editing the display name by clicking on the name, and the edit option will pop up.
If the display name still gets rejected, reach out to us at support@freshchat.com, and we will assist you with the next steps.
6. My WhatsApp Business Account got rejected. How can I overturn the rejection?
All WhatsApp accounts will undergo an approval process once you connect them. If your brand is rejected, please check the WhatsApp commerce policy to see if you violate any of the policies mentioned.
WhatsApp commerce page - https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/commerce-policy/
If your brand does violate any of mentioned policies, then there isn't a way to overturn the rejection.
If your business does not violate any guidelines, kindly write to us at support@freshchat.com with a brief explanation of why your brand doesn't violate any policies.
7. I receive an error message stating that the number is already associated with a WhatsApp account. How do I proceed further?
This error occurs in mainly two scenarios.
A. You have an active Whatsapp account on the mobile device - To connect with the chat account, you need to delete the WhatsApp account from the app.
Navigate to the whatsapp app > Settings > Account > Delete my account.
Please note that you will not be able to use WhatsApp on your phone after integration and your previous conversation history/contacts will not be migrated to Freshchat.
B. Your WhatsApp number is connected to another provider - In this case, please reach out to us at support@freshchat.com and we will assist you with migrating your number to Freshworks.
8. How to add additional numbers to my account? Are there any extra charges?
You can add multiple numbers to your chat account and there is no extra charge for adding additional numbers. WhatsApp charges you only based on your usage.
Please go through the same process as you did with the first number. to add multiple numbers
