WhatsApp Integration & Enhancements

Samuel Su
on June 17, 2024We're excited to introduce new updates that streamline how you connect WhatsApp with your Chat Data chatbot. These enhancements not only simplify the integration process but also offer greater control and flexibility in managing customer communications.
Key Updates:
-
Exclusive Phone Number Usage:
- The WhatsApp phone number connected to your chatbot is now reserved exclusively for chatbot use—it cannot be used on WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business.
- Action Required: If you are already using the number with WhatsApp, delete your account or disable two-step verification (for Meta Developer accounts) to free up the number.
-
Simplified WhatsApp Connection Process:
- Seamless Integration: Navigate to Dashboard > [Chatbot] > Integrations and select the WhatsApp integration card.
- Embedded Signup Flow:
- Click Connect in the pop-up window.
- Sign in with your personal Facebook account.
- Click Get started and choose or create a business profile.
- Set up or select an existing WhatsApp business profile.
- Add a phone number (it's best to have just one associated number).
- Click Continue, allow for information verification, and then click Finish.
- Enjoy up to 1000 free messages each month—add a payment method in Meta billing settings for additional messaging.
-
System User Access Token Signup Process:
- Fallback Integration: In case you encounter Facebook authorization issues during the embedded signup:
- Develop your WhatsApp application following Meta's guidance.
- Generate a permanent access token with the
whatsapp_business_messaging
andwhatsapp_business_management
permissions. - Go to the Integrations tab in your chatbot menu, click Add to WhatsApp, and enter your access token.
- Add and verify your phone number.
- Set up the callback URL in your WhatsApp App to subscribe to message events.
- Fallback Integration: In case you encounter Facebook authorization issues during the embedded signup:
-
Live Chat Handover:
- When the AI chatbot cannot provide a satisfactory response, you can take over with our live chat panel.
- As a human agent, use the Live Chat dashboard or filter WhatsApp conversations to select the desired thread.
- Turn off the AI chatbot for that conversation to ensure only your response is sent to the customer.
- If the customer replies while you're offline, you'll receive an email with a link to the chat portal.
-
Automatic AI Chatbot Pause:
- Configure an automatic pause (up to 1 week) during WhatsApp integration. During this period, customer messages bypass the AI and go directly to you via email notifications.
- The AI chatbot will automatically resume after the specified duration.
Get Started:
- Existing WhatsApp Users:
Follow the preliminary steps to delete your WhatsApp account or disable two-step verification so your number is free for integration. - New WhatsApp Integration:
Simply head to the Integrations tab on your Dashboard and follow the guided steps to connect your WhatsApp account.
Check the WhatsApp Integration page for more details.