An illustration. The customer is made up.
Which number?
My business number
Works if it is not on a personal WhatsApp. We check first.
WhatsApp Business
A WhatsApp Business account set up for you, and answered by an AI assistant.
A WhatsApp Business line on your number or a new one, set up the way Meta requires it: business verification, approved templates, the 24-hour window respected, and the assistant answering warm conversations only. That is what keeps the number alive.
Set up my WhatsApp- Cloud APInot a phone in a drawer
- Templatessubmitted and approved
- Warm onlynever cold
- Availablenow
What you need
Five things, and we handle four of them.
A number
A phone number that is not already used by a personal WhatsApp account. If you do not have one, we set up a new local number for you.
A Meta Business account
We create it or connect yours, and we run business verification: legal name, address, website or listing. Verification unlocks higher messaging limits and the green name.
A display name and profile
Your business name as customers know it, a logo, hours, address and a short description. Meta reviews the name against your business.
A phone for the code
Meta sends a one-time code to the number by SMS or voice. You read it to us. That is the only step that needs you.
Your rules
Who it may answer, what it may quote, when it hands to you. The same switches as every other channel.
We write the message templates and submit them to Meta, connect the AI assistant, switch the number on, and honour every opt-out.
WhatsApp’s messaging rules
The rules that keep the number alive.
Warm only
WhatsApp is where a conversation continues, not where it starts. The assistant writes to people who have written first, on any channel.
Templates for first contact
Outside the 24-hour window, only an approved template goes out. We keep several approved so there is always one that fits.
Opt-out in every thread
“Stop” is honoured immediately, recorded, and never overridden.
Meta's fees at cost
Meta charges per conversation, by country and category. We pass those through at cost and show them on the same sheet as everything else.
Setup steps
Installing it, step by step.
Done through the WhatsApp Business Platform, the cloud version Meta runs, so there is no phone that has to stay charged and no app that logs out.
- 1
Choose the line
A number can belong to only one WhatsApp account at a time, and moving it off a personal account deletes that account’s chats, so we check the number first.
- 2
Meta Business Manager and verification
We create or connect your Meta business account and send Meta your business documents. Meta usually confirms verification within a few days.
- 3
Connect the number to the Cloud API
The number is registered with Meta’s WhatsApp Business Platform (the version Meta runs on its own servers) and the one-time code is entered.
- 4
Templates
To message someone who has not written to you in the last 24 hours, WhatsApp requires a message template that Meta has approved.
- 5
Attach the assistant
The same AI assistant as your iMessage line answers, with one extra rule: on WhatsApp it only follows up with people who have already contacted you.
- 6
Go live, keep it alive
Opt-outs are honoured at once, Meta’s quality rating for the number is watched, and templates are replaced before people start ignoring them.
The actions behind the line
WhatsApp’s actions are rows in the same Directory as every other channel.
actions in the Directory that WhatsApp uses
The Directory is a table where each row is one action the system can run. Sending a WhatsApp message is one row; incoming messages arrive through the same intake as every other channel. Each action runs through dispatch, the one web address that checks your permissions and runs it, and each run is written to the Ledger, the record of every request and response.
Send
- A message to one person, warm follow-up only
- A message to a group
Read
- The groups on the number
- A group’s recent messages, so a reply has context
Intake
- Incoming messages through the same intake as every other channel
Examples
What WhatsApp is used for, and where it fits in outreach to leads.
Used only to follow up with people who have already contacted you. A message goes out only after the person has written to you on some channel, never as a first message to a stranger. Numbers that send unrequested messages get reported and restricted by WhatsApp, so this rule keeps the number working.
- 1Customers in other countries get replies in their own language.
- 2The same AI assistant and the same permissions as your iMessage line, inside WhatsApp.
- 3If the person has not written to you first, the message is refused and not sent.
Then it goes out on the channel they'll answer.
iMessage from your number. Email, tracked. WhatsApp, warm only.
Questions
Can I use the number I already have on personal WhatsApp?
Not at the same time. A number belongs to one WhatsApp account. Moving it to the business platform deletes the personal account's chats. We check before anything is done and usually recommend a dedicated number for the business line.
Why warm only?
Cold WhatsApp messages get reported, reports lower the quality rating, and a low rating throttles the number. Warm follow-up keeps the rating high and the line useful for years.
Can customers abroad use it?
Yes; that is the point of the channel. The assistant answers in their language and Meta's fee varies by country, shown at cost.
How long does verification take?
Meta usually answers within a few business days. The line can message before verification, at a lower daily limit for new conversations.
Do I need to keep a phone on?
No. The Cloud API runs on Meta's side. There is no phone to charge and no app that logs out.
Set it up this week.
Text me the number you want to use and what the business does. I'll tell you whether it can be moved and what the first template should say.
Your setup:
My business number · Create one for me · Customers abroad