How to get Whatsapp Business API in 2024?
Whatsapp is the largest and fastest growing social messaging platform in the world with a staggering 68% of users checking the app daily. 50% of American users use WhatsApp messenger daily and about 91% use it monthly.
An incredibly high consumer engagement means, whatsapp messages from businesses frequently land in the users's inbox and has an astounding 98% open rate 🔥
So it is no surprise that businesses worldwide are rushing to utilise Whatsapp as one of their primary promotional and communication channel. A marker of this adoption is the wahtsapp business app downloads, which stands at 316 Million in 2023, up almost 14% from 2022. Detailed stats below:
| Year | # Downloads (Millions) |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 316.16 |
| 2022 | 277.44 |
| 2021 | 200.34 |
| 2020 | 170.46 |
While the WhatsApp Business App is a great tool for small businesses, it has certain limitations:
- Limited to 5 devices - only small scale collaboration possible
- You can send upto 5000 messages in a month
- Broadcast messages are limited to 256 contacts
- Limited automation around message templates and scheduling
- Cannot send Interactive, Catalog and Flow messages
If your business needs are not satisfied according to the above constraints, you should be obtain Whatsapp Bussiness API access. This API access will allow you to overcome all the limitations of the whatsapp business app. But this access needs to be obtained from Meta and is not available automatically to whatsapp business app users.
How to Obtain API Access
Even before applying for the API access, please make sure you have gone through the pre-requisite checklist.
Pre-requisites Before Applying for API Access
Facebook Business Manager Account: You must have an active Facebook Business Manager account since WhatsApp Business API is managed through this platform.
Verified Business: Your business must be verified by Facebook to ensure credibility. This often involves providing official documents to confirm your business identity.
Phone Number: You’ll need a phone number that hasn’t been used with any other WhatsApp account. This number will be dedicated solely to your WhatsApp Business API account.
Opt-in Process: You must have a clear opt-in process in place to obtain customer consent before sending them messages through WhatsApp. This is crucial for complying with WhatsApp’s messaging policies.
Whatsapp API providers
Direct Application to WhatsApp: You can apply directly through Facebook’s official channels. However, this process is lengthy, requires technical expertise and is recommended for businesses who want to deeply integrate whatsapp's capability with their pre-existing tech stack
Business Solution Providers (BSPs): The more common route is to partner with an official WhatsApp Business Solution Provider. BSPs like Twilio, MessageBird, and Vonage can help you get API access more quickly. These providers also offer additional features like hosting, integration support, and enhanced security, making it easier to get started with the API.
Technical Providers: These are similar to BSPs but offer a significant advantage to businesses over BSPs
- No markup on conversation charges: You pay directly to Meta, so no markup is added to conversation charges. Whereas BSPs will charge you a nominal markup per message
- Embedded Signup: Signup for API access is hassle free and usually gets done in 5-10 minutes (given that the prerequistes are met)
Some example of such providers are - 360Dialog and ChakraHQ Whatsapp
General Steps for obtaining API access
No matter which provider you chose, you will typically g othrough the following steps
A) Link your facebook business page to the API provider
- Ensure that you have a valid facebook page and are ready with a display name for your whatsapp business account (WABA account)
- You should have a valid phone number with sms/call functionality and not having an existing whatsapp account
B) Create a WABA account
- provide details about your business to facebook - company name, address, category, etc..
- To obtain a green tick verification - you will need to upload some verification about your legally registered company
C) Link and verify phone number
- Provide your phone number to whatsapp
- You will be asked to prove your ownership of the phone number either thorugh a SMS or via call
Whatsapp Pricing
Before getting started with whatsapp API access, be sure to be aware of the charges. Whatsapp billing keeps changing frequently, the latest detailed pricing can be found here. A short snippet can be found below
| Market | Marketing ($) | Utility ($) | Authentication ($) | Service ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| India | 0.0099 | 0.0014 | 0.0014 | 0.004 |
| Indonesia | 0.0411 | 0.02 | 0.03 | 0.019 |
| Italy | 0.0691 | 0.03 | 0.0378 | 0.0386 |
| Saudi Arabia | 0.0406 | 0.0115 | 0.0226 | 0.0195 |
| Spain | 0.0615 | 0.02 | 0.0342 | 0.0369 |
| United Arab Emirates | 0.034 | 0.0157 | 0.0178 | 0.019 |
| United Kingdom | 0.0705 | 0.022 | 0.0358 | 0.0388 |
| North America | 0.025 | 0.004 | 0.0135 | 0.0088 |
The summary is, that whatsapp charges you per conversation. A conversation is a 24-hour window between the business and the customer, starting with a message from either party. So if either you as a business or a customer sends a mesasge for the first time, a conversation window starts. Any number of messages exchanged during a conversation window without additional cost.
The pricing is dependent on the type of message that was used to initiate the conversation
- Marketing - promotional messages sent by a business, like offers and discounts
- Utility - transactional messages sent by a business like order updates, service updates
- Authentication - OTPs or login links
- Service - Messages initiated by a customer
The price is also region/country specific. Conversations of phone numbers belonging to different countries will be charged differently.
Broadcasting messages with API
To send messages to your customers or users using the API, you will need to send template messages.
Meta allows you to create message templates which are pre-approved by Meta team. You need to pre-select the category of a message before creating a template. Meta mandates that approvals will take 24-48 hours. Though more often than not, approvals will happen almost instantly but approval will be revoked if the template quality is low.
Message templates also allow you to send rich/interactive messages traditionally not possible via Whatsapp Business App like:
- Interactive templates: can configure buttons and links as part of the message to collect feedback
- Catalog/MPM templates: allows you to send a selected list of products for users to purchase from
- Carousel templates: Perfect for showcasing your products or offerings in a carousel format
- Flow Templates: Allows you to embed native forms inside whatsapp chat
Guidelines for promotional messages
- Always take a user's consent before sending them promotional messages
- Do not spam users with low quality messages - this will result in people marking your message and account as spam
- Always provide a consumer an our of your promotion. You can add a footer saying "Reply with STOP to stop receiving these messages"
- Keep monitoring the quality of your messages and take corrective action when your template quality drops
Summary
To summarize, whatsapp business API gives your business significant advantages to reach your prospects and customers and drive conversions. Obtaining Whatsapp Business API access is free of cost but you will have to pay for sending and receiving messages.
FAQs
How long does it take to get approved for WhatsApp Business API?Approval?
It typically takes 5-10 minutes, depending on the completeness of your application. But it might take upto 48 hours in certain cases.
What documentation is required to apply for WhatsApp Business API?
You definitely need a facebook page and a phone number. The phone number should have sms/call facilities and should not be linked to a whatsapp account. But for green tick verification you will need a legally registered business and documents to prove the business' identity.
Can I migrate my existing WhatsApp Business account to WhatsApp Business API?
Yes, it is possible but you will have to delete the existing whatsapp business account before starting the API registration process.
Is it possible to integrate WhatsApp Business API with multiple CRMs?No, the business API can be integrated with only one CRM / marketing system. For difrferent usecases, it is advisable to have different WABA accounts.
Do I need a Facebook Business Manager account to use WhatsApp Business API?
Yes, a Facebook Business Manager account is required to apply for and manage your WhatsApp Business API account. Also ensure you are the admin for your facebook page before starting the registration process.
Can I use WhatsApp Business API for customer support and ticketing
Absolutely, the API is ideal for automating customer support and managing tickets by integrating your WABA account with a CRM like ChakraHQ Whatsapp.
What happens if my WhatsApp Business API account gets blocked or banned?
If blocked or banned, you must contact WhatsApp support or your BSP or provider to resolve the issue and regain access.
How does WhatsApp Business API handle customer data and privacy?
The API follows industry standar encryption protocol that protects messages from when they are sent till when they are received.
Are there any messaging templates that need to be approved before using WhatsApp Business API?
Yes, WhatsApp requires pre-approval of messaging templates to ensure compliance with their policies. But it typically takes a few minutes for the approvals.
Can I customize the sender name with WhatsApp Business API?
Yes you can customize the sender name while registering your WABA account but it should be related to the page / business that you are using to obtain the API.
Is there a limit to the number of contacts I can send messages using the API?
There’s no strict limit but your account will have certain rate limits depending on your acocunt history. Every one starts with a limit of 1000 conversations / day. when you are nearing the limit - you can request your limit to be increased to 10000 or even a million conversations per day.
How do I handle opt-ins and opt-outs with WhatsApp Business API?
You must implement a clear opt-in process when collecting the user's phone number. For opt-out, you can adda a text footer to your message saying - "Send STOP to stop receiving messages like this" - Then unsubscribe the user when you receive STOP.
What kind of analytics and reporting are available with WhatsApp Business API?
The API itself provides limited analytics. But the provider you chose will be able to provide you analytics around sends, deliveries, etc... Contact your provider for more info.
Can I schedule messages to be sent at a specific time using WhatsApp Business API?
The API istself doesnt provide any way to schedule messages. But most API providers have this functionality.
How do I ensure my messages comply with WhatsApp’s policies?
You need to regularly review WhatsApp’s guidelines and ensure your messaging templates are pre-approved to avoid violations.
Can I send multimedia messages (images, videos, files) through WhatsApp Business API?
Yes, the API supports sending multimedia messages, including images, videos, and documents.
Can I track message delivery and read receipts with WhatsApp Business API?
Yes, the API allows you to track both message delivery and read receipts in real-time. But the reports themselves will be provided to you by your API provider