Connect WhatsApp Business Platform with Crisp
Crisp is a WhatsApp Business Solution Provider which lets you connect a WhatsApp Business phone number to your Crisp Inbox, allowing messages to flow directly to Crisp. You can then leverage on all your existing Crisp features (Chatbot, Knowledge Base, Shared Inbox) to manage all your WhatsApp users at scale.
Connect the WhatsApp Business Platform with Crisp
Migrate an existing Whatapp phone number
How to access my Whatsapp Business Manager?
How to change my Profile Picture & Display name?
How to Create Message Templates?
How to format Whatsapp Message Templates variable in Crisp?
How to disable the 2FA for a Whatsapp Number?
Message Template Bots
Troubleshooting
Make the most out of Crisp Inbox and Wa Business Platform
By enabling this integration, you allow your company to build a shared inbox for WhatsApp Business and benefit from all the features available in Crisp: better collaboration, more productivity, data synchronization and many other great assets.
Note that this integration comes with 1000 free WhatsApp Business Conversations
Before getting started with the WhatsApp Business Platform integration, please make sure the following requirements are met:
You need a Crisp Unlimited plan.
Be an owner on your Crisp workspace
An existing phone number (mobile or landline).
An admin access to your Meta Business Manager.
If the number you are connecting is being used on the Whatsapp Business mobile app, you will need to delete it from the mobile app first. You can find more details on this here.
First you will need to go on app.crisp.chat and then Plugins, and finally search "WhatsApp"
If this is the first time you are connecting your Whatsapp number, or you are moving from the Whatspp Business mobile app, click "Connect a new Whatsapp Business Account" and then the "Connect to WhatsApp" button to continue.
If you are migrating a number from an existing Whatsapp Business account, please follow the guide from here.
You will be then redirected to Facebook. During the setup process you :
Select the required Business Manager
Fill your Business Details
Create or Select a WhatsApp Phone Number
Pick your WhatsApp account in the list
You can now use your WhatsApp account. If your number is not connected, click "Connect number", you can then click on the green Whatsapp button to view your QR code to send a test message from WhatsApp to the WhatsApp phone number associated with Crisp.
The migration process allows you to transfer your registered phone number from one WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) to another, which is necessary if you are moving from your current Whatsapp Business Solution Provider (BSP) to a new BSP - in this instance, Crisp will serve as your new BSP. With this, you can switch to a new BSP while retaining your phone number and any existing message templates. Once the migration is finalized, your display name, quality rating, messaging limits, Official Business Account status, and any previously approved high-quality message templates will be seamlessly transferred to the new BSP.
If you are migrating an existing number from the Official Whatsapp App, you will need to delete the number and connect the number as a new number. For more information click here
Message templates
All high quality message templates from the previous WABA will be duplicated and automatically approved in your new WABA as long as the destination WABA can accommodate new templates. Any existing message templates in the new WABA will not be affected. Low quality, rejected, or pending templates from the previous WABA will not be duplicated and migrated.
In the case the new WABA cannot accommodate all of the new templates, an attempt to migrate as many templates as possible will be made until the new WABA'S template limit has been reached. Templates that could not be migrated must be re-created and submitted for approval if they are to be used by the destination WABA.
Billing Migration
Messages sent before migration are charged to the previous BSP. Messages sent after migration are charged to the new BSP - in this instance, Crisp. Messages sent from the previous BSP, and are not delivered before migration, are still charged to the previous BSP when they get delivered.
As mentioned above, Business phone numbers in use with the WhatsApp Business App cannot be migrated using this process. The number will need to be deleted from the app and connected as a new number.
Message and chat history are not migrated with this process.
The number must have the ability to receive a SMS or Voice calls as a 6 digit confirmation code will be sent to the number during the migration.
Two-factor authentication for the number must be disabled before continuing. If you do not have access to disable the 2FA on the number, you should contact your previous provider to do this for you.
The new WABA must be owned by the same Facebook business as the previous WABA. This means the Facebook Business ID must be identical for both WABAs. You can find your Facebook Business ID here
If you have not already created a new WABA in Crisp before, you can create one in the next steps.
Once the 2FA on the number has been disabled, you can begin the process of migrating your number from your previous BSP to Crisp. Click on the second option "Migrate an existing Whatsapp Business Account from my current provider." and click "Connect to Whatsapp".
⚠️ After migrating to Crisp, it will not be possible to use your number with your previous provider. This includes using any API's provided by your current provider. ⚠️
A window to Facebook will then open, where you can follow the step with Facebook.
Login to Facebook if you have not done so already
Connect your Facebook Business Account to Crisp. This needs to be the same Facebook account that is connected to your current WABA.
Select your Whatsapp Business Account You should create a new one. If you have already created one using this popup window from Crisp and it is listed, you can select the existing business.
Once you get to “Step 2 of 3: Create your WhatsApp Business Profile”, close the window and return to the installation page on Crisp.
In the popup window, you do not need to continue on Step 2 or 3, you will add you number in the next step.
Enter your Whatsapp Business ID from the WABA you created in the previous step and click continue. You can find your ID from here.
Then, enter the number which you would like to migrate in international format and select how you would like to receive your verification code from Facebook.
Once you receive your 6-digit verification code you need to enter it and click continue. Your Whatsapp number will now be migrated to Crisp and you will be redirected to your configuration page where you can test your number.
Go to your Business Manager, select your business and then click the settings cog on the bottom left of the page.
Select Business Settings. A new tab to your business settings will open.
Select Accounts > Whatsapp Account and select the account you would like to change.
Then, click the Settings tab for the account and Whatsapp Manager at the bottom of the settings.
In order to change your Whatsapp display name and profile picture, you will need to do this in your Whatsapp Business Manager.
Go to your Whatsapp Business manager following the steps above
On the left panel, go to Account Tools > Phone numbers
On the number you would like to edit, hover over the name and click on the Edit the display name for this phone number and follow the prompt. Your display name will then need to be approved by Whatsapp.
To change the profile image click the settings cog on the same page, then click Profile. Here you can change your picture, business description, address, website and more.
When changing your display name, once it is approved you will need to contact Crisp support and we will need to re-register your number for the change to take effect.
Message templates will help you initiate and respond to conversations with your customers, even if 24 hours has passed since the last message. Your templates will need to be created and approved in your Whatsapp Business Manager.
Note that only approved templates will be shown in the widget.
Go to your Whatsapp Business manager following the steps above
On the left panel, go to Account Tools > Message Templates
On the top right, click "Create Template"
That's it! Once your template is approved by Meta you will be able to send the template directly from Crisp.
To format the text in your variable messages, you can use Whatsapp's supported methods.
To italicize your message, place an underscore on both sides of the text:
_text_
Bold
To bold your message, place an asterisk on both sides of the text:
*text*
Strikethrough
To strikethrough your message, place a tilde on both sides of the text:
~text~
Monospace
To monospace your message, place three backticks on both sides of the text:
```text```
Go to your Whatsapp Business manager following the steps above
On the left panel, go to Account Tools > Phone Numbers
On the number you would like to disable the 2FA, click on settings
Go to Two-step Verification and select Turn off two-step verification
If you do not have these options you need to contact your current provider and ask them to disable the 2FA on your Whatsapp numebr for you. Further information in Facebooks documentation.
It is possible to create message templates with buttons and you might want to use the bot plugin to continue the conversation once a user selects a button from the template. In order to do this, you will need to create a bot starting with the User Message Action event block.
The "Type" should be set to "Button Click" and the "Match" will be composed as such: {{button_value}}:{{template_name}} . You will need to replace the {{button_value}} with the text of the button and the {{template_name}} with the name of your template. Both the values should be in lowercase and you should replace any spaces with an underscore ( _ ).
For example, if you have a template called "Sample Issue Resolution" with two buttons "Yes"" and "No", your message match should look like this yes:sample_issue_resolution for when the button "Yes" is clicked and no:sample_issue_resolution for when the button "No" is clicked.
In some cases, you might create your Business in the popup window, verify your number successfully and when the window closes you are redirected to an error page. Or you have already created your business already and you're just trying to reconnect and you see the error. If this continues, select the method you will use to connect and hold shift + cmd on macOS or shift + ctlr on windows while you click "Connect to Whatsapp".
A popup window will open. You should select the Whatsapp business you have just created/reconnecting to and then press continue until the end and the popup is closed. You should be redirected in Crisp and should be able to continue connecting as normal. If you still face any issues, you can contact our support for more assistance
Whatsapp Business App phone numbers can't be connected with the Whatsapp Business Platform and third party apps such as Crisp. These kind of phone numbers can only be used on an iPhone or an Android smartphone.
However, you can convert a Whatsapp Business App Number, into a Whatsapp Business Platform Number. To do it, you will need to delete your existing Whatsapp Business Account. your phone number will then be available again to be registered on the Whatsapp Business Platform Number.
You can find the procedure to remove your Whatsapp Account right there: https://faq.whatsapp.com/2138577903196467/?helpref=uf_share
In order to initiate a conversation, you need to send an approved message template that was created in your Whatsapp business manager, as defined by Whatsapp's messaging policy. Free-form messages can only be sent to your customers once the user has responded to your message template.
If you need to create a message template, you can follow these instructions.
In Facebook, you are able to be logged in as a page instead of your profile. When you open the popup window opens Facebook tries to automatically switch to your user profile, but it fails. To fix the issue:
Close the pop-up window.
Navigate to a new tab on your browser
Go to facebook.com
In the top right, select the profile picture
Click see all profiles
Switch to your admin account
Go back to Crisp and try again.
If you are migrating from a previous provider and you are on "Step 3 of 3: Verify your WhatsApp Business number" in the pop-up window you have gone too far. You can simply close the pop-up window and you should be redirected in Crisp to the migration page. You can continue with the migration process as normal.
When initiating a Whatsapp conversation, the number you are messaging should be in international format. If you use local number formats, your customers responses might land in a new conversation as their response number will be in international format. You can compare the numbers in the "Main Information" section of both the conversation you initiated and the conversation with the users response.
Create shortcuts to make your teams more productive: https://help.crisp.chat/en/article/how-to-use-shortcut-replies-1bmff5q/
Connect other channels such as Instagram or Messenger.
Build chatbots for WhatsApp: https://help.crisp.chat/en/article/how-to-add-the-chatbot-plugin-to-my-website-1pn0onz/
Contents
Connect the WhatsApp Business Platform with Crisp
Migrate an existing Whatapp phone number
How to access my Whatsapp Business Manager?
How to change my Profile Picture & Display name?
How to Create Message Templates?
How to format Whatsapp Message Templates variable in Crisp?
How to disable the 2FA for a Whatsapp Number?
Message Template Bots
Troubleshooting
Make the most out of Crisp Inbox and Wa Business Platform
Connect the WhatsApp Business Platform with Crisp
By enabling this integration, you allow your company to build a shared inbox for WhatsApp Business and benefit from all the features available in Crisp: better collaboration, more productivity, data synchronization and many other great assets.
Note that this integration comes with 1000 free WhatsApp Business Conversations
Requirements
Before getting started with the WhatsApp Business Platform integration, please make sure the following requirements are met:
You need a Crisp Unlimited plan.
Be an owner on your Crisp workspace
An existing phone number (mobile or landline).
An admin access to your Meta Business Manager.
If the number you are connecting is being used on the Whatsapp Business mobile app, you will need to delete it from the mobile app first. You can find more details on this here.
Installing the WhatsApp Business platform Plugin
First you will need to go on app.crisp.chat and then Plugins, and finally search "WhatsApp"
Connecting to your Whatsapp Business Account (WABA).
If this is the first time you are connecting your Whatsapp number, or you are moving from the Whatspp Business mobile app, click "Connect a new Whatsapp Business Account" and then the "Connect to WhatsApp" button to continue.
If you are migrating a number from an existing Whatsapp Business account, please follow the guide from here.
You will be then redirected to Facebook. During the setup process you :
Select the required Business Manager
Fill your Business Details
Create or Select a WhatsApp Phone Number
Selecting your WhatsApp Business Account
Pick your WhatsApp account in the list
Testing your WhatsApp Business account
You can now use your WhatsApp account. If your number is not connected, click "Connect number", you can then click on the green Whatsapp button to view your QR code to send a test message from WhatsApp to the WhatsApp phone number associated with Crisp.
Migrate an existing Whatapp phone number
Overview
The migration process allows you to transfer your registered phone number from one WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) to another, which is necessary if you are moving from your current Whatsapp Business Solution Provider (BSP) to a new BSP - in this instance, Crisp will serve as your new BSP. With this, you can switch to a new BSP while retaining your phone number and any existing message templates. Once the migration is finalized, your display name, quality rating, messaging limits, Official Business Account status, and any previously approved high-quality message templates will be seamlessly transferred to the new BSP.
If you are migrating an existing number from the Official Whatsapp App, you will need to delete the number and connect the number as a new number. For more information click here
What will be migrated?
Message templates
All high quality message templates from the previous WABA will be duplicated and automatically approved in your new WABA as long as the destination WABA can accommodate new templates. Any existing message templates in the new WABA will not be affected. Low quality, rejected, or pending templates from the previous WABA will not be duplicated and migrated.
In the case the new WABA cannot accommodate all of the new templates, an attempt to migrate as many templates as possible will be made until the new WABA'S template limit has been reached. Templates that could not be migrated must be re-created and submitted for approval if they are to be used by the destination WABA.
Billing Migration
Messages sent before migration are charged to the previous BSP. Messages sent after migration are charged to the new BSP - in this instance, Crisp. Messages sent from the previous BSP, and are not delivered before migration, are still charged to the previous BSP when they get delivered.
What are the limitations?
As mentioned above, Business phone numbers in use with the WhatsApp Business App cannot be migrated using this process. The number will need to be deleted from the app and connected as a new number.
Message and chat history are not migrated with this process.
Preparation
The number must have the ability to receive a SMS or Voice calls as a 6 digit confirmation code will be sent to the number during the migration.
Two-factor authentication for the number must be disabled before continuing. If you do not have access to disable the 2FA on the number, you should contact your previous provider to do this for you.
The new WABA must be owned by the same Facebook business as the previous WABA. This means the Facebook Business ID must be identical for both WABAs. You can find your Facebook Business ID here
If you have not already created a new WABA in Crisp before, you can create one in the next steps.
Migrate the number
Once the 2FA on the number has been disabled, you can begin the process of migrating your number from your previous BSP to Crisp. Click on the second option "Migrate an existing Whatsapp Business Account from my current provider." and click "Connect to Whatsapp".
⚠️ After migrating to Crisp, it will not be possible to use your number with your previous provider. This includes using any API's provided by your current provider. ⚠️
A window to Facebook will then open, where you can follow the step with Facebook.
Login to Facebook if you have not done so already
Connect your Facebook Business Account to Crisp. This needs to be the same Facebook account that is connected to your current WABA.
Select your Whatsapp Business Account You should create a new one. If you have already created one using this popup window from Crisp and it is listed, you can select the existing business.
Once you get to “Step 2 of 3: Create your WhatsApp Business Profile”, close the window and return to the installation page on Crisp.
In the popup window, you do not need to continue on Step 2 or 3, you will add you number in the next step.
Enter your Whatsapp Business ID from the WABA you created in the previous step and click continue. You can find your ID from here.
Then, enter the number which you would like to migrate in international format and select how you would like to receive your verification code from Facebook.
Once you receive your 6-digit verification code you need to enter it and click continue. Your Whatsapp number will now be migrated to Crisp and you will be redirected to your configuration page where you can test your number.
How to access my Whatsapp Business Manager?
Go to your Business Manager, select your business and then click the settings cog on the bottom left of the page.
Select Business Settings. A new tab to your business settings will open.
Select Accounts > Whatsapp Account and select the account you would like to change.
Then, click the Settings tab for the account and Whatsapp Manager at the bottom of the settings.
How to change my Profile Picture & Display name?
In order to change your Whatsapp display name and profile picture, you will need to do this in your Whatsapp Business Manager.
Go to your Whatsapp Business manager following the steps above
On the left panel, go to Account Tools > Phone numbers
On the number you would like to edit, hover over the name and click on the Edit the display name for this phone number and follow the prompt. Your display name will then need to be approved by Whatsapp.
To change the profile image click the settings cog on the same page, then click Profile. Here you can change your picture, business description, address, website and more.
When changing your display name, once it is approved you will need to contact Crisp support and we will need to re-register your number for the change to take effect.
How to create Message Templates?
Message templates will help you initiate and respond to conversations with your customers, even if 24 hours has passed since the last message. Your templates will need to be created and approved in your Whatsapp Business Manager.
Note that only approved templates will be shown in the widget.
Go to your Whatsapp Business manager following the steps above
On the left panel, go to Account Tools > Message Templates
On the top right, click "Create Template"
That's it! Once your template is approved by Meta you will be able to send the template directly from Crisp.
How to format Message Template variables in Crisp?
To format the text in your variable messages, you can use Whatsapp's supported methods.
Italic
To italicize your message, place an underscore on both sides of the text:
_text_
Bold
To bold your message, place an asterisk on both sides of the text:
*text*
Strikethrough
To strikethrough your message, place a tilde on both sides of the text:
~text~
Monospace
To monospace your message, place three backticks on both sides of the text:
```text```
How to disable the 2FA for a Whatsapp Number?
Go to your Whatsapp Business manager following the steps above
On the left panel, go to Account Tools > Phone Numbers
On the number you would like to disable the 2FA, click on settings
Go to Two-step Verification and select Turn off two-step verification
If you do not have these options you need to contact your current provider and ask them to disable the 2FA on your Whatsapp numebr for you. Further information in Facebooks documentation.
Message Template Bots
It is possible to create message templates with buttons and you might want to use the bot plugin to continue the conversation once a user selects a button from the template. In order to do this, you will need to create a bot starting with the User Message Action event block.
The "Type" should be set to "Button Click" and the "Match" will be composed as such: {{button_value}}:{{template_name}} . You will need to replace the {{button_value}} with the text of the button and the {{template_name}} with the name of your template. Both the values should be in lowercase and you should replace any spaces with an underscore ( _ ).
For example, if you have a template called "Sample Issue Resolution" with two buttons "Yes"" and "No", your message match should look like this yes:sample_issue_resolution for when the button "Yes" is clicked and no:sample_issue_resolution for when the button "No" is clicked.
Troubleshooting
When connecting Whatsapp, I am redirected to an error page and I cannot continue.
In some cases, you might create your Business in the popup window, verify your number successfully and when the window closes you are redirected to an error page. Or you have already created your business already and you're just trying to reconnect and you see the error. If this continues, select the method you will use to connect and hold shift + cmd on macOS or shift + ctlr on windows while you click "Connect to Whatsapp".
A popup window will open. You should select the Whatsapp business you have just created/reconnecting to and then press continue until the end and the popup is closed. You should be redirected in Crisp and should be able to continue connecting as normal. If you still face any issues, you can contact our support for more assistance
I am not seeing my Whatsapp Business App Phone number
Whatsapp Business App phone numbers can't be connected with the Whatsapp Business Platform and third party apps such as Crisp. These kind of phone numbers can only be used on an iPhone or an Android smartphone.
However, you can convert a Whatsapp Business App Number, into a Whatsapp Business Platform Number. To do it, you will need to delete your existing Whatsapp Business Account. your phone number will then be available again to be registered on the Whatsapp Business Platform Number.
You can find the procedure to remove your Whatsapp Account right there: https://faq.whatsapp.com/2138577903196467/?helpref=uf_share
I've initiated a Whatsapp conversation and sent a message but it was not delivered, why?
In order to initiate a conversation, you need to send an approved message template that was created in your Whatsapp business manager, as defined by Whatsapp's messaging policy. Free-form messages can only be sent to your customers once the user has responded to your message template.
If you need to create a message template, you can follow these instructions.
I'm trying to connect the plugin, but the popup window says the page is blocked, why?
In Facebook, you are able to be logged in as a page instead of your profile. When you open the popup window opens Facebook tries to automatically switch to your user profile, but it fails. To fix the issue:
Close the pop-up window.
Navigate to a new tab on your browser
Go to facebook.com
In the top right, select the profile picture
Click see all profiles
Switch to your admin account
Go back to Crisp and try again.
I am migrating my number from a previous provider and I see an error "This number is registered to an existing WhatsApp account" in the Meta popup window, why?
If you are migrating from a previous provider and you are on "Step 3 of 3: Verify your WhatsApp Business number" in the pop-up window you have gone too far. You can simply close the pop-up window and you should be redirected in Crisp to the migration page. You can continue with the migration process as normal.
I've initiated a conversation using Message templates, but the customers response lands in a new conversation, why?
When initiating a Whatsapp conversation, the number you are messaging should be in international format. If you use local number formats, your customers responses might land in a new conversation as their response number will be in international format. You can compare the numbers in the "Main Information" section of both the conversation you initiated and the conversation with the users response.
Make the most out of Crisp Inbox and Wa Business Platform
Create shortcuts to make your teams more productive: https://help.crisp.chat/en/article/how-to-use-shortcut-replies-1bmff5q/
Connect other channels such as Instagram or Messenger.
Build chatbots for WhatsApp: https://help.crisp.chat/en/article/how-to-add-the-chatbot-plugin-to-my-website-1pn0onz/
Updated on: 23/03/2023
Thank you!