In this article, you will learn how to connect WhatsApp to a PerfectAI Chat configuration by setting up a WhatsApp business account in the Backoffice, completing the guided sign-up with Meta and linking it to one of your chat configurations.
Contents
- Prerequisites
- Overview
- Step 1: Open the WhatsApp business account page
- Step 2: Sign in with WhatsApp for Business
- Step 3: Select your business and WhatsApp account
- Step 4: Review and confirm
- Step 5: Name the connection and assign a chat configuration
- Activation and rollout
- Member-facing behaviour on WhatsApp
- Related articles
Prerequisites
- Extension: connecting WhatsApp is available to studios with the PerfectAI Chat or PerfectAI Engage extension.
-
Permission: access to the page is gated by the
SETTINGS_META_BUSINESS_ACCOUNTpermission (CRUD:_CREATE,_READ,_UPDATE,_DELETE). Admins assign these to custom or system roles in role management. - A chat configuration: WhatsApp is linked to an existing PerfectAI Chat configuration. Create and set up the configuration first (see Setting up PerfectAI Chat).
- Meta side: a Facebook account that is linked to your company's Meta business profile, and a phone number that you can use for WhatsApp. During sign-up, Meta runs its own checks and prompts you for anything else it needs on its side.
Overview
WhatsApp is connected through a separate WhatsApp business account object, not inside the chat configuration wizard. Each WhatsApp business account references one chat configuration, so messages that arrive on WhatsApp are answered by that configuration's bot.
The connection runs through Meta's guided sign-up. When you start a new connection, a Meta for Business window opens, you select your business and WhatsApp assets there, and the technical identifiers are returned to the Backoffice automatically. You then give the connection a name and pick the chat configuration it belongs to.
Step 1: Open the WhatsApp business account page
Go to Settings / PerfectAI / WhatsApp business account. The page lists your existing connections.
Step 2: Sign in with WhatsApp for Business
Select Login with WhatsApp for Business. A Meta for Business window opens. Sign in with a personal Facebook account that is linked to your company's Meta business profile. Meta needs this link to show you the right business and WhatsApp assets in the next step.
Step 3: Select your business and WhatsApp account
Follow the guided flow and choose the business asset and the WhatsApp account you want to connect. If you do not have a WhatsApp account set up yet, Meta lets you create one during this flow.
Step 4: Review and confirm
Review the connection and confirm. A few details to expect in this step:
- The connecting partner shown by Meta is Magicline GmbH.
- You accept the relevant terms: the Meta Hosting Terms for the Cloud API, the Meta Terms for WhatsApp Business and the Magicline Social App Privacy Policy.
- Meta may prompt you to add a payment method for the Cloud API. Follow Meta's prompts if it does.
- WhatsApp runs a Commerce Policy review on the connection. This review usually completes within 24 hours.
Step 5: Name the connection and assign a chat configuration
When the Meta flow finishes, you return to the Backoffice and complete the connection form. The technical identifiers are filled in automatically and cannot be edited.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | A name for this connection, so you can recognise it in the list. Free text. |
| Business Account ID | The WhatsApp Business Account identifier returned by Meta. Read-only. |
| Phone Number ID | The identifier of the connected WhatsApp phone number, returned by Meta. Read-only. |
| Chat configuration | The PerfectAI Chat configuration that answers WhatsApp messages for this connection. |
Select Save to create the connection.
Activation and rollout
After saving, you activate the connection for the studios that should use it, the same way you roll out a chat configuration. A connection can be switched on for a selected set of studios; if you remove all studios, it is deactivated everywhere.
To remove a connection, deactivate it in all studios first. A WhatsApp business account must be deactivated everywhere before it can be deleted.
Member-facing behaviour on WhatsApp
Members reach your bot by messaging the connected WhatsApp number. The linked chat configuration answers those messages with the same knowledge and behaviour it uses in the web chat. WhatsApp's own business-messaging rules apply to these conversations.