This integration allows you to use Planfix to chat with contacts who have messaged you on WhatsApp. In addition, you can also use Planfix to process requests from customers or other WhatsApp users. Planfix unites all messages from all of the channels of communication you use. This helps you be more productive and makes it easier for you to hand off work to other employees.
Ways for Integration with WhatsApp
- Directly through the WhatsApp Business.
- By using third-party services.
Direct connection via WhatsApp Business
When setting up WhatsApp Business integration, you can choose one of two configuration options:
- Connect a new WhatsApp number — uses a phone number that is not registered in the WhatsApp app.
- Connect an existing WhatsApp Business account — use the same number in both the WhatsApp Business app and the Planfix integration simultaneously.
Note: The option to connect an existing account is not available in all countries. Check the official Meta page for a list of countries where this feature is not supported.
Disconnecting the Integration
If you need to disconnect the integration, complete both steps:
- Disconnect the integration in the Planfix interface.
- In the WhatsApp Business app, go to Settings — Account — WhatsApp Business Platform and disconnect Planfix.
Alternatively, you can revoke Planfix access in Meta Business settings, in the section where partner permissions for WhatsApp accounts are managed.
How the integration works
To connect the integration, go to Account management — Integrations — Messengers — WhatsApp — WhatsApp Business.
After you set up the integration, you can receive and send messages to WhatsApp users. The logic for handling messages is the same as in other messenger integrations:
- When a new WhatsApp user sends a message to your number for the first time, a new task will appear in Planfix.
- Contact will be created automatically in your account with the name and phone number of the WhatsApp user, and this contact will be set as the assigner for this task. The assignee will be the employee specified in the template used to create tasks. You can also add additional assignees. If no assignee is specified, the system will assign the primary account admin or the employee who configured the integration.
- If you write a comment in this task and notify the new contact about it, they will see your comment as a WhatsApp message, as if you wrote to them from the app.
- You can add other Planfix users to these tasks and discuss customers' questions in the task comments. The WhatsApp user will only receive the messages where they are specified to receive a notification.
- The integration allows you to exchange files. Files sent from WhatsApp by a user are added to the comment created in Planfix for their message. Files that you attach to Planfix comments are sent to the WhatsApp user.
- You can select the following option in the integration settings: Create a new task if there are no active tasks with this contact
- You can send a message to a contact who has never written to you before if you know the phone number they use for WhatsApp. And the contact will be set as the task assigner.
Important
- You can connect only a WhatsApp Business account.
- You can start a conversation with a customer using pre-approved WhatsApp template messages sent from Planfix through buttons or scripts.
Additionally
- When messaging customers, you can use the quick replies feature to answer common questions.
Note
Planfix uses a special mechanism to handle bulk messages sent from Instagram and WhatsApp. Currently, if the system detects more than three identical outgoing messages within five minutes, they are treated as a bulk mailing.
These messages are saved to the Planfix database but are not added to tasks until a customer replies to one of them. When a reply is received, Planfix checks whether the original message exists in the database and, if so, adds it to the task along with the customer’s reply.
Messages marked as bulk mailings are stored in the Planfix database for one month.
This mechanism prevents task notification timelines from being cluttered with unnecessary messages and reduces extra load on Planfix servers. High load from bulk mailings can significantly delay the processing of other messages.