Chat API WhatsApp
Chat API is not an Official WhatsApp Partner. Chat API should only be used as a temporary solution while you are waiting for WhatsApp API account approval.
To use a Chat API you will need to make an account here.
Chat API allows you to connect your current WhatsApp account to our platform. Instructions for setting it up are below.
In order to connect WhatsApp to your Space, you will need the following:
A WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business account
The WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business app installed on your phone
A Chat API account (you can get started with a 3 days trial account)
If you do not already have a Chat API account, visit their registration page and fill out the required fields. Once you have entered your desired login information, click on the green "Create Account" button.
Once you are logged onto Chat API, you will have to create a new Instance. In doing so, you will be asked to scan your WhatsApp Web code to connect your WhatsApp account to Chat API.
1. Navigate to Rocketbots Settings > Add Channel > WhatsApp > Chat API.
2. Sign in to Chat API.
3. Create a new Instance.
4. Find Instance ID in the Chat API dashboard and add in the field provided.
5. Find Token in the Chat API dashboard and add in the field provided.
6. Add WhatsApp Number to connect.
7. Press Done
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All future messages sent to your WhatsApp account will now appear on the Rocketbots Platform.
Once connected, Channel Name and Greeting Message can be configured.
1. Navigate to Rocketbots Settings > Channel Settings.
2. Find the WhatsApp channel to configure.
3. Press the blue Configure button.
4. Add Channel Name.
Note that the Channel Name is private and will only be used within the platform to identify this channel.
5. Add Greeting Message.
This is the first message that will be sent to your Contact when they message you through WhatsApp.
6. Press Done.
Other information regarding channel connection is listed here as well.
Yes. You will need the device where WhatsApp is installed to remain connected to the internet for the integration to work, functioning similarly to WhatsApp Web. If the device is disconnected, the messages received while inaccessible won't be available on the Rocketbots platform.
No. If you open WhatsApp on a web browser the connection with Chat API will be interrupted and you will have to go back to your Chat API account and reconnect it by scanning the code once again.
Chat API provides a free 3 days trial which you can use to test the integration. After that, a paid subscription will be necessary. The current price for Chat API is $39 and includes 6,000 messages per day. Note that the Chat API prices are excluded from the Rocketbots subscription.
No. Chat API uses the WhatsApp Web interface to pass messages between WhatsApp & Rocketbots. Since you can only have one WhatsApp Web open at a time, using WhatsApp Web after connecting to Chat API will break the connection between your phone and Chat API.
Yes, you can send and receive videos in Chat API. To ensure you are receiving videos, turn on video uploading in the Chat API dashboard.
The Chat API WhatsApp integration relies on receiving WhatsApp messages from your mobile phone and passing them to Rocketbots. Since this process is reliant on a mobile phone which may be on the move and may not have have a consistent internet connection, there may be some troubleshooting required.
If no messages are being passed to Rocketbots you should check the following items:
If messages are arriving in Rocketbots delayed, you should check the following items:
This may seem simple, but there are several situations where a mobile phone may seem to be connected to the internet when it is not. For example, you may be connected to Wifi, but the Wifi is not connected to the internet. Use Speedtest to ensure you have a strong and stable internet connection.
Something more difficult to check is if the internet connection is stable. Generally, to ensure you have a stable connection, you will want to have a dedicated phone that is always connected to a stable Wifi. Using a personal phone that you carry around will reduce your reliability.
When your phone is successfully connected to the Chat API dashboard you will see this banner.
If this message is not shown, it may be that you have WhatsApp Web open in another location. If this is the case, you may connect your WhatsApp to Chat API once again by scanning the QR code & refrain from using WhatsApp Web in other places. Remember WhatsApp Web cannot be used while you are using Chat API.
Chat API uses a webhook as part of their integration with Rocketbots. When connecting to Chat API in Rocketbots settings this automatically added to Chat API.
If the webhook is not present in your Chat API dashboard, please add webhook URL below.
https://app.rocketbots.io/whatsapp/webhook/<instancenumber>
Android phones can optimise apps for battery life. This will affect your Chat API integration as the phone may pause WhatsApp when your phone has been inactive for a long time. To turn off battery optimisation for WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business App:
Go to Settings
Navigate to Battery
Navigate to Battery Optimisation
Find WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business App in the list
Select Don't Optimize
Still having trouble with the channel? Contact us here!
