Introduction
CloudFon allows you to respond to messages sent by your customers through integration with the WhatsApp Business account. You must first set up your business assets on the WhatsApp Business Platform before you can configure and start using WhatsApp Cloud API from CloudFon.
Note: You must ensure to verify WhatsApp Business Manager account beforehand while creating app on Meta. To learn how to verify your business account, see this article.
The setup consists of the following steps:
Create App on Meta for Developers
Associate a Business Manager Account
Generate a Permanent Token
Set Up a Webhook
Step1. Create App on Meta for Developers
To create an app, follow these steps:
Go to developers.facebook.com> Apps > Create App.
On the Select an app type page, choose an app type as Business. Your app type determines which products and APIs are available to your app.
Click Next.
In the Display Name field, enter the name of your app.
In the App Contact Email field, enter an email address where Meta can send you any important developer notifications.
Select or create a WhatsApp Business Manager account from the drop-down list.
Click Create App.
Once completed, your app is loaded in the App Dashboard.
Step2. Associate a Business Manager Account
Note: If you have selected a WhatsApp Business Manager account while creating the app, skip this step. Refer to Step 1: Create App on Meta for Developers for details.
In this step, you associate a Business Manager account with WhatsApp. To associate a Business Manager account with WhatsApp, follow these steps:
On the developers.facebook.com, go to the App Dashboard page and select your app from the drop-down list.
Click Add Products.
Scroll down to find the WhatsApp product and click Set up.
On WhatsApp’s Getting Started page, scroll down to step #5 to add your phone number.
Click Add phone number.
The Create a WhatsApp Business profile pop-up appears.
Provide your WhatsApp Business profile display name, Time zone, and Category.
Note: Your profile information will be visible to people on WhatsApp.
Click Next.
Add a valid phone number for your WhatsApp.
Select a verification option – Text message or Phone call, and click Next.
A One Time Password verification process takes place.
10. On successful verification, the phone number appears in the From drop-down list of Step #1: Select phone number.
11. Locate the Phone number ID for your WhatsApp phone number. Copy and save the Phone number ID and WhatsApp Business Account ID locally and proceed to Step 3: Generate a Permanent Token.
Step3. Generate a Permanent Token
Note：Before you start this job, please check that you meet the following requirements：
A Meta business account.
A WhatsApp Business Account, associated with your business account.
A business app, associated with your business account.
Either a System User access token or a User access token.
The whatsapp_business_management permission.
If your app needs to access endpoints that target your business account, you will also need the business_management permission.
For more details please refer to this article.
To generate a permanent token, follow these steps:
Go to business.facebook.com and click the hamburger menu > All tools > Business settings.
On the Business settings page, navigate to Users > System usersand click Add to create a system user.
Note: Creating a system user is an optional step. If you already have one, you do not have to create it. Else, you must create it.
Create a System Username and select System User Role as Admin.
Click Create System User.
The system admin user appears on the list.
Select the system admin user and click Generate New Token.
Select an app from the drop-down list you created in Step 1: Create App on Meta for Developers.
From the Available permissions section, select whatsapp_business_messaging.
Click Generate Token.
An Access Token(Token) is generated. Copy and save the access token locally and click OK.
10. Next, go to CloudFon Control Panel: Inbox> Channels> WhatsApp>WhatsAPP Cloud, and do the following:
Provide the Phone ID,Token and WhatsApp Business Account ID you saved locally in the WhatsApp channel account.
Copy the Webhook URLand Verify token from the CloudFon’s WhatsApp channel account and proceed to Step 4: Set Up a Webhook.
Step4. Set Up a Webhook
Webhooks are user-defined HTTP callbacks that are triggered by specific events. You get a notification (HTTP request) sent to a setup URL whenever a trigger event occurs.
To set up your Webhook, follow these steps:
Go to developer.facebook.com and select the app from the drop-down list you created in Step1: Create App on Meta for Developers.
Navigate to Products > WhatsApp> Configuration.
Click Edit.
On the Edit webhook’s callback URL pop-up, provide the Webhook URL and Verify token you saved locally from the CloudFon Control Panel: WhatsApp channel account.
Click Verify and save.
On successfully configuring the Webhook settings, the Manage button is enabled.
Click Manage and subscribe to the Webhook fields. You need to subscribe messages and message_template_status_update
Next, go to the CloudFon Control Panel and click Save & Test to test your WhatsApp channel connection with CloudFon Inbox.
To learn more on WhatsApp channel configuration on CloudFon Control Panel, please contact support@cloudfon.net.