The short version
- There are two ways WhatsApp connects: your team's numbers come into a shared inbox, and each person can link their own WhatsApp to the assistant.
- A number is linked as a device, by scanning a code under Linked devices. There's no Business API to apply for.
- A new person who messages gets a card in your client list, with the chat on it.
- Messages your number starts on its own go out about 10 minutes apart, and a newly linked number warms up for six days first.
- It works with the WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business app you already use. Because the number is linked as a device, its messages have no buttons or menus.
Connect a WhatsApp number in 3 steps
A team admin connects the number, from the Inbox in the app.
- Add the number. Give it a name, and say whose phone it is: somebody's own phone, or a business line. You can give it an inbox of its own, too.
- Scan the code. On the phone that owns the number, open WhatsApp, go to Settings, then Linked devices, then Link a device, and scan the code the app shows. The code refreshes itself every few seconds, so there's no rush.
- Bring in the history. A business line brings in its past chats. Somebody's own phone brings in only the chats with people already in your client list, so their friends and family stay out of it.
The phone keeps working as normal. Messages sent from it show up in the inbox too.
What syncs, and where it lands
| What | Where it lands | When |
|---|---|---|
| A message someone sends you | The chat in the team inbox | As it arrives |
| A new person who messages | A card in your client list, with the chat on it | With their first message |
| A message you send from your phone | The same chat in the inbox | As it's sent |
| Chats from before you connected | The inbox, and each client's card | When the number is linked, as far back as WhatsApp hands over, which is months of messages |
| A chat handed to a teammate | A notice in the app, or on Telegram if they've linked it | When it's handed over |
| Group chats | The inbox only, with no card and no AI reply | As they arrive |
Who sees what: you, the teammates you share the number with, and your manager. The WhatsApp inbox and the client list pages show both at work.
Search chats
- Grace Wong2:58pmThanks! One more question
- Nurul Aziz2:31pmCould we move it to next week?
- Kenji Sato2:20pmAgent: Thursday 11am works, see you then
Hi, what are your fees? And do you do home visits?
AgentHi Priya, it's Daniel. Yes, I can come to you. My fees depend on what you need, so I go through them on a short call first. Does Thursday 11am or Friday 3pm suit?
Thursday 11am please
AgentDone, Thursday 11am. I've sent you the invite. See you then!
Thu 11am added to Google Calendar
Why your number won't send 200 messages at once
A linked number that suddenly sends a lot of first messages can get banned by WhatsApp. So the messages your number starts on its own, like a broadcast or an AI agent's first message to a new lead, are paced.
- About 10 minutes apart, give or take 3, by default. Replies go faster, about 30 seconds apart.
- An admin can change the gap, set sending hours, and set a daily cap.
- A newly linked number warms up for six days. On day 1 it starts no automatic messages to leads, on day 2 up to 3, and on days 3 to 6 up to 10 a day. After that, only your own limits apply.
- If the phone isn't connected, nothing is sent until it is.
Your own assistant on WhatsApp: log a call by sending a message
Anyone on the team can link their own WhatsApp to the ActivityTracker assistant. That's a separate chat with the assistant's number, and it has nothing to do with your client inbox.
To link it, open Integrations in the app and tap Connect WhatsApp. The app gives you a six-character code and opens a chat with the assistant. Send the code within 10 minutes and you're linked.
Then you can ask about your pipeline, log a call or a meeting, save a note, and get your morning brief and weekly wrap there. It takes voice notes, photos and PDFs. There are no buttons, so a few words work like buttons: tasks, log, note and brief. Anything it would delete, it asks you to confirm with YES first.
Send unlink, or disconnect it in the app, and it stops replying. Your data stays where it is. The same assistant is on Telegram, too.
Can I use the regular WhatsApp app? Yes, and here's what that rules out
- It isn't the WhatsApp Business API, and we're not a WhatsApp Business Solution Provider. Your number is linked as a device, and WhatsApp's linked devices page warns that "linking your device through unofficial apps or websites may put your account at risk."
- The messages it sends have no buttons, lists or forms. Where a message offers a choice, the choices are numbered.
- Past chats come from what WhatsApp hands over when a number is linked, which is months of messages.
- Group chats show in the inbox, but don't get a card and don't get an AI reply.
- Only a team admin can add a number.