WhatsApp Business API Onboarding For ISVs

The process for integrating a Twilio Account with WhatsApp is more complex for Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and System Integrators (SIs) than it is for individual businesses. If you are implementing the WhatsApp Business API on behalf of your end client or a brand that you do not own, this article is for you.

In this blog post, I’ll cover the setup process and provide step-by-step instructions to get configured as a WhatsApp ISV or SI, and how to get started with sending WhatsApp messages from your Twilio account.

Prerequisites

• A Twilio account
• Meta Business Manager ID (formerly known as Facebook Business Manager ID)

Configuration Process

Step 1: Twilio Account Setup

The first step in setting up WhatsApp integration is to configure a Twilio account.

When creating a Twilio account, keep these points in mind:

• Confirm billing on the account is done in proper currency. By default, the billing is done in US dollars, but depending on the country it might have to be changed.
• Confirm the account is associated with the appropriate corporate consolidated billing entity. In other words, if your company has consolidated billing implemented with Twilio, new accounts would have to be added to the existing entity.
• Add administrator access to the appropriate resources working on the project

Step 2: Create a Twilio Subaccount

Once the previous step has been successfully completed, you can now create Twilio subaccounts. Twilio subaccounts are a great way to distinguish between usage on your account from different regions, phone numbers, and customers. Each Subaccount has its own phone numbers, usage reporting, and unique Account SID and Auth Token credentials, but it’s still billed to the same parent Twilio account balance. More information about Twilio account differences can be found here.

Step 3: Prepare a valid Meta Business Manager ID

You will need your Meta Business Manager ID (formerly known as Facebook Business Manager ID) when submitting the WhatsApp request for access, as it is used by WhatsApp/Meta to identify your business. Keep in mind that this is not a Facebook page.

Step 4: Request Access to WhatsApp

The next step in this process is to request access to WhatsApp by submitting this form.This process enables your Twilio account to access the WhatsApp Business API.

This is a one-time compliance review and approval process performed by WhatsApp. On the Request Access form, the ISV should select the answer "Yes, I am an ISV or SI," for the question "Are you working with an ISV, SI, or third party?"

As an ISV, you need to use your own brand information, including Meta Business Manager ID and parent Twilio Account SID. This should be the same parent Account SID that is associated with any subaccounts that will be used for future end client integrations.

Step 5: Legal Documentation

Once the review process by WhatsApp (step 4) has been successfully completed, Twilio will send two separate legal documents for signing and review:

• ISV Terms: This document will be sent via Docusign and must be signed by the ISV. These Terms of Service are provided by WhatsApp and enforced globally for ISVs working with any WhatsApp Business Solution Partners (BSPs) such as Twilio.

• ISV Requirements: This document will be sent via a Google Form that must be accepted by the ISV. This form outlines additional ISV restrictions imposed by WhatsApp/Meta.

Recommended Steps

At this point, once Twilio has received a confirmed approval from WhatsApp for the ISV, the ISV Terms have been signed, and the ISV Requirements have been accepted, you can proceed to onboard any number of end clients.

While you as an ISV are not required to have a WhatsApp integration the same way as a direct client, we strongly recommend that you onboard onto WhatsApp directly. This will allow you to get a complete understanding of the process so you can guide your own end clients. The following steps in this blog post are recommended steps on how to onboard yourself as an ISV to WhatsApp so that you can send WhatsApp messages from your Twilio account.

Step 6: Purchase a Twilio phone number

The next step is to purchase a Twilio phone number. You will use this phone number for inbound and outbound WhatsApp messaging within a Twilio account.

Every country has its own regulatory compliance requirements. It is possible that a regulatory bundle needs to be submitted to Twilio before a phone number can be assigned to the desired Twilio account. Twilio offers a guide on how to submit a regulatory compliance bundle for approval.

Step 7: WhatsApp Sender

Once your Twilio account has access to WhatsApp Business API via the approval process and you have purchased a Twilio phone number, it is time to create a WhatsApp sender. The WhatsApp sender is the WhatsApp profile that is going to be sending and receiving WhatsApp messages.

This process will walk through:

• The creation of a dedicated WhatsApp sender.
• Linking of WhatsApp business account with the Twilio account.
• Creation of a WhatsApp Business Profile.
• Verification of the WhatsApp business phone number.
• Registration of the Twilio phone number with the newly created WhatsApp sender.

Optional Step 8: WhatsApp Official Business Account

Once the WhatsApp business account has been approved, you have an option to request an Official Business Account.

Requesting an Official Business Account for WhatsApp is not a mandatory step; however, having an Official Business Account comes with additional benefits and features.

Optional Step 9: Content API

Twilio Content API lets you create and send rich messaging content over any Twilio-supported messaging channel. The idea is to have a consistent messaging experience as you move over various messaging channels.

Step 10: WhatsApp Templates

In order to send outbound messages with WhatsApp, Meta (WhatsApp) requires the use of pre-approved templates. Without approved templates, outbound WhatsApp messages from Twilio will fail. This is a WhatsApp requirement, not a Twilio requirement.

WhatsApp templates will have to be individually requested and will be approved individually by WhatsApp as well. Make sure to properly test the desired outbound behavior before moving to production.

If you are sending WhatsApp messages with the help of the Twilio Content API, request WhatsApp templates via the Content API as described here.

Step 11: Send WhatsApp Messages using pre-approved templates

Once the WhatsApp templates have been approved by WhatsApp, they can be used to send an outbound WhatsApp message to customers. Confirm the messages are being sent using the pre-approved WhatsApp templates and adjust based on the desired customer experience.

If you are sending outbound WhatsApp messages with the help of Twilio Content API, follow the process documentation here.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully integrated WhatsApp with your Twilio account and you are ready to start onboarding your end clients. The next step is to take all the building blocks you’ve gathered and start customizing the experience according to your end client needs.

If your team would like assistance with any aspect of your solution, Twilio Professional Services is here to help. Reach out to learn more about our offerings.

I can’t wait to see what you build!

Matija Vrzan is a Senior Solutions Architect at Twilio’s NAMER Professional Services Team, changing the world one contact center at a time. He can be reached at mvrzan [at] twilio.com.