Submit your first WhatsApp Sender

Set up your AI Assistant as a WhatsApp Chatbot

When users create a WhatsApp sender in Twilio for the first time, they will be taken to a Guided Signup window.

After creating a Twilio account and going to Messaging > Senders > WhatsApp Senders for the first time, you will see a new Guided Signup window. Click .

This is the same form when you create new senders

The process below has the same forms to fill out when creating new senders beyond your first.

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Request WhatsApp Senders

Follow the on-screen instructions on Twilio to apply for WhatsApp access. These steps will mostly involve filling up the required details about your business so you can request access to the WhatsApp API.

Client Information

The first step of creating a first WhatsApp sender in Twilio is to fill up Client Information with the Business's Legal Name, its email address, and its Meta Business Manager ID.

Fill up your company's information in this Twilio page.

• Client Business's Legal Name

• Client Email Address

• Client Meta Business Manager ID

Find the Meta Business Manager ID in the Meta Business Suite

You can locate the Meta Business Manager ID via the Meta Business Suite. On the lower-left part of the screen, click Settings. When the new window loads, click the Business Portfolio Info on the upper part of the screen. Copy the code under Business Portfolio ID.

Select a Phone Number

The second step of creating a first WhatsApp sender in Twilio is to Select a Phone Number. Users can choose an existing WhatsApp number by following special instructions or buy a new Twilio number.

Choose a phone number in this part of the Twilio page. This will be your company's designated WhatsApp number specifically for talking to your AI Chatbot.

You have two options in Twilio:

• You can buy a Twilio phone number. Access Twilio's list of available numbers via , then clicking and selecting .
• You can use your own number. Twilio calls this process as BYON (Bring Your Own Number). Please follow the instructions in this Twilio guide.

Twilio has its own Guided Onboarding document for a more in-depth look on this process, especially for steps outside Captivate Chat.

Before selecting a number

Take note of the Twilio warning before proceeding. Twilio has separate instructions if your phone number:

• ...is already connected to the WhatsApp consumer or small business app

• ...is already connected to the WhatsApp Business Platform via a different provider

Buy a Twilio number according to your needs

If you plan on purchasing a Twilio number, do take note that the service allows you to buy a phone number using different filters. You can choose according to country, capabilities (Voice, SMS, MMS, Fax), and advanced filters such as address requirements.

Get a phone number with SMS enabled

Since we are going to integrate an AI Chatbot with WhatsApp, prioritize choosing a number with SMS enabled.

Fill Out Your Public WhatsApp Sender Profile Information

The third step of creating a first WhatsApp sender in Twilio is to fill up public WhatsApp Sender profile information with the company's display name, address, email, websites, vertical, logo link, and an about statement.

Fill up your business information in this part of the Twilio page. This data will be submitted in order to request for WhatsApp to provide API access.

• Business Display Name

• Company Address

• Company Email

• Website

• Additional Website

• Vertical

• Link to Logo

• Profile About

After filling up items in these steps, Twilio will handle the actual setup process with WhatsApp.

WhatsApp API is crucial to the integration

This step is perhaps the most important when it comes to WhatsApp integration. WhatsApp needs to give you access to its API so we can place your AI Chatbot in the system.

Visible to end users

Some text boxes you have to fill up are indicated as visible to end users. This means the information placed here will be available for end users to see while interacting with your AI Chatbot.

Submitting a wrong business display can cause 2-4 week delays

Before submitting your request, make sure you're submitting the right information about your business. This is especially the case with the Business Display Name. Follow WhatsApp's Display Name Guidelines.

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Accept the Request from Twilio in your Meta Business Suite

After completing the form to create a first WhatsApp sender in Twilio, users should go to their Meta Business Suite and accept the request from Twilio.

After setting up your WhatsApp Sender on Twilio, you will receive a notification in your Meta Business Suite that says Twilio is asking for permissions to send messages on your behalf.

To access this, go to your Meta Business Suite. From here:

1. Click
2. Go to
3. Find and accept the Twilio request.

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Find your new WhatsApp Sender

After accepting the request from Twilio in Meta Business Suite, users can go back to the Twilio dashboard and go to Messaging > Senders > WhatsApp Senders page. Their first WhatsApp sender should appear.

After accepting the Twilio request, you should see your number in the list of WhatsApp Senders on Twilio. Your WhatsApp number is now ready for integration in your Chat Flow.

To create another WhatsApp sender, click on the upper-right part of the menu.