Whatsapp Business API
Cisco Unified Contact Center Express (UCCX), Enterprise (UCCE or PCCE), Freeswitch/ FusionPBX or Expertflow Hybridchat standalone
A monthly flat fee of 500 USD for Whatsapp API and 1000 user-initiated conversations per month.
Connect Chat channels, bots and live agents
Access to the Whatsapp Business API channel for companies is available for Expertflow Hybrid Chat (HC).
Other HC channels include Viber, SMS, Facebook Messenger, Telegram, Twitter DM, Whatsapp, and others. Chatbot connectors exist for Google Dialogflow, Microsoft Bot Framework, IBM Watson, rasa.ai, and others. The agent live chat widget can be embedded into CRMs such as Microsoft Dynamics, Salesforce (SFDC), Oracle Siebel, Oracle Service Cloud, or SAP.
Whatsapp Onboarding process
Steps to activate Whatsapp as a communication channel with your customers:
- Create or fetch your Facebook Business Manager ID.
- Expertflow or its partner will send you a URL to the portal of a Whatsapp Business Solution provider (WBSP).
- On the WBSP portal and via the URL, conduct the application, and accept the terms of use.
- On FB Business Manager, assign the WBSP to message on your behalf and complete the business verification.
- On the WBSP, register your phone number and retrieve your WABA API Key
- Enter the WABA Key into Expertflow Hybridchat and start chatting!
Note that these steps must be executed directly by the company using the WABA service and can't be done by either Expertflow or its partner, as you will have a direct contract both with Facebook, as well as with the WBSP and are liable for the way the WABA interface is used. Expertflow will provide you guidance throughout the process.
Pricing
Facebook/Whatsapp has changed the pricing model. From June 2023, there will be country-specific additional fees on business initiated Template messages based on the type of template messages i.e. Utility, Authentication OR Marketing. After 1000 conversations/sessions per month user initiated interactions that are called as Service conversations will also be charged. A conversation is defined as interactions that happen within a window of 24 hours that starts when businesses send/receive a message. This new pricing model will be implemented from June 1, 2023. In addition, Expertflow charges a flat monthly fee of 500 USD, independently of the number of active users. For very small deployments (lab, trial, testing, less than 1000 user initiated conversations per month), there will only be an Expertflow fee of 500$ per month and no additional fee. For additional conversations i.e. after 1000 conversations, you the partner will receive a consolidated online bill for Whatsapp consumed messages, as well as the WABA fixed fee, along with other pre-paid PPU (pay-per-use) services in the Expertflow online shop.
Conversations are not charged when users message businesses using call-to-actions buttons on Ads that Click to WhatsApp or Facebook Page call-to-action buttons. When a free entry point conversation is open, no other conversation category can be opened, even if a business sends a template within the three-day (72h) free entry point conversation window.
Security
Messages transit from your client through Whatsapp (=Facebook) to the WBSP to Expertflow Hybridchat and hence the agent. You can choose to have the entire solution in the cloud, which is the basic setup. All messages are encrypted between each two servers. You can choose to have Expertflow's servers on-prem.