--- title: "WhatsApp Business API for campaigns, notifications and support" description: "Official WhatsApp Business API through BroadNet, an official Meta Business Solution Provider: templates, Flows, campaigns, chatbots and a shared team inbox." canonical: "https://omnichannels.ai/channels/whatsapp-business-api/" language: "en" updated: "2026-10-11" publisher: "BroadNet Technologies" brand: "OmniChannels.ai" --- # WhatsApp Business API for campaigns, notifications and support Canonical: https://omnichannels.ai/channels/whatsapp-business-api/ Language: en Publisher: OmniChannels.ai by BroadNet Technologies Connect your own WhatsApp Business account through Meta's sign-up flow, build and track templates, send opted-in campaigns and reply to customers from one team inbox. **Short answer:** OmniChannels.ai gives your business the official WhatsApp Business API through BroadNet, an official Meta Business Solution Provider. You connect your own account through Meta's Embedded Signup, create marketing, utility and authentication templates with variables, media and buttons, and send them to opted-in contacts as campaigns. Customers reply in a shared inbox, where agents, chatbots or AI agents answer. Meta's message charges are itemised separately from the platform fee. ## What you can do with WhatsApp in OmniChannels.ai - **Connect through Meta's Embedded Signup:** Link your own WhatsApp Business account and phone number using Meta's official sign-up flow. The account stays yours; we never ask for your Facebook password. - **Build templates with a live phone preview:** Write marketing, utility and authentication templates with variables, images, documents and quick-reply or link buttons, then see exactly how they render before you submit them for Meta review. - **Track template approval:** Every template shows its review status, so your team knows which messages are approved for sending and which need changes. - **Send and schedule campaigns:** Upload an opted-in list from Excel or CSV, pick an approved template, preview the result, filter duplicates and send now or at a scheduled time. - **Answer replies in a shared inbox:** Customer replies land in the Omni Inbox, where agents answer with text, media, templates and attachments, with assignment and tags. - **Interactive messages, Flows and catalogs:** Use buttons and lists, WhatsApp Flows for forms inside the chat, and product catalogs, so customers act without leaving WhatsApp. - **Chatbots and AI agents:** Let a flow chatbot or a BroadNet AI agent answer routine questions in English and Arabic, then hand over to an agent in the inbox. - **Send one-time passwords:** Authentication templates support copy-code, one-tap and zero-tap OTP delivery for sign-ins and payment confirmations. - **Share a WhatsApp QR business card:** Create digital business cards with a QR code that opens a chat with your number, ready for print, packaging or events. - **See sent, delivered, read and failed:** Summary and advanced delivery reports show per-message status with filters by date and campaign, plus CSV export. ## WhatsApp Business App or WhatsApp Business API? | Item | Details | |---|---| | Who sends | App: one owner on a phone plus a small number of linked devices. API: any number of agents through a platform such as OmniChannels.ai. | | Bulk messaging | App: broadcast lists only reach contacts who saved your number. API: template campaigns to any opted-in contact, subject to Meta's messaging limits. | | Message templates | App: not used. API: required to start conversations outside the 24-hour service window, reviewed by Meta. | | Integration | App: none. API: messages and delivery events flow to your systems through the REST API and webhooks. | | Cost | App: free. API: Meta charges per message by category and country, plus your provider's platform fee. | ## How WhatsApp onboarding works 1. **Prepare your business details:** Have your Meta Business Portfolio, legal business name, website and a phone number that is not active on another WhatsApp account. 2. **Connect with Embedded Signup:** Log in with Meta inside the OmniChannels.ai workspace, create or select your WhatsApp Business account and verify the number by SMS or voice call. 3. **Create and submit templates:** Build your first marketing, utility or authentication templates and submit them for Meta review from the template builder. 4. **Import opted-in contacts:** Upload contacts who agreed to hear from you on WhatsApp, and keep a record of how and when they opted in. 5. **Send a test campaign and go live:** Send to an internal list first, confirm delivery and read receipts in the report, then launch to your audience. ## Is the WhatsApp Business API right for you? ### A good fit when - You send order updates, reminders, OTPs or offers to customers who opted in. - More than one person needs to answer customer chats on the same number. - You need delivery and read status per message, not just a sent count. - You serve customers in Arabic and English, especially in the Gulf. ### Good to know before you start - Business-initiated messages need a Meta-approved template; free-form text only works inside the 24-hour service window. - Meta sets per-message charges by category and country. Since 1 October 2026, Meta's pricing documentation says service messages beyond 1,000 free per business phone number per month, and utility templates sent inside the customer service window, are charged; confirm current rates in Meta's rate card. - Each phone number connects to one WhatsApp Business account. A number already in the WhatsApp app must be removed from it first. - New accounts start with messaging limits that rise with quality and volume; cold or purchased lists are not allowed. ## WhatsApp Business API questions ### Can I use my existing WhatsApp number? Yes. If it is a WhatsApp Business app number, Meta lets you onboard it through Embedded Signup with coexistence, so the app keeps working alongside the API, subject to Meta's requirements (for example a recent app version; group chats and broadcast lists are not supported on the API). Any other number used on WhatsApp, including a personal one, must first be deleted from the app, which loses its chat history. A new number that can receive an SMS or voice call also works. We confirm during onboarding whether coexistence is available for your account. ### Do I need a verified Meta business? You need a Meta Business Portfolio to connect. Meta business verification raises your messaging limits and is needed for a display name review, so we recommend starting it early. ### How long does template approval take? Meta reviews most templates automatically, often within minutes, but some take longer or are rejected for policy reasons. The template builder shows the status so you can adjust and resubmit. ### Are Meta's WhatsApp charges included in your price? No. Meta charges per message by category and recipient country. We show those charges separately from the OmniChannels.ai platform fee so you can see each part of the cost. ### Can I get the green verified badge? The badge is granted by Meta, not by providers. Meta reviews notability and account standing. We can help you prepare the request, but nobody can guarantee approval. ### Can a chatbot answer WhatsApp messages? Yes. You can run a flow chatbot for menus, keywords and lookups, or an AI agent powered by BroadNet AI that answers in English and Arabic. Both hand the conversation to a person in the shared inbox when needed. ## Official sources - [WhatsApp Business Platform overview — Meta for Developers](https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/overview) - [Embedded Signup — Meta for Developers](https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/embedded-signup/overview) - [Message templates — Meta for Developers](https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/templates/overview) - [WhatsApp Business Platform pricing — Meta for Developers](https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/pricing) Updated: 2026-10-11