WhatsApp Business Integration Guide

ClientFlow connects to your own WhatsApp Business account through the WhatsApp Business Cloud API, so you can reach clients on the world's most popular messaging platform. Send appointment reminders, payment follow-ups and one-to-one messages from your ClientFlow dashboard.

Overview

The WhatsApp Business integration is built on Meta's official WhatsApp Business Cloud API and uses your own business number. Unlike the personal WhatsApp app, it lets you send and receive messages from the dashboard, see whether a message was sent, delivered or read, use Meta-approved templates, and send reminders automatically.

Key capabilities include:

• Direct messaging — Send and receive messages from your dashboard
• Template messages — Meta-approved templates, which WhatsApp requires when a message goes out outside the 24-hour window
• Automated reminders — Appointment and payment reminders sent automatically
• Media sharing — Send images, documents, and files to clients
• Conversation threads — Full conversation history organized by client
• Quick replies — Save the answers you send most often
• Scheduled messages — Pick a date and time (up to 30 days ahead) and ClientFlow sends the message then

Connecting Your Account

You connect your own WhatsApp Business account. The recommended route is Meta's login flow: you sign in with Facebook and approve access, so you never copy a token and ClientFlow never sees your password. If that option is not available, you can enter your credentials manually.

Prerequisites

Before connecting, ensure you have:

• A Meta Business account (formerly Facebook Business)
• A WhatsApp Business account linked to your Meta Business account, with a registered business phone number
• A ClientFlow PRO plan or higher

Step-by-Step Connection

1. Go to Settings → Integrations and find the WhatsApp Business API card
2. Click Connect with Facebook
3. Log in with your Meta account in the window that opens (allow pop-ups if your browser blocks it)
4. If you have more than one WhatsApp Business account or phone number, select the one to use
5. Review the requested permissions and approve them
6. You will be returned to ClientFlow with a confirmation message

Manual setup: If Facebook login is not available, open Manual Setup on the same card and enter the Access Token (a permanent token for a system user with the whatsapp_business_messaging permission), the Phone Number ID and the Business Account ID (WABA) from Meta. Click Verify Credentials, then Connect WhatsApp. The card also shows the webhook URL to use when you configure webhooks in Meta Business Suite.

Your credentials are stored encrypted (AES-256-GCM). With Facebook login ClientFlow can renew the token for you; if the card says the token needs a refresh or shows a connection error, use Reconnect Now.

Verifying Your Connection

After connecting, check the WhatsApp card. You should see:

• Connected status with a healthy connection indicator
• Phone Number and Verified Name of your business number
• Business Name, Quality Rating and Platform Type as reported by Meta
• Token Expiry, when the token has an expiry date

Use Send Test Message to send a test message to a phone number of your choice.

Sending Messages

You can message clients from the WhatsApp inbox, schedule messages for later, send an invoice by WhatsApp, and let reminders go out automatically. Messages go to one client at a time: ClientFlow has no broadcast or mass-messaging tool.

From the WhatsApp Inbox

The WhatsApp section of your dashboard (WhatsApp in the sidebar) is a full inbox. The Chats tab lists your conversations, with search and the filters All, Unread and Archived; unread messages are highlighted. Click New conversation to message a client, then type a freeform message or choose an approved template. Delivery is tracked as sent, delivered or read.

Scheduled Messages

Instead of sending a message now, you can schedule it: choose a date and time at least a minute from now and no more than 30 days ahead. Scheduled messages wait in the Scheduled tab, where you can cancel them before they go out.

Message Templates

WhatsApp requires an approved template for any message you send outside the 24-hour window, such as an appointment reminder sent the day before. Templates are created and approved in Meta, not in ClientFlow: ClientFlow reads your approved templates and lets you use them.

Getting a Template Approved

1. In Meta Business Suite (WhatsApp Manager), create a template — the Manage in Meta link in ClientFlow's templates library takes you there
2. Choose a category: UTILITY (reminders, confirmations), MARKETING (promotions), or AUTHENTICATION
3. Enter the template name (lowercase, underscores only) and the language
4. Write the template body, using variables like {{1}}, {{2}} for dynamic content
5. Submit it to Meta for approval
6. Once it is approved, open WhatsApp Templates in the WhatsApp section of ClientFlow to see it (refresh the list if it does not appear yet)

Using a Template for Appointment Reminders

1. Go to Message Templates in the sidebar and create or edit a template that uses the WhatsApp channel, with Template Type set to Reminder (only Reminder templates are offered in the appointment's reminder settings)
2. Link it to your approved WhatsApp template (the linking option appears once WhatsApp is connected on a PRO plan)
3. Choose that template in the appointment's reminder settings

For appointment reminders ClientFlow fills the template variables in this order, so write your template body with its variables in the same order:

Variable	Maps To	Example
{{1}}	Client name	John Smith
{{2}}	Appointment title	Deep Tissue Massage
{{3}}	Appointment date and time (in the client's language)	the appointment's date and time
{{4}}	Location (left empty if the appointment has none)	Your Studio

A reminder that has no linked template goes out as freeform text, and WhatsApp only delivers that within 24 hours of the client's last message to you.

Approval

Meta reviews every template, so approval is not instant, and Meta may reject a template or change its category. Check the status in WhatsApp Manager, or in ClientFlow's WhatsApp Templates list, before you rely on a template. Make sure your templates comply with WhatsApp's commerce and business policies.

Automated Reminders

ClientFlow can send reminders for appointments and overdue payments automatically through your connected WhatsApp account.

Appointment Reminders

Each appointment has one reminder, which you set up on the appointment itself:

• Reminder — tick the box to switch the reminder on
• When to send — 5, 10, 15 or 30 minutes, 1 hour or 1 day before the appointment
• Delivery channel — Auto (WhatsApp first, then email), WhatsApp Only, Email Only or WhatsApp + Email
• WhatsApp Template — optional; an approved template lets the reminder go out outside the 24-hour window

The message includes the client's name, the appointment date and time, and its location. When a client replies, the reply appears in your WhatsApp inbox like any other message; ClientFlow does not confirm, reschedule or cancel an appointment from a reply. The only words it acts on are STOP, UNSTOP and HELP, which manage the client's consent to receive messages.

Payment Reminders

Payment follow-ups come from the Payment Reminder automation (Automations in the sidebar), which is available from the Starter plan; sending it through WhatsApp needs PRO and above. It only looks at payments that are past their due date — nothing is sent before the due date — and its timings are fixed, not customisable: a reminder 3 days after the due date, a second one at 7 days, and at 14 days the payment is flagged for you instead of messaging the client. In the automation's settings you choose the channel for the reminders, WhatsApp or email.

You can also send a payment reminder yourself at any time from Reminders in the sidebar.

Automated vs. Manual Mode

ClientFlow offers two ways to send WhatsApp reminders:

Feature	Automated (PRO and above)	Manual (Free and Starter)
Delivery method	WhatsApp Business Cloud API (automated)	wa.me links (manual)
Requires PRO plan	Yes	No
Fully automated	Yes	No — you tap to send each message
Template support	Yes	Pre-filled text only
Delivery tracking	Yes (sent, delivered, read)	No

Media Sharing

You can share images, documents and other files with clients through WhatsApp, such as invoices and photos.

Supported Media Types

• Images — JPEG, PNG (up to 5MB)
• Documents — PDF, DOC, XLSX (up to 100MB)
• Videos — MP4 (up to 16MB)
• Audio — MP3, OGG (up to 16MB)

These limits are set by WhatsApp. Files you attach are stored in Cloudflare R2 (encrypted at rest by the storage provider), and ClientFlow blocks any file that its malware scan flags as infected.

Sending Invoices via WhatsApp

Open the invoice, choose Send Invoice and tick Send via WhatsApp. ClientFlow sends the invoice as a PDF with a short message giving the invoice number, the amount and the due date. The client needs a phone number on file and WhatsApp must be connected.

Conversation Management

The WhatsApp inbox includes a few tools for keeping conversations tidy.

Conversation Threads

All messages with a client are organized into a single thread, so you can see the full history of communication, including the client's responses and shared media.

Archiving Conversations

Completed or inactive conversations can be archived to keep your inbox clean. Archived conversations are not deleted — they stay available under the Archived filter and can be restored at any time.

Quick Replies

Save the replies you send most often under Quick Replies and insert them into a conversation instead of retyping them.

Troubleshooting

Common issues and their solutions:

Connection Issues

Problem	Cause	Solution
Facebook login window does not open	Browser pop-up blocked	Allow pop-ups for clientflow.center
Card shows a refresh warning or connection error	Token expired or revoked	Use Reconnect Now on the WhatsApp card under Settings → Integrations
Phone number not appearing	Number not registered with WhatsApp Business	Register number in Meta Business Suite first

Message Delivery Issues

Problem	Cause	Solution
Message shows as failed	Meta refused the message, for example an invalid number or a closed messaging window	Read the error shown on the message, fix the cause and send it again
Template message rejected	Template not approved by Meta	Check the template status in WhatsApp Manager or ClientFlow's WhatsApp Templates list
"Cannot send freeform message"	24-hour window expired	Use an approved template to re-initiate the conversation
Appointment reminder not delivered, error mentions the 24-hour window	The reminder has no linked approved template	Link an approved template (see "Using a Template for Appointment Reminders")
Media upload fails	File too large or unsupported format	Check file size limits and convert to supported format