Table of Contents
- Connecting Vonage WhatsApp
- Channel Configuration
- Metadata Received by Channel
- Managing WhatsApp Message Templates
Vonage WhatsApp
- Connecting Vonage WhatsApp
- Channel Configuration
- Metadata Received by Channel
- Managing WhatsApp Message Templates
In addition to providing SMS services, Vonage is also an API provider that works directly with WhatsApp as an official partner. Vonage also provides other services such as phone number purchases and WhatsApp Official API account management.
By integrating Vonage WhatsApp API, the platform can enable you to respond to WhatsApp messages directly.
Connecting Vonage WhatsApp
Step 1: Navigate to Workspace Settings > Click Add Channel
Step 2: Locate the Vonage WhatsApp Channel > Click Connect
Step 3: Sign in to Vonage with your user credentials on the Vonage Website.
Step 4: Locate the API Key & API Secret on the Dashboard and add them to the corresponding fields on the respond.io platform.
Step 5: After you've filled in both values, follow the instructions and click Next.
Step 6: At Vonage, navigate to Your Applications and create an application. Give the application a suitable name.
Step 7: Enable Messages by enabling the toggle and selecting version v1.0.
Step 8: Add the generated URLs from respond.io to the corresponding fields on Vonage platform.
Step 9: Scroll down and click Generate New Application.
Step 10: Open the Linked External Accounts tab and click Link next to the Vonage WhatsApp Number.
Step 11: Follow the instructions by clicking Next.
Step 12: On the respond.io platform, select the enabled WhatsApp number from the dropdown.
Step 13: On the Vonage platform, navigate to Applications and select the WhatsApp application to connect.
Step 14: Click Edit and then click Generate Public and Private Key.
Step 15: Add the Private Key field to the corresponding field on the respond.io platform.
Step 16: On the Vonage platform, save changes to the dashboard.
Step 17: Click Save Changes to complete the setup.
Channel Configuration
Step 1: Navigate to Workspace Settings > Click Channels.
Step 2: Locate the Vonage WhatsApp Channel > Click Manage > Configuration.
Step 3: Make the necessary configuration for the following fields
- Channel Name - Name used internally to identify the account.
- WhatsApp Business Account ID - This is required to sync and submit Message Templates. Contact your Vonage Customer Solution Architect to get this credential.
- User Access Token - This is required to sync and submit Message Templates. Contact your Vonage Customer Solution Architect to get this credential.
Step 4: Click Save Changes to update the Channel configuration.
Metadata Received by Channel
Different channels provide different set of Contact’s metadata to respond.io platform. Here’s the list of Contact’s data you’ll be able to obtain from this channel:
- Phone number
- Profile name
Managing WhatsApp Message Templates
- Submitted the message template for approval
- Added the approved message template to the Space by syncing the message template
Submitting Message Templates
Step 1: Navigate to Workspace Settings > Click Channels.
Step 2: Locate the Vonage WhatsApp Channel > Click Manage.
Step 3: Click Templates > Submit Template to submit a message template for approval.
Step 4: Fill in the required information
Fill in the information needed to create a template.
Field | Description |
Name | Name can only contain lowercase alphanumeric characters and underscores ( _ ) |
Category | The category to which the message template belongs to. |
Language | The language that the template is written in. |
Step 5: Create the message by filling in the necessary components, then review the message in the preview section. You may include parameters {{1}}, {{2}}, etc. as placeholders to be filled in with personalized content.
Building Block | Description |
Header | The Header is optional and serves as the title or header of your template. It supports the following:
|
Body | The Body should contain the most important text of your template. Only text is supported. You may use markdown to format the content of this block. |
Footer | The Footer only supports text and can be used to provide less relevant information in your template message. |
Button | The button adds interactivity to your templates. There are two main types.
|
Step 6: Provide sample value
This is only applicable if you have included any parameters in your message template content.
Important Links
Syncing Message Templates
- Added WhatsApp Business Account ID and User Access Token in the channel configuration dialog.
Step 1: Navigate to Channel Settings
From Settings module, navigate to the menu item, Channels.
Step 2: Locate the Vonage WhatsApp channel
Once you've located the Vonage WhatsApp channel, click Templates.
Step 3: Sync Templates
Click Sync Templates to begin the syncing process.
Step 4: Syncing Completed
When the synchronization has been completed, the message templates will be listed with their corresponding status and the last synced date time will be updated. The rejection reason will be displayed underneath the rejected message template.
Status | Description |
Submitted | The message template is submitted and pending approval. |
Approved | The message template is approved and can be sent to contacts. |
Rejected | The message template is rejected and cannot be used. |
Rate Limits
A rate limit is the number of API calls an app or user can make within a given time period defined by the channel. Learn more about the rate limits for this channel here.
FAQ and Troubleshooting
Inability to Send and Receive Messages
If you're encountering issues sending and receiving messages, we recommend you to check the application version of your Vonage application.
Step 1: Navigate to Vonage and sign in with your Vonage user credentials.
Step 2: Navigate to your Application and click on edit. Verify if you have selected v1 and Inbound URL: https://app.respond.io/nexmo/whatsapp/webhook under the Messages section. If it's not, proceed to update it and save changes.
Message status is not updated
If you're encountering issues with message status is not updated, we recommend you to check the Status URL of your Vonage application.
Step 1: Navigate to Vonage and sign in with your Vonage user credentials.
Step 2: Navigate to your Application and click on edit. Verify if your Status URL is https://app.respond.io/nexmo/whatsapp/webhook under the Messages section. If it's not, proceed to update it and save changes.
