WhatsApp Business Connector Setup Guide | Server-Side Connectors

API Information

This connector uses the following vendor API:

API Name: Facebook Graph API - WhatsApp Business API
API Version: v13.0
API Endpoint: https://graph.facebook.com
Documentation: WhatsApp Business Platform Cloud API

Connector Actions

Action Name	AudienceStream	EventStream
Send Text Message	✓	✓
Send Message Template	✓	✓

Configure Settings

Navigate to the Connector Marketplace and add a new connector. For general instructions on how to add a connector, see About Connectors.

After adding the connector, configure the following settings:

Access Token
(Required) Access Token of the Facebook System User.
When authenticating the connector using an Access Token, we recommend that you use a Business System User access token. Unlike User access tokens, which expire frequently and require regeneration every few hours, Business System User tokens offer extended validity (typically up to 60 days) providing a more stable and reliable authentication method. To obtain a Business System User access token, you must create a System User in your Facebook Business Manager, assign the necessary assets and permissions, and then generate a token in the Facebook App dashboard. For detailed instructions, see WhatsApp: Get System User Access Tokens for the WhatsApp Business Platform.

Click Done when you are finished configuring the connector.

Message types

For WhatsApp Business API, there are two primary message types:

Template Messages are pre-approved by WhatsApp and are designed for business-initiated conversations, such as sending alerts, updates, or re-engagement messages. These messages can include variables and are required when messaging users who haven’t contacted your business in the past 24 hours.
Text-Based Messages are session-based and can only be used in response to a user-initiated message within a 24-hour window. They offer greater flexibility for dynamic, conversational content, but are not allowed for unsolicited outreach.

Use Template Messages when initiating a conversation or sending notifications outside of the 24-hour window, and use Text-Based Messages to maintain real-time interactions during an active session with the user.

Before sending a template message, you need to create a template. For more information, see WhatsApp: Create Message Templates for Your WhatsApp Business Account.

Action Settings — Parameters and Options

Click Continue to configure the connector actions. Enter in a name for the action and then select the action type from the drop-down menu.

The following section describes how to set up parameters and options for each action.

Action — Send Text Message

Parameters

Parameter	Description
Send From	Phone Number ID you want to send a message from.
Send To	WhatsApp ID or phone number you want to send a message to. For more information, see WhatsApp: Phone Numbers, Formatting.
Message	The text of the message, which can contain URLs and formatting. For usage examples, see WhatsApp: Send Text Messages.
Preview URL	Boolean value (`true` or `false`) to allow or disable URL previews in text messages. For more information, see WhatsApp: Sending URLs in Text Messages.

Action — Send Message Template

Parameters

Parameter	Description
Send From	Phone Number ID you want to send a message from.
Send To	WhatsApp ID or phone number you want to send a message to. For more information, see WhatsApp: Phone Numbers, Formatting.
Message Template	Provide the message template. For usage examples, see WhatsApp: Send Message Templates. The template expects a valid JSON object format. You can use template variables specified in the Message Template Variables section. For more information, see About connector templates.
Message Template Variables	Provide template variables as data input for the Message Template. For more information, see Connector template variables. Name nested template variables with the dot notation (Example: `items.name`). Nested template variables are typically built from data layer list attributes.