WhatsApp FAQsUpdated 18 days ago

Is WhatsApp free for Gorgias customers?

All Gorgias customers can add WhatsApp as a new channel to their helpdesk for free. WhatsApp tickets are that you reply to from your helpdesk are counted as billable tickets and counted toward your ticket usage.

Usage costs are incurred through WhatsApp, but Gorgias is paying for them right now. As we add new features, we will reassess this decision. If we do decide to pass these costs off to our customers, we will provide ample warning.

Can I use the same phone number on multiple WhatsApp tools?

No - you can't have one number on the native WhatsApp app/another tool and in Gorgias simultaneously as WhatsApp only allows a number to be on a single WhatsApp account. If your number is integrated with WhatsApp via Gorgias, you can only use that number in Gorgias.

If your number is being used on the WhatsApp Business app, you'd need to remove it from the account that it's being used on before you'd be able to integrate it with Gorgias.

Can I integrate a phone number that I've used for a different WhatsApp Business account?

Yes - depending on what WhatsApp tool your number is hosted on, you can use one of two methods to migrate, but you'll lose all previous conversation history and groups you might have joined on your old WhatsApp Business Account.

WhatsApp/WhatsApp Business App

To integrate a phone number used on the mobile or desktop app, you must delete the number from the account using the following steps:

1. Open the WhatsApp app/WhatsApp Business app. 

2. Navigate to Settings -> Account.

3. Select Delete My Account.

4. Follow the steps described to delete your WhatsApp account.

It may take up to 3 minutes for the disconnected number to become available and, once the number has become available, you can undergo the standard WhatsApp onboarding.

3rd-party WhatsApp integration (Zendesk's WhatsApp integration, 360dialog, Twilio, etc.)

For numbers that have been used in different 3rd-party WhatsApp integrations, we suggest migrating your existing account through our WhatsApp migration wizard.

Migrating your account will ensure that you retain the following information from your old account:

• Display name
• Quality rating
• Messaging limits
• Official Business Account status
• Any high-quality messaging templates previously approved by WhatsApp

The following information will not be migrated:

• Messaging and Chat history
• Low quality, rejected, or pending Message Templates

To migrate your existing phone number, visit the WhatsApp integration page in Gorgias and select the Migrate From Another Provider button which will open a Migration Wizard to guide you step-by-step through the migration process.

You can also integrate WhatsApp phone numbers on a 3rd-party platform by deleting them from your WhatsApp Business Manager profile, though you'll lose all associated WhatsApp Templates, your Verification Tick (if you have one), and your quality rating/messaging limits.

What is the 24-hour customer service window for messaging on WhatsApp?

Whenever a customer messages you on WhatsApp, a 24-hour timer called a customer service window starts (or refreshes if the window has previously started). During the customer service window, you can send unlimited messages to your customer on WhatsApp.

Outside the customer service window, you can only start a conversation with a customer by using template messages. To refresh the 24-hour service window, the customer must respond to a templated message or send you another message.

The 24-hour window is part of Meta’s WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy to ensure quality conversations, protect users from spam, and to encourage timely responses from businesses.

Can I use a Rule to extend WhatsApp's 24-hour customer service window?

You can create a Rule to encourage customers to reply and keep the customer service window open, but the window will still close if they don't respond to your nudge.

You can create a Rule in Gorgias to send a WhatsApp reply to a customer after a duration of time has passed:

• When ticket is updated
• If message integration is [your WhatsApp number]
• And date of last received message is more than [# of hours]
• And ticket status is open
• And ticket tags contain WA-waiting-for-reply
• Then reply to customer with “Hey there, please send us a follow-up message to keep this ticket open”

Can I send and receive voice messages via WhatsApp in Gorgias?

You'll be able to receive voice messages in Gorgias, but the only way to send a voice message is to attach an audio file in the ticket - there's no option to record it directly from the ticket and your customers will have to download it so they can listen to it.

What kind of files or media can I send via WhatsApp in Gorgias?

Since WhatsApp itself doesn't support sending GIFs and supports animated WEBP files instead, we allow the sending of WEBP files via WhatsApp.

Here's a list of the currently supported file types:

• .webp files must not be heavier than 500KB for animated images and 100KB for static ones.
• .webp files must have dimensions of 512x512 pixels, regardless the their type (static/animated).
• Audio/mp4
• Audio/mpeg
• Audio/amr
• Audio/ogg
• Audio/opus
• Application/vnd.ms-powerpoint
• Application/msword
• Application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
• Application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.presentationml.presentation
• Application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet
• Application/pdf
• Application/vnd.ms-excel
• Text/plain
• Image/jpeg
• Image/png
• Image/webp
• Video/mp4
• Video/3gpp

Can I make and receive calls from WhatsApp in Gorgias?

Not at the moment.

Can I respond to WhatsApp Tickets from the Gorgias Mobile App?

Not at the moment.

Country-based limitations

WhatsApp businesses registered in Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and three sanctioned regions in Ukraine (Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk) aren't eligible to use the WhatsApp Business Platform. 

Additionally, WhatsApp Messenger (WhatsApp) and WhatsApp Business app users in those locations aren't eligible to receive messages.

Businesses in Turkey can use the platform, but app users in Turkey can't receive messages.