WhatsApp messaging in Dispatch Bros

Dispatch Bros can send and receive WhatsApp messages from a shared team inbox, completely separate from SMS. You connect your own Meta Business account once — through the "Connect WhatsApp" button on the WhatsApp page — and after activation your team works WhatsApp conversations with assignment, priorities, and templates. WhatsApp's core rule applies: you can reply freely within 24 hours of the customer's last message; after that, only an approved template can restart the conversation.

Before you start

• The WhatsApp Business add-on must be on your plan. Without it the page shows an upgrade prompt with a "View Plans & Add-ons" button.
• You need a Meta Business account (or you'll create one during signup) and a phone number to register with WhatsApp.
• Turn off ad blockers for the app — the connection flow loads the Facebook SDK.

Step 1 — Connect your Meta Business account

1. Open the WhatsApp page in the app (the /whatsapp route).
2. Click "Connect WhatsApp". A Facebook popup runs Meta's Embedded Signup — sign in, pick or create your business, and choose the phone number for WhatsApp.
3. The page tracks four steps under Activation Progress: "Connect Meta Business", "Register Phone Number", "Subscribe Webhooks", and "Webhook Verified". Some steps show inline buttons — "Register Number" and "Subscribe Webhooks" — when they're ready to run.
4. A status badge tracks the account overall — from "Not Started" through "Signup In Progress" to "Active". Once everything is verified, the page switches to the WhatsApp inbox automatically.

Step 2 — Work the WhatsApp inbox

• The left panel lists conversations with a search box ("Search conversations...") and three view tabs: All, Mine (assigned to you), and Unassigned.
• Each conversation can be assigned to a teammate, given a status (open, waiting, closed) and a priority (low, normal, high, urgent) — all from the thread header.
• The two icon buttons beside search open Templates (your approved WhatsApp message templates) and Automations.
• New inbound messages appear in real time, with unread counts on the rows.

Step 3 — Reply, and re-engage with templates

Within 24 hours of the customer's last message the composer is open — type and send like any chat. The thread header shows a countdown of the remaining window.

When the window expires:

• The header badge flips to "Template only" and the composer locks, reading "Reply window closed — use a template to message this customer".
• Click "Send Template" (or Templates on the locked composer) to pick an approved template — that's the only Meta-permitted way to message first or re-engage after 24 hours. Once the customer replies, the free-reply window opens again.

What your customer sees

Ordinary WhatsApp messages from your business — your verified business name and WhatsApp number, with delivery ticks as usual. They chat in their normal WhatsApp app; nothing to install.

Troubleshooting

• "Could not load the Facebook SDK. Disable any ad blockers for this site, then retry." — an ad blocker or privacy extension blocked Meta's script. Allow the site and click connect again.
• "WhatsApp setup did not complete in time. Please try again." — the signup popup was abandoned or stalled; nothing partial was saved. Restart with "Connect WhatsApp" (the button reads "Continue Setup" when a signup is mid-flight).
• "WhatsApp onboarding is not yet available" — the platform-level Meta configuration isn't finished: "Your platform administrator has not completed the Meta Business API configuration. Contact your admin for status."
• "Account Suspended" — Meta suspended your WhatsApp Business account. Contact support for help resolving it.
• A failed message won't retry — retry is only offered when it's safe (Meta never accepted the message). If the reply window closed in the meantime, use a template instead.
• Empty inbox — "No conversations yet": WhatsApp threads start when a customer messages you or you "Send a template message to start".