WhatsApp chatbot
A WhatsApp chatbot is software that automatically converses with users inside WhatsApp, answering questions and guiding flows such as bookings, orders or first-level support. It can be rule-based, with menus and keywords, or powered by generative artificial intelligence. On the Business API it operates by receiving messages via webhook and replying in real time within the customer service window.
Rule-based chatbots follow predefined paths: numbered menus, interactive buttons, option lists. They are predictable but rigid: off the path, they don't understand. Generative AI chatbots understand natural language, draw on a company knowledge base and produce free-form answers, handling even questions nobody anticipated. The two approaches are often combined: structured flows for critical processes, AI for open questions.
Platform rules apply to bots too: free-form replies are only allowed within the 24-hour window, and Meta's policies require that the user can always ask for a human agent. Typical evaluation metrics: percentage of conversations resolved without an agent, first response time, escalation rate. A poorly trained bot that triggers blocks and reports damages the number's quality rating.
In SendApp, the chatbot is an AI agent trainable on your company's content, active on chats around the clock with instant handover to a human agent; it works on Agent, Cloud and Official.
Frequently asked questions
From theory to practice
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