CATEGORY: WhatsApp

Setting up a Meta Business Profile

Before you can connect and use WhatsApp within e-shot, you'll need a Meta Business profile. This sits on top of Meta Business Suite and acts as the central hub for your business's pages, ad accounts and messaging permissions. 

Setup takes 10–15 minutes if you're starting from scratch, or just 2–3 minutes if you already have a Facebook Business Page. 

 

What you'll need 

A personal Facebook account (Meta Business Suite doesn't offer a business-only login). 

Your business name, email address and contact details. 

A logo and cover image (optional but recommended). 

 

Create a business portfolio 

To create a business portfolio for your organisation: 

Go to business.facebook.com and log in using your Facebook profile or managed Meta account. 

Click the drop-down menu above Home in the top left. 

 

Click Create a business portfolio. 

Enter a name for the business portfolio. This should match the public name of your business or organisation because it will be visible across Meta. The name of your business portfolio cannot contain special characters. 

If you’re logged in to business.facebook.com with your Facebook profile, then you need to enter your first name and surname and your business email address. Meta will use this email address to contact you about your business. It won't be visible to anyone else. 

If you’re logged in with a managed Meta account, then you don’t need to do this. 

Click 'Create'. If you’re creating a business portfolio using your Facebook profile, then you’ll get an email asking you to confirm your business email address. 

 

After creating a business portfolio 

After you’ve created your business portfolio, you get full control of it and you can add business assets, such as: 

• A Facebook Page 

• An Instagram account 

• A WhatsApp account 

Business assets can only belong to one business portfolio. 

You can also add people in your organisation to join your business portfolio so they can also manage it via their own Facebook account. 

 

Linking a WhatsApp account 

Once logged into your Meta Business Profile, head to Settings in the bottom left, then visit WhatsApp accounts. Here you'll be able to link an existing WhatsApp account or set one up so you can connect it to e-shot and start sending WhatsApp messages out. 

You'll be able to see if any WhatsApp accounts are already linked. 

But if you need to add one for the first time or a new account, Click Add in the top right. Where you'll be prompted to either link an existing WhatsApp account or create a new one. 

For the full details on adding a WhatsApp guide to your Business Suite, please see Meta's guide here. 

 

Linking to e-shot 

Once your Meta Business profile is set up, and a WhatsApp Business account has been linked within the same portfolio, you can now connect to e-shot's and start using WhatsApp messaging. 

To connect to e-shot heading to Settings > Account settings >  Mobile preferences. 

Note: This section is only available to e-shot admin users on the e-shot Pro package and above. 

Use the Sync WhatsApp identity button where you'll be asked to login to Meta to verify you wish to link that account to e-shot. 

Once you click ‘Connect’, you’ll be asked to login to your Meta Business account and verify the connection between that and e-shot. Once complete, you’ll be returned to e-shot.  

As shown below, the chosen account to be linked will become available. 

Note: You still may need to wait some time before sending messages whilst the connection/status changes to ‘Connected’ 

Once connected, you may begin sending WhatsApp messages. For our full list of WhatsApp guides, please refer to our website.