Customer messages land on the right client record, and confirmations, reminders and quote nudges go out from your system on the official WhatsApp Business Platform. No shared phone, no copy and paste.
Many customers in Malta would rather message you on WhatsApp than email or ring. The official route for a business system is the WhatsApp Business Platform, using Meta’s Cloud API. Your system receives each incoming message, files it against the right person, and can reply or send updates without anyone holding a phone.
Two rules shape what is possible. When a customer messages you, a 24-hour window opens in which you can reply with any kind of message. Outside that window you can only send message templates that Meta has approved in advance, and only to people who have agreed to hear from you. Good reminders and updates are designed around those rules, not against them. My guide to the WhatsApp Business API goes through them in more detail.
Incoming WhatsApp messages sit beside email and website enquiries on the client record, with an owner and the full history. Nobody asks “did anyone reply to that?” again. This is the heart of a custom CRM for any business that sells through chat.
A template message goes out when a slot is booked and again the day before, and a reply such as “can we move it?” comes back to a person, not a void. It pairs naturally with a booking system.
A quote sent as a PDF, a gentle nudge after a few quiet days, a note when an invoice is overdue. Each message is written once as a template, approved once, and sent by the system at the right moment.
“Your order is packed”, “we’ll be with you between ten and twelve”, “the engineer is on the way”. The status changes in the system and the customer hears about it, without a phone call from the office.
A WhatsApp button with a prefilled message that says which page or service the visitor was looking at, so the conversation arrives in the CRM already tagged with where it came from.
Who agreed to be messaged, when and how, stored against the contact. It is the unglamorous part, and it is what keeps you on the right side of Meta’s rules when you send reminders.
Your own Meta business account, a phone number and a display name. I draft the message templates with you and submit them for approval. The account is yours, in your name; I am added as a collaborator.
Your system exposes an endpoint that WhatsApp calls for each incoming message and each delivery status. Meta retries when delivery fails, so the same event can arrive twice, and the system recognises and ignores repeats.
The system knows whether the 24-hour window is open for each contact. Inside it, staff and automations can send free text. Outside it, only an approved template goes out, and only if the opt-in is on record.
Failed sends, rejected templates and quality warnings raise an alert instead of failing silently. Qabbad runs a daily health check that emails when a core loop breaks, and the same habit applies here.
I haven’t built WhatsApp appointment reminders for a named client yet. The shared inbox and the Cloud API notifications above are the same building blocks, running live elsewhere.
WhatsApp, Gmail, Messenger and Instagram arrive in one inbox, filed against the right client, in daily use.
Read the case study Local services marketplace · Live · web & iOSQabbadEvery message goes out by email, in-app, push and WhatsApp through the WhatsApp Cloud API, with 4, 24 and 72-hour nudges, bounce detection and a WhatsApp console for the team.
Read the case studyIf one or two people answer from a phone, the Business app is enough. You need the platform when messages must reach a CRM, several staff at once, or automatic reminders and updates sent by a system.
No. After a customer writes to you, you can reply freely for 24 hours. After that, only approved templates, and only to people who have opted in. The system tracks the window and the opt-in so staff are not guessing.
The quote builder puts a WhatsApp connection at roughly 17 to 30 build hours, which is under a week of work on top of the 30 to 50 hours of shared groundwork every system needs. Meta’s template approvals and account setup run alongside, and I can’t speed those up.
It can draft replies that a person approves, which is the setup I would suggest first. See AI automation for how that works. Anything sent automatically still has to follow the window and template rules.
Failed sends and webhook errors raise an alert, and incoming messages are not lost because Meta retries delivery for a while. A support plan or pay-as-you-go fix covers repairs when the platform changes.
Enquiries, clients, pipeline and follow-ups in one place, shaped to how you sell.
ServiceBooking systemsOnline booking with your rules: deposits, reminders, waitlists and calendar sync.
ServiceIntegrationsWix, Shopify, Gmail, WhatsApp, Stripe, calendars and accounts, synced both ways.
ServiceAI automation & agentsAgents that sort email, draft replies, read documents and update records, with approval.
GuideWhatsApp Business app vs APIThe WhatsApp Business app versus the Platform API: templates, the 24-hour window, opt-in and charges.
ComparisonCustom integrations vs ZapierZapier and Make for simple automations, custom integrations for critical, two-way, high-volume jobs.
Case studyStorexA storage and logistics company’s whole operation in one custom system: quotes, clients, invoicing, the warehouse and the crew in the field.
Case studyQabbadMalta’s marketplace for finding, quoting and booking local service providers, live on the web and the App Store.
IntegrationStripeCheckout, deposits, subscriptions and payment links tied to your invoices and bookings.
PageIntegrationsWhatsApp, Stripe, Xero, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Shopify, Wix and more.
The quote builder opens with WhatsApp already selected. Add the rest of your system and I reply with a fixed quote.