Using WhatsApp Business Accounts with Twilio
WhatsApp has 3 types of products:
- WhatsApp Consumer app, with over 2 billion users globally;
- WhatsApp Business app, generally used by small businesses and micro businesses; and
- WhatsApp Business Platform, previously known as the WhatsApp Business API, or WhatsApp API
Twilio offers access to the WhatsApp Business Platform. To use the WhatsApp Business Platform with Twilio's APIs, each business or brand must have a Meta Business Manager. The Meta Business Manager is used by Meta to verify the company's identity. Using the Meta Business Manager, companies can have a WhatsApp Business Account ("WABA") created. Within the WABA, businesses can register phone numbers with WhatsApp, which Twilio calls "WhatsApp Senders."
Your business designation within the WhatsApp ecosystem determines how your business appears to end users. There are two types of Business Accounts:
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| "Business Account" | By default, any account using the WhatsApp Business Platform or WhatsApp Business App is a business account. WhatsApp verifies authenticity of a brand for every account on the WhatsApp Business Platform. If the account has completed Business Verification, the name of the business is visible even if the user hasn't added the business to their address book. |
| "Official Business Account" ("OBA") | WhatsApp has performed an additional level of vetting to provide a branded profile on the WhatsApp application. Reserved for a few globally recognized enterprises, chosen at WhatsApp's discretion. An official business account is designated by WhatsApp with a green checkmark badge. |
Please note: Official business account approval is done at the sole and full discretion of WhatsApp. Generally, Meta reserves Official Business Accounts for internationally recognized brands. Being verified on Facebook or Instagram does not help your business to become an Official Business Account (OBA). OBA designations are evaluated by WhatsApp per WhatsApp Sender. This means that a company with multiple WhatsApp Senders may have some Senders that achieve OBA status, while others may not.
By default, when you create your WhatsApp Sender, your account will be a Business Account.
You can help customers learn more about your company by filling out your business information, such as your business website, address, and hours of operation. These fields can be updated in the Twilio Console.
Info
As of January 15th, 2024, WhatsApp began rolling out updates to how Business Accounts are displayed across their system. If the guidance provided below does not match your experience, then these updates have likely not been rolled out yet to your WhatsApp Sender and/or region. Twilio does not have the ability to control where your Display Name is or is not shown within the WhatsApp Consumer App.
For companies that have yet to complete Business Verification, the WhatsApp Sender's Display Name ("Perspective Coffee" in the example below) is only displayed in small text next to the phone number on the contacts view (left-hand image) for the business name. In the one-on-one chat view (right-hand image) or in the chat list view, only the phone number is displayed.