How to set up the WhatsApp Business API: from portfolio to first campaign

Before you start

Setting up the WhatsApp Business API is mostly a set of decisions and form fields, not engineering. Most businesses finish the technical part in under an hour. What takes longer is getting the inputs right: the phone number, the business portfolio and the display name. Those three are hard to change later, so this guide spends most of its time on them.

You will need a Facebook login that can manage your business on Meta, the phone that receives the verification code, and access to a WhatsApp platform. The steps below use Broadchat's panel; on another provider the names differ, but Meta's part of the flow is the same.

Step 1: choose the phone number

The number you connect becomes the identity of your business on WhatsApp. Customers save it, your ads link to it and your templates are tied to it. Choose deliberately:

• A new or spare number is the simplest choice. Nothing needs to move, and you can test without affecting customers.
• Your existing WhatsApp Business app number keeps the number customers know. You can delete the WhatsApp account on it in the app and then register it on the platform, but chat history in the app does not move across. In supported markets, Meta's coexistence option lets you keep using the Business app on the same number while also connecting it to the platform, with contacts and recent one-to-one chats synced.
• A landline or toll-free number works if it can receive a voice call for the code.

Step 2: prepare your Meta business portfolio

Every WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) belongs to a Meta business portfolio, the container Meta formerly called Business Manager. If your company already runs Facebook or Instagram ads, you probably have one. Check three things in Meta Business Settings:

1. The portfolio carries your real legal business name, address and website.
2. Your Facebook login has full control (admin) of the portfolio.
3. The website listed is live and shows the same business name, which helps later with verification.

If you do not have a portfolio, you can create one inside the signup window in step 4. Use your registered business details from the start; changing them later can trigger a new review.

Step 3: pick a display name Meta will approve

The display name is what customers see at the top of the chat. Meta reviews it after the number is connected, and messages are restricted until it is approved. Names are approved when they clearly represent the business:

Keep normal capitalisation, avoid generic keywords and promotional phrases, and make sure the name appears on your website or other public material. If you sell under a brand that differs from your legal name, the connection should be easy to see, for example on your website's footer or about page.

Step 4: connect through Embedded Signup

Embedded Signup is Meta's guided window that creates the WhatsApp Business Account, registers the number and links it to your provider in one flow. In Broadchat:

1. Open Channels → All Channels and click + Add New Channel.
2. On the WhatsApp card, choose the currency of this channel's messaging wallet (for example INR).
3. In the Meta window, click Continue with Facebook and log in.
4. Choose your business portfolio or create one, then create or choose a WhatsApp Business Account.
5. Enter the phone number and display name, and verify the number with the SMS or voice code.
6. When you see Channel Connected Successfully, open the channel.

If the window closes before you finish, start again with Try Again. If your browser blocks pop-ups, allow them for your panel's address first. The help article on connecting a number shows the same steps with screenshots of each field.

Step 5: start business verification

Business verification proves to Meta that your portfolio belongs to a real business. It is not required to begin, but new and unverified businesses start with a low messaging limit, and verification is one of the conditions for moving to higher tiers. Start it on day one, because document review can take days:

• Submit the legal name and address exactly as they appear on your documents.
• Use documents Meta accepts for India, such as a certificate of incorporation, GST registration certificate or a utility bill in the business's name.
• Keep the website and email domain consistent with the business name.

Meta sets messaging limits at the business portfolio level, shared by all numbers in that portfolio. Our guide to quality rating and messaging limits explains how the tiers rise.

Step 6: recharge the messaging wallet

Meta charges per delivered template message, by category and the recipient's country. Since 1 October 2026, service messages (replies inside the 24-hour customer service window) are free up to 1,000 per phone number a month and charged after that, and utility templates are charged even inside the window. For India, Meta's rate card effective 1 Oct 2026 lists ₹0.8631 per delivered marketing message and ₹0.115 per utility or authentication message, excluding GST. In Broadchat these charges are paid from the channel's conversation wallet, separate from the main wallet that pays for your plan. Recharge it before you send templates, from the channel menu or from Workspace → Billing. See how WhatsApp API pricing works for the model and the recharge help article for the steps.

Step 7: get a template approved and test it

Your first template should be a simple utility message you will actually use, such as an order confirmation or appointment reminder. Utility templates are factual and tend to pass review quickly when they are specific.

1. Open CRM → WhatsApp Templates and click Create Template.
2. Name it in lowercase with underscores, for example appointment_reminder, choose Utility and the language.
3. Write a specific body with one or two variables and realistic samples ("Priya", "14 Oct, 11:30 am").
4. Submit it and click Sync Templates to refresh the status.
5. Once approved, send it to your own phone first, then to a small group of customers who opted in.

The order update templates and the message template definition give you wording that follows Meta's rules.

After launch: the first two weeks

A new number earns trust gradually. For the first couple of weeks, send only messages customers clearly expect: replies, order and booking updates, and messages to your most engaged opted-in contacts. Watch the quality rating on the channel card. Add your team to the inbox, set up a simple chatbot for common questions, and leave broad marketing campaigns until the number has a few weeks of good history.