Connect your WhatsApp Business number to JollyBee

Open your community's Admin → Communications → Settings, then find WhatsApp (Meta Cloud API). This is where you connect the number that customers will message. Choosing an AI model is a separate step in Set up the WhatsApp AI assistant.

The connection options depend on which features are available for your community. If Connect with Meta is enabled, follow the guided connection below. If the button is missing or disabled, JollyBee's platform signup setup is not available on that screen; ask support to confirm the connection options. If you see only Provider, Phone number ID, WABA ID and Access token, use the manual connection section with JollyBee support.

Before you start

You need access to the correct Meta business portfolio, its WhatsApp Business Account (often called a WABA), and the business phone number you want to connect. Sign in to Meta using a person who is allowed to manage those assets and grant access. Keep access to the phone for any verification Meta requests.

Decide which number you are connecting:

• An existing WhatsApp Business app number: use the guided option for the Business app when available. Meta decides whether that number is eligible to remain connected to the app while also using JollyBee. This is called coexistence. Do not delete the WhatsApp account or deregister a working number to experiment; ask JollyBee support to confirm the supported connection route first.
• An existing Cloud API number: choose the existing business account and number. If another provider manages it, ask support to check access and any migration requirements before changing that service.
• JollyBee's shared platform number: this is a separate sending option. The community AI assistant requires your own verified WhatsApp number.

Keep the business's payment method and billing details current in Meta. Applicable WhatsApp charges remain with your Meta business account; JollyBee wallet charges are explained below. See Meta's Cloud API overview for the account components.

Connect with Meta when the button is enabled

1. Open Admin → Communications → Settings → WhatsApp (Meta Cloud API).
2. Leave I already use this number in the WhatsApp Business app selected if you use that app. Clear it for an existing Cloud API account.
3. Select Connect with Meta and sign in to the Meta account that can manage your business.
4. Select the correct business portfolio, WhatsApp Business Account and phone number. Review the access requested for JollyBee and complete Meta's verification or Business app prompts.
5. Return to JollyBee and wait for WhatsApp connected and verified. Check the displayed business name and number before continuing.
6. Send a new test message from a different WhatsApp number and confirm it appears in Admin → Communications → Inbox.

JollyBee checks that the selected phone belongs to the account and subscribes the account to its incoming-message integration. Completing a Meta popup without the success message in JollyBee is not confirmation that the connection finished.

If the window is blocked or does not load, allow the Meta sign-in popup for JollyBee, check browser privacy settings and try again. If Meta does not offer your existing Business app number, stop and ask support to check eligibility rather than removing the number from the app.

Connect using the manual fields

The older form labels the provider Bring your own number; the verified form labels it Your own WhatsApp Business number. Both refer to a community-owned number.

Manual connection needs credentials issued for JollyBee's Meta app, with access to your business account and permission to manage WhatsApp and send messages. Ask JollyBee support to arrange or confirm these credentials. Creating an unrelated Meta developer app and copying its token will not establish JollyBee's verified connection.

1. Ask support to confirm that your number is activated for Cloud API, which WhatsApp Business Account owns it, and how to obtain the approved access token securely.
2. Select Bring your own number or Your own WhatsApp Business number in Provider.
3. Enter Phone number ID. This is Meta's numeric identifier for the number, not the number customers dial. For example, a phone beginning with +27 still has a separate Phone number ID. Find the identifier in the number's WhatsApp Manager details or the approved app's WhatsApp API setup, if your role provides access.
4. Enter WABA ID or WhatsApp Business Account ID. This is the numeric identifier of the WhatsApp Business Account, not the business portfolio ID. Find the selected account in Meta business settings under WhatsApp accounts. Although the older form says optional, the verified connection requires it so JollyBee can check that the phone belongs to that account.
5. Paste the approved credential into Access token, then select Save. An access token authorizes API access; it is not a phone verification code, password or webhook verify token.
6. On the verified form, check the connected business name and phone number. On the older form, ask support to confirm verification and incoming-message setup; a saved form alone does not prove that Meta can deliver messages to JollyBee.
7. Send a fresh message from another WhatsApp number and check Communications → Inbox.

Treat the access token as a secret. Enter it only in the connection form or the secure process arranged by JollyBee support; exclude it from screenshots and ordinary support messages. Ask for a production credential rather than relying on a short-lived test token. Meta credentials can expire or be revoked, so contact support if a previously working connection loses access.

Do I need to set up a webhook?

A webhook is how Meta sends incoming messages and delivery updates to JollyBee. JollyBee maintains the webhook for its Meta app. Community owners grant access to their WhatsApp account; they do not need to host a webhook or create a separate webhook for each AI model.

For a support-assisted setup, JollyBee's callback URL is https://jollybee.buzz/api/inbound/whatsapp. The team managing JollyBee's Meta app verifies this callback, configures the required message subscriptions and confirms that your WABA is subscribed to that app. If you keep using the WhatsApp Business app through coexistence, ask the team to confirm that replies sent from that app are also reaching JollyBee before relying on automatic handoff.

The webhook verify token is a setup secret managed by JollyBee. It is different from the Access token in your connection form. You do not need JollyBee's app secret or verify token, and you should not paste an access token into Meta's webhook verification field.

JollyBee uses the receiving business number to identify the connected community; your customer's phone number does not choose the community. Use your own connected number for community-specific incoming conversations and AI settings. Shared-number messages need central handling and cannot be assumed to belong to your community; ask support about attribution before using a shared number for replies.

The practical check is simple: send a new message to the connected business number and confirm that it arrives in the correct community's Inbox. If outgoing messages work but incoming messages do not appear, ask support to check the callback, account subscription and connected Phone number ID. Include your community name, the test time and the visible error, with all credentials hidden.

Understand messaging and charges

Customers can message the connected number to ask questions. Meta allows ordinary free-text replies within the 24-hour customer-service window following the customer's latest message. Starting or continuing business messages outside that window requires the appropriate approved template. Connecting a number or enabling AI does not remove Meta's template, consent or messaging requirements. See Meta's messaging policy and the JollyBee template guide.

There are separate costs to track:

• Meta charges: Meta bills your business for applicable WhatsApp messages according to its current pricing. Check the category and market rates in Meta's pricing guide.
• JollyBee message fee: the WhatsApp AI assistant screen shows the service fee for each successful AI reply and the currency used by your message wallet.
• AI usage: the separate USD AI wallet pays for model usage at twice the provider's token cost. See AI setup and billing.

Fix a connection problem

• The Integrations shortcut returns 404: open Admin → Communications → Settings directly and find WhatsApp there. Report the broken shortcut to support; it does not mean your WhatsApp account was removed.
• Connect with Meta is missing or disabled: guided signup depends on JollyBee's platform setup. Ask support to confirm its availability or arrange the supported manual connection; creating a different Meta app will not enable signup in JollyBee.
• Account or permission error: check that your Meta login manages the chosen account and that the phone belongs to that WABA. Ask support to confirm the token was issued for JollyBee's app with the required access.
• Number already connected elsewhere: ask support to review the existing connection before moving or reusing it.
• Saved, but no incoming messages: test from another phone, then ask support to check the webhook and account subscription.
• Messages reach Inbox, but there is no AI reply: the number connection is working. Continue with the assistant, wallet and handoff checks in Set up the WhatsApp AI assistant.