Your A-Z glossary for key terms and definitions in
WhatsApp Business API Platform
To fully leverage your WhatsApp Business API Account, it’s vital to comprehend key terms. This glossary acts as your comprehensive resource, explaining prevalent concepts within the WhatsApp Business Platform.
Each term is succinctly defined. Whether you’re refreshing your understanding of the latest WhatsApp business terminology or gaining deeper insight into the defining features of your WhatsApp Business API Platform, we’re here to guide you!
A
Active – Quality pending: The message template has yet to receive quality feedback from customers. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers.
Active – High Quality: The template has received little to no negative customer feedback. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers.
Active – Medium Quality: The template has received negative feedback from multiple customers but may soon become paused or disabled. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers.
Active – Low Quality: The template has received negative feedback from multiple customers. Message templates with this status can be sent to customers but are in danger of being paused or disabled soon, so we recommend that you address the issues that customers are reporting.
C
Customer Chat Plugin: A feature that allows businesses to add a WhatsApp chat button to their website or app, allowing customers to start a chat session directly from the website or app.
D
Discovery: The process by which customers can find and contact businesses on WhatsApp.
E
Embedded Signup: WhatsApp Embedded signup is a way for Business Solution Providers (BSPs) to let businesses onboard to the WhatsApp Business Platform directly from their website. It can be used to onboard customers to the WhatsApp Business Platform Cloud API or the WhatsApp Business Platform On-Premises API.
Encryption Key: A unique key used to encrypt and decrypt messages sent and received on WhatsApp.
End-to-End Encryption: A security feature in WhatsApp that ensures messages are only visible to the sender and recipient.
F
Facebook App ID: A unique identifier that businesses use to authenticate and authorize access to the Cloud API.
Facebook Business Manager: A tool used to manage and organize a business’s Facebook and Instagram accounts, as well as its WhatsApp Business Account.
Forwarding Limit: A limit on the number of times a message can be forwarded on WhatsApp to help prevent the spread of misinformation.
Free Entry Points Conversations: Conversations are not charged when users message businesses using call-to-actions buttons in Ads that Click to WhatsApp or Facebook Page call-to-action buttons on devices running Android or iOS. Free entry point conversations last 72 hours and can only be user-initiated.
Free Tier Conversations: The first 1,000 conversations each month are free. This way your business can build experiences your customers will love before having to pay. Each WhatsApp Business account (WABA) will receive 1,000 free conversations per month. These conversations can be either user or business-initiated. Even if a WABA has multiple numbers attached, the free tier threshold is still 1000, as the free tier is provided at the WABA level. The free tier is refreshed monthly, based on the timezone associated with the WABA.
G
Graph API: The Graph API is the primary way to get data into and out of the Facebook platform. It’s an HTTP-based API that apps can use to programmatically query data, post new stories, manage ads, upload photos, and perform a wide variety of other tasks.
H
High Availability: A system design that ensures the WhatsApp Business API is always available and operational.
HSM (Highly Structured Message): A message format used for sending pre-approved message templates to customers outside the 24-hour customer service window.
I
Interactive Buttons: A feature that allows businesses to include interactive buttons in their messages, allowing customers to take actions such as making a purchase or scheduling an appointment.
Invoice Message: A type of message template that allows businesses to send customers an invoice for a product or service.
Interactive Message Templates: WhatsApp Interactive message templates expand the content you can send recipients beyond the standard message template and media messages template types to include interactive buttons using the components object. There are two types of predefined buttons:
Call-to-Action — Allows your customer to call a phone number and visit a website
Quick Reply — Allows your customer to return a simple text message
L
Labels: A feature that allows businesses to organize and filter customer chats based on specific criteria.
Linked Devices: The feature that allows businesses to use the same WhatsApp Business Account on multiple devices.
N
Number Masking: A feature that allows businesses to keep their phone number private by masking it with a different number when communicating with customers on WhatsApp.
P
Payment: A feature that allows businesses to receive payments from customers through WhatsApp.
Q
Quick Replies: A feature that allows businesses to save and reuse frequently used messages as quick replies for faster customer service.
R
REST API Documentation: The documentation that outlines the technical details and instructions for using the WhatsApp Business API’s REST API.
REST API: A software interface that allows applications to communicate with each other over the internet.
Resumable Upload API: The Resumable Upload API allows you to upload large files to the Graph API and resume interrupted upload sessions without having to start over. Once uploaded, you can use an uploaded file’s handle with other Graph API endpoints that support them.
S
Security Notifications: Alerts sent to businesses when changes are made to their WhatsApp Business Account, such as when a new user is added or when a phone number is changed.
T
Two-Factor Authentication – 2FA: A security feature that requires customers to provide two forms of identification (such as a password and a code sent to their phone) to access their WhatsApp account.
U
User Data: The information that businesses collect from customers when they interact with them on WhatsApp.
URL Message: A type of message template that allows businesses to send customers a clickable link to a website or app.
V
Verified Badge: A green checkmark badge that appears next to a WhatsApp Business Account’s name to indicate that it has been verified by WhatsApp as belonging to a legitimate business.
W
WhatsApp Authentication conversations – Enable businesses to authenticate users with one-time passcodes, potentially at multiple steps in the login process (e.g., account verification, account recovery, integrity challenges)
WhatsApp Account Migration: A process by which a WhatsApp Business Account can be transferred from one WhatsApp Business Solution Provider (BSP) to another.
WhatsApp Auto-reply: A feature that allows businesses to automatically respond to customers’ messages with a predefined message or message template.
WhatsApp Business Account: An account that businesses can set up on WhatsApp to provide customers with information about their business, such as their address, email, website, and business description or an account created by a business that allows them to communicate with customers on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Business API: The WhatsApp Business API allows medium and large businesses to communicate with their customers at scale. Using the WhatsApp API, businesses can build systems that connect thousands of customers with agents or bots, enabling both programmatic and manual communication. Additionally, you can integrate the API with numerous backend systems, such as CRM and marketing platforms.
WhatsApp Business API Authentication: The process by which businesses authenticate and authorize access to the WhatsApp Business API, using their Facebook App ID and API key.
WhatsApp Business API Client: The software application that connects a business’s systems and workflows to the WhatsApp Business API.
WhatsApp Business API Integration: The process by which businesses integrate their systems and workflows with the WhatsApp Business API.
WhatsApp Business API Key: A unique identifier that businesses use to authenticate and authorize access to the WhatsApp Business API.
WhatsApp Business API Pricing: The pricing structure for using the WhatsApp Business API, including a fee for each message sent or received, as well as a fee for using certain features such as message templates.
WhatsApp Business Display Name: The WhatsApp Business display name is your business name that customers see on your WhatsApp Business profile. Display names should be related to your business and must not violate WhatsApp Commerce and Business policies.
WhatsApp Broadcast List: A feature that allows businesses to send a message to multiple customers at once who have opted-in to receive messages from the business.
WhatsApp Business Management: The WhatsApp business management permission allows your app to read and/or manage WhatsApp business assets you own or have been granted access to by other businesses through this permission. These business assets include WhatsApp business accounts, phone numbers, message templates, QR codes and their associated messages, and webhook subscriptions.
WhatsApp Business Management API: The WhatsApp Business Management API allows you to programmatically manage your WhatsApp Business Account assets, such as message templates and phone numbers.
WhatsApp Business Platform: The WhatsApp Business Platform gives medium to large businesses the ability to connect with customers at scale. You can start conversations with customers in minutes, send customer care notifications or purchase updates, offer your customers a level of personalized service and provide support in the channel that your customers prefer to be reached on.
WhatsApp Business Solution Provider (BSP): A third-party provider that helps businesses set up and use the WhatsApp Business API.
WhatsApp Business Terms of Service: The terms and conditions that businesses must agree to when using the WhatsApp Business API.
WhatsApp Catalog: A feature that allows businesses to showcase and share their products and services with customers on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Cloud API: A suite of APIs provided by Facebook that enables businesses to programmatically send and receive messages on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Conversation-Based Pricing: Businesses using the WhatsApp Business Platform will be charged per 24-hour conversation, with different rates by conversation category. Today’s business-initiated conversations will be split into three new categories: utility, authentication and marketing. Today’s user-initiated conversations will be called service conversations.
WhatsApp Data Retention: The amount of time WhatsApp Business API stores data for regulatory compliance and business purposes.
WhatsApp Groups: A feature that allows businesses to create groups of customers to broadcast messages to.
WhatsApp In-Review: Indicates that the template is still under review. Review can take up to 24 hours.
WhatsApp Integration: The process of connecting the WhatsApp Business API to a business’s existing systems and workflows.
WhatsApp Marketing conversations – Include promotions or offers, informational updates, or invitations for customers to respond / take action. Any conversation that does not qualify as utility or authentication is a marketing conversation.
WhatsApp Message Tag: A way for businesses to send non-promotional messages to customers outside of the 24-hour customer service window.
WhatsApp Message Templates: A message template (Pre-approved message format) is required for any business-initiated messages sent using the WhatsApp Business Platform. These templates can be created using the Business Management API or the WhatsApp Business Manager.
WhatsApp Message Templates Directory: A directory provided by Facebook (Meta) that lists all available HSM (Highly Structured Message) templates for businesses to use.
WhatsApp Message Template Types: You can send the following message types using the WhatsApp Business platform:
Text messages
Media messages: image, video, audio, document, and sticker messages.
Contact messages
Location messages
Interactive messages: List messages, Reply button messages, and Single and Multi Product Messages.
Template messages
WhatsApp Media Message: A message format that allows businesses to send photos, videos, and other media files to customers on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Notifications: Automated messages that are sent to customers to inform them about events or updates related to their interactions with a business on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp On-Premises API: Businesses can host the WhatsApp On-Premises API on their own servers.
WhatsApp Opt-In: The process by which customers provide consent for a business to message them on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Opt-Out: The process by which customers can choose to stop receiving messages from a business on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Phone Numbers: A WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) needs a valid phone number that is dedicated to using with the WhatsApp Business Platform. This guide explains how to select a phone number, add it to your account, and how to delete a phone number from your account.
WhatsApp Phone Number Verification: A process that businesses must complete to verify that they are the rightful owner of a phone number before they can use it with the WhatsApp Business API.
WhatsApp QR Codes: A feature that allows businesses to generate QR codes that customers can scan to start a WhatsApp chat with the business.
WhatsApp Sandbox: A testing environment provided by Facebook where businesses can develop and test their integration with the WhatsApp Business API.
WhatsApp Service Conversations – all user-initiated conversations will be categorized as service conversations, which help customers resolve enquiries.
WhatsApp Session Message: A message sent to a customer within the 24-hour customer service window.
WhatsApp Template Disabled: The template has been disabled due to recurring negative feedback from customers. Message templates with this status cannot be sent to customers.
WhatsApp Template Rejected: The template has been rejected during our review process or violates one or more of our policies.
WhatsApp Template Paused: The template has been paused due to recurring negative feedback from customers. Message templates with this status cannot be sent to customers.
WhatsApp Template Quality Rating: Every message template has a quality rating based on usage and customer feedback. A message template’s rating will appear in the WhatsApp Manager whenever it has an Active status, and will displayed after a hyphen in the message template’s status:
- Active – Quality pending (highlighted in green)
- Active – High quality (highlighted in green)
- Active – Medium quality (highlighted in yellow)
- Active – Low quality (highlighted in red)
WhatsApp Utility conversations – Facilitate a specific, agreed-upon request or transaction or update to a customer about an ongoing transaction, including post-purchase notifications and recurring billing statements
WhatsApp Verified Business Account: A WhatsApp Business Account that has been verified by WhatsApp as belonging to a legitimate business.
WhatsApp Web Business Tool: A web-based tool provided by Facebook that allows businesses to manage their WhatsApp Business Account, including sending and receiving messages, setting up automated messages, and managing their business profile.
WhatsApp Webhooks: Webhooks allows you to receive real-time HTTP notifications of changes to specific objects. For example, we could send you a notification when a user sends you a message or when a message template’s status has changed. This prevents you from having to query our APIs for changes to objects that may or may not have happened, and helps you avoid reaching your rate limit.