JikūConnect your WhatsApp number
Send your invitations and reminders from your own number, for free, with the steps on Meta's side.
By default, your WhatsApp messages go out from Jikū's number. You can connect your own WhatsApp Business number instead: your guests and clients see your name, reply to you directly, and your contacts stay yours.
It is free in every plan, the free plan included. Jikū charges nothing to connect it. Meta bills you directly for the messages sent from your number, at its own rates.
Before you start
Have ready:
- a phone number that can receive a text or a call, for Meta's confirmation code;
- a Facebook account to sign in to Meta;
- a bank card you can save with Meta (Visa or Mastercard, a prepaid card accepted for online payments included);
- your organization's name as your contacts should see it;
- for the business verification: your company registration (RCCM), a tax document and a proof of address in the organization's name.
Is the number already on WhatsApp?
A number already used in the WhatsApp app cannot always be connected as it is. In some countries, Meta offers to keep it in the WhatsApp Business app as well; otherwise, the number's WhatsApp account has to be deleted in the app first. The simplest is a number dedicated to your organization.
Open the Meta window from Jikū
In Settings, under Messages, open Messaging providers. In Your WhatsApp number, tap Connect my WhatsApp number. A Meta window opens.
Create or pick your Meta accounts
In the Meta window, sign in with Facebook, then pick or create:
- your Meta business portfolio (formerly Business Manager);
- your WhatsApp Business account;
- your number's display name: the one your contacts will see. Meta reviews it, usually within a day or two; it must match your organization's name.
Confirm your number
Enter your number, then the code received by text or call. Finish the window: back in Jikū, your number shows as Connected.
Jikū then sets up the rest for you: it receives your guests' replies and creates in your account the message templates it uses (invitation, ticket, reminder). Meta reviews each template before accepting it.
Add a payment method at Meta
In Meta Business Suite, open your WhatsApp Business account's settings, Billing & payments section, and add your card. Without a valid payment method, Meta refuses your messages: Jikū says so in the message status, and sending resumes as soon as the card is added.
Have Meta verify your business
In Meta Business Suite, open the Security Center and tap Start verification. Meta asks for the legal name, address, a phone number and a website or email address in your name, then your documents (company registration, tax document, proof of address). The answer takes from a few days to two weeks.
This is Meta's verification. It is separate from your organization's Verification in Jikū (Settings, under Payments), which is still required before you take payments.
Send a test message
Back in Your WhatsApp number, use Send a test message with your own phone number in international format, for example +224620000000. The message should arrive from your number, with your name.
What changes once connected
- Your messages go out from your number, with your name and your WhatsApp Business profile picture.
- Meta bills you for your messages: invitations, tickets and reminders. Appointment reminders sent from your number no longer count against your plan's reminder limit.
- The Jikū number's limit no longer applies to you. Your number has its own limits at Meta: until the business is verified, Meta caps the messages you start at about 250 different people per 24 hours; after verification, the limit rises step by step as long as your messages keep a good quality rating.
- Keep a good quality rating: send informational messages, to people who know you. The guide Writing a WhatsApp message that goes through explains how.
If something gets stuck
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| The Meta window does not open | Allow pop-ups for Jikū, check your connection and try again. |
| "This number is already connected to another organization." | A number serves one organization in Jikū. Disconnect it from the other organization, or use another number. |
| "Meta refused the connection." | Start again from Connect my WhatsApp number and finish the Meta window. |
| A message mentions a payment method problem | Add or replace the card in Meta Business Suite; sending resumes. |
| The display name is rejected | Change it in Meta Business Suite so it matches your organization's name. |
Go back to Jikū's number
In Your WhatsApp number, tap Disconnect. Your messages go out from Jikū's number again right away. Your WhatsApp Business account stays yours at Meta.
Rather not use the Meta window?
Enter my credentials manually lets you enter the access token and the number ID of a Meta app you already run. For teams that have already set up the WhatsApp Business API.