3CX welcomes WhatsApp integration
We’ve moved a long way from customers only being able to communicate via email and phone. In fact, if that’s how you still work then you’re unintentionally creating a barrier: times have changed, and so have the ways people want to get in touch.
It’s safe to say that WhatsApp has become the dominant force. In November 2022, Statista published this astonishing statement: “Some 80 per cent of respondents answered the question ‘Which instant messenger or video call services do you use regularly?’ with ‘WhatsApp’.”
So it isn’t so much a case of “be there or be square” as
“be on WhatsApp or ignore your customers”.
Singular customer view
If you’re already familiar with the 3CX Live Chat service, based around a free WordPress plugin, then the WhatsApp integration will need little introduction. Besides a live chat bubble, customers are offered their communication tool of choice: this can be a straightforward text-based chat, via integrated Facebook messages or a voice or video call (using the free WebRTC standard). And now they can also chat via WhatsApp.
When someone sends your team a message, any team member can respond using 3CX – and the answer will appear in the customer’s preferred medium. So, as a Facebook message, live chat text or WhatsApp. All for free, both for you and them.
At any point, it’s easy to convert the text communication into voice, if the customer is happy to do so – often that’s the best way to resolve a query, after all.
The 3CX difference
Of course, it wouldn’t be very helpful if you were forced to add a WhatsApp channel to your comms tool, as that would require extra monitoring and management. That’s why 3CX takes the pain away with one central system for calls, Live Chat, WhatsApp and Facebook – the 3CX Web Client.
This means that your team of agents can answer, transfer and resolve customer queries from one platform. There’s no need for your staff to switch between apps, plus you get a central record of all your chat conversations.
In fact, it goes further thanks to integration with your CRM software of choice. That includes Freshdesk, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, Microsoft 365, HubSpot, Zendesk and many more (including REST-enabled systems).
The 3CX tool includes automatic WhatsApp message assignment. That means you can send your WhatsApp messages to a group of agents to share the load, with the chat assigned to the first agent that responds. You can track response times with SLA timers and run reports to track SLAs, reply times and agent performance.
Free forever
If this is all starting to sound expensive, then fear not. 3CX is trusted by over 600,000 companies, and while that includes some of the biggest businesses around it’s tailored to the needs of small businesses, too. Indeed, if you’re a small business of up to ten users then you can get 3CX for free. Forever. And that includes WhatsApp integration!
If you need more features (such as call and chat reporting) then you might be better served by StartUP PRO, which costs £175 per year for ten users. And if your team is larger than ten then one of the other equally affordable options may be right for you: take a look at
As has always been the way with 3CX, even if you’re a bigger business then you can try 3CX risk-free by visiting
and signing up. No upfront payment or credit card required! www.3cx.com/ordering/pricing. www.3cx.com
How to set up WhatsApp
So, let’s assume you have a 3CX account.
You now only need one thing to integrate WhatsApp: a WhatsApp Business account. Find out everything you need at
business.whatsapp.com, but if you’re a small business then setting this up is as simple as downloading the WhatsApp Business App and following the instructions.
With your WhatsApp Business account in place, you can then follow the clear step-by-step instructions found at