The WhatsApp ads trigger in Manychat allows you to send people from your Meta ads directly into a Manychat Automation on WhatsApp. By sending people from an ad directly into a WhatsApp conversation, you can qualify customers automatically, engage hot leads instantly, and guide users through your sales funnels on WhatsApp.
How to set up a campaign with the WhatsApp ads trigger
Step 1: Create a Manychat automation
The first step is to create a Manychat automation that will automatically respond to anyone who clicks on your ad. This automation can be designed to ask prequalifying questions, collect contact information such as an email address, or gather other details valuable to your business. To get started, navigate to the Automation tab and click on + New Automation:
Select User clicks a CTWA Ad as the trigger:
💡If you don’t have an ad to connect to this automation yet, you can complete the trigger setup after creating an ad. If you already have an ad, please refer to the Setting up the WhatsApp ads trigger in Manychat section to select the desired ad.
Next step, you can create the initial message within your automation, as this will be the first message customers see after interacting with your ad:
⚠️Note: A customer will only become subscribed to your Manychat account after sending you the pre-filled message:
Simply clicking the link to WhatsApp does not make them a subscribed contact.
💡 We strongly recommend adding additional messages or actions to your automation, to keep the conversation going after the initial message.
Step 2: Creating a Meta ad campaign
After creating the automation that will respond to your customers, head to the Meta Ads Manager to set up a campaign.
To get started, navigate to Meta Business Suite > Ads > Ads Manager:
Click + Create:
As you set up your campaign, make sure you choose Traffic, Engagement, Leads, or Sales as the campaign objective:
Select Manual setup to customize the campaign fully:
Step 3. Set up the ad set
When setting up the ad set section, under Conversion location, select Messaging apps and choose the WhatsApp number connected to Manychat.
Additionally, set up your budget, schedule, and audience targeting according to your requirements.
Step 4: Set up the ad
Next, move to the ad section to customize the settings based on your needs. Set the Call-to-Action button to Send WhatsApp Message.
Under Message template, create an initial message that suits your business, such as: "Hello! How can we assist you today?"
Step 5: Save the ad as a draft
Before reviewing and publishing the ad, go to Manychat and set up and publish your automation with the WhatsApp ads trigger.
Setting up the WhatsApp ads trigger in Manychat
Step 1: Connect to your ad
In the automation you’ve already created, connect the trigger to your ad campaign, you can choose between two options: connecting via the ad account or the ad ID.
To connect the trigger to your ad campaign, you can choose between two options: connecting via the ad account or the ad ID.
To connect via an ad account, make sure the Facebook account that your Manychat is connected to has access to the ad account. In that case, select the ad account name and ad from the dropdown menu:
To connect via the Ad ID, locate the ad ID number in the Ads Manager and copy the number into Manychat.
⚠️ Note! It may take up to 30 seconds for your Ad to appear in Manychat!
Step 2: Publish everything!
After creating the automation, ad campaign, and connecting the trigger, you are ready to go! Publish the Manychat automation and then set you ad campaign live and watch your new customers roll in!
💡 You can preview your ad to see how it will look to your customers:
FAQ
Can I edit the automation after the ad is live?
Yes, you can edit the automation while the ad is live. There’s no need to deactivate the ad or disable the trigger.
Are there any restrictions on ad types for the WhatsApp ads trigger?
Currently, in Ads Manager, the WhatsApp ads trigger is only available for campaigns with the objectives: Traffic, Engagement, Leads and Sales.
If you are encountering any issues with the WhatsApp ads trigger, please contact our Support Team.