How to connect Whatsapp catalogue with Botsailor

Creating and utilizing a product catalog on BotSailor enables businesses to showcase products directly within WhatsApp chats, streamlining the shopping experience for customers. This guide provides a step-by-step walkthrough to set up and integrate your product catalog using BotSailor.

🛒 Step 1: Create a WhatsApp Product Catalog

Begin by setting up your product catalog through Facebook's Commerce Manager:

Navigate to business.facebook.com.
Access the Hamburger Icone menu and select Commerce Manager.

3.Click Add Catalog, click Continue, and follow the prompts to name and create your catalog.

4. Enter a catalogue name (Ex. “Please enter Your Catalog Name”) selecting the business portfolio; Connect to a platform (Woocommerce or Shopify: Optional)

5. Skip the next prompts (Connect to Event Tracking).

6. Make sure to give permissions for Product sets for ads & Full Control and click on next.

7. Select Manually Add Your Products and click on Next.

8. Once created, click View Catalog and then Add Items to manually input product details, including images, descriptions, and pricing and click on Upload Items.

9. You can upload more products using Data Feed, Partner Platforms। Here, we have uploaded manually.

10. Here, you can see your account is selected as well as your business phone number making sure you toggle on the Show catalogue icon in chat header as well as Show “Add to basket” button product pages and chat.

11. You can see these two options will show in the whatsapp chat section where users will have the ability to see the catalog with a single tap and add products accordingly. (Insights)

12. After adding products, go back to All Tools, select WhatsApp Manager, and under Account Tools, click Catalogue.

13. Choose your catalog and click Connect Catalogue to link it with your WhatsApp Business account.

Note: Ensure your WhatsApp Business account is properly set up and verified to utilize catalog features.

Step 2: Connect Your WhatsApp Account to BotSailor

With your catalog ready, integrate it with BotSailor:

Log in to your BotSailor dashboard.
Navigate to Connect Account under the WhatsApp section.
Select your WhatsApp Business account and click Connect.
Once connected, go to the eCommerce Catalog menu to view and manage your linked catalog.

Step 3: Build a Chatbot Flow to Showcase Products

Create an interactive chatbot that presents your catalog to customers:

In the BotSailor dashboard, go to Bot Manager > WhatsApp Bot Manager.
Select your connected WhatsApp account and click on Bot Reply.
Click Create to open the Visual Flow Builder.
Double-click on the Start Bot Flow node to name your flow and set a trigger keyword (e.g., "catalog").
Drag an Interactive Template component into the flow.
Configure the template with a header, body text, and footer to introduce your catalog.
From the interactive template, drag a connector to the E-commerce Catalog component.
Double-click the catalog component to select your linked catalog.
Add product sections by dragging connectors from the Multiple Products socket, allowing you to showcase various products.
Customize each product section by naming it and selecting specific products from your catalog.
Save your bot flow to activate it.

Customers can now trigger this flow by sending the designated keyword, receiving an interactive catalog within their WhatsApp chat.

Step 4: Configure Payment and Checkout Settings

Facilitate seamless transactions by setting up payment options:

In the Catalog Manager, click on Payment and navigate to Payment Settings.
Choose your preferred payment methods (e.g., PayPal, Stripe) and input necessary API details.
Set the currency, position, and decimal places, then click Save.
Under Cart Settings, define tax percentages and shipping charges applicable to orders.
Optionally, configure Abandoned Cart Reminders to re-engage customers who leave items in their cart without completing the purchase.

Step 5: Automate Order Data Collection with Google Sheets

In BotSailor, go to Settings > Google Sheet.
Create a new Google Sheet or connect an existing one.
Set up column headers such as Order ID, Product Name, Buyer Name, Phone Number, Amount, Order Date, Address, and Status.
Return to the eCommerce Catalog section and link your catalog to the connected Google Sheet.
Now, all orders placed through your WhatsApp catalog will automatically populate the Google Sheet, facilitating easy tracking and analysis.

Visual Guide

For a comprehensive visual walkthrough, refer to the following video tutorial:

How to Setup Product Catalog

This video provides detailed instructions on setting up and utilizing the product catalog feature within BotSailor.

By following these steps, you can effectively create a product catalog and integrate it with BotSailor, enhancing your business's presence on WhatsApp and providing a seamless shopping experience for your customers.

FAQ

Do I need a verified WhatsApp Business account to use the catalog feature in BotSailor?

Yes. You must have a verified WhatsApp Business account connected to your Facebook Business Manager and approved for catalog access to enable catalog display in WhatsApp chats.

Can I use an existing catalog from Commerce Manager with BotSailor?

Absolutely. If your catalog is already set up in Facebook Commerce Manager and linked to your WhatsApp number, BotSailor will automatically detect it once your account is connected.

What types of products can I list in the WhatsApp catalog?

You can add physical or digital products, each with a name, image, description, price, and availability status. Use categories to keep them organized for easy browsing in the chatbot.

Can customers place orders directly from WhatsApp?

Yes. BotSailor provides an “Add to Cart” and “Checkout” experience directly inside WhatsApp. Customers can view products, add them to cart, and proceed to order submission seamlessly.

What payment methods are supported in BotSailor?

BotSailor supports multiple payment gateways such as PayPal, Stripe, and other region-specific options. You can configure these under Catalog Manager → Payment Settings.

Can I track orders submitted through the WhatsApp catalog?

Yes. BotSailor allows automatic logging of each order into a connected Google Sheet, where you can track Order ID, product name, buyer info, total amount, and order status.

Is it possible to trigger a chatbot flow from the catalog?

Yes. You can design a chatbot flow using BotSailor’s Visual Flow Builder, and connect it with catalog actions—such as showing product categories or confirming orders.

What if I want to update products or add more later?

You can return to Facebook Commerce Manager at any time to manually add or edit products. Updates will reflect automatically in BotSailor’s catalog interface.

Can I recover abandoned carts using BotSailor?

Yes. BotSailor includes Abandoned Cart Reminder features. You can set automatic follow-up sequences to nudge customers who left products in their cart without completing checkout.

Is this feature available for all channels or only WhatsApp?

The native product catalog display with cart functionality is currently exclusive to WhatsApp, as supported by the WhatsApp Business API and Facebook Commerce Manager integration.