Set up a shared WhatsApp inbox in a day: numbers, roles, owners and saved messages
A one-day plan to move a team onto a shared WhatsApp inbox: link numbers, set access and roles, choose how chats are assigned, and write the saved messages.
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- By WavesFlo team
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- Published
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- 2 min read
You can move a team onto a shared WhatsApp inbox in a day if you decide four things first: which numbers, who reaches each, how new chats get an owner, and what the common answers are. The linking itself takes minutes per number. The hours go on the decisions, which is why this plan puts them before the clicks.
| Time | Task | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Morning, hour 1 | List numbers, the team on each, and the managers | A one-page map |
| Hour 2 | Add each number and link it from its phone's Linked devices screen | Every number connected |
| Hour 3 | Set access per number and invite people in roles | Nobody sees what they should not |
| Afternoon, hour 4 | Choose assignment: by hand, turns within a team, or a queue with shifts and caps | An owner on every new chat |
| Hour 5 | Write saved messages for the ten commonest questions | Faster, consistent answers |
| Hour 6 | Run a test from a personal phone to each number | Confidence it works |
How do you link a number?
- In the dashboard, add the number and give it a label you will recognise, such as a store or team name.
- On its phone, open WhatsApp's Linked devices (the three-dot menu on Android, Settings on iPhone), tap Link a device and scan the code the dashboard shows.
- Repeat for every number. Its chats and groups join the same list, striped by number.
- Decide who reaches each number, and at which level.
- Invite people in the roles you choose. Each invitation is emailed to the person invited, and you get the same link to pass on yourself; it works once and expires in seven days.
Each linked number takes one of the four linked-device places on its WhatsApp account. The main phone must open WhatsApp at least every 14 days, or every linked device is logged out; the linked devices limit explains it.
What should you decide before you start?
- Who owns the shared queue. Admins and managers see chats nobody owns yet.
- Whether you want turns or manual assignment to begin with.
- Which numbers take tickets and which stay as plain chats.
- Who covers evenings and weekends.
What about the first week?
Run the inbox beside the old way for a few days, read the assignment log for surprises, and ask the team what is slow. Then retire the old routine. Assigning chats and replacing the tracking spreadsheet cover the two changes people feel most.
Onboarding is done with our engineers, so the day can be a working session rather than a manual to follow; the inbox page shows what the team will be answering from by the end of it.
Questions
How long does it take to set up a shared WhatsApp inbox?
Linking a number takes minutes. A day covers the numbers, access, roles, assignment and saved messages.
Do I need to change my phone numbers?
No. Numbers are linked from the phone's Linked devices screen, and the phone keeps working.
Who can see which number?
Access is set per number and per role, so each team sees its own.