Unassigned WhatsApp chats: how to run a shared queue so none are missed
A shared queue holds WhatsApp chats nobody owns yet. Who sees it, who should work it, how long a chat should wait, and how to clear the backlog each day.
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- By WavesFlo team
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A shared queue is where a new WhatsApp chat waits until someone owns it. It works when one role owns the queue and clears it on a schedule, and it fails when everyone assumes someone else will. In WavesFlo, admins and managers see the shared queue; reps and team leaders do not, so someone in one of those two roles has to be its keeper.
Who sees what?
| Role | Sees chats nobody owns | Can hand them out |
|---|---|---|
| Admin | Yes | Yes |
| Manager | Yes | Yes |
| Team leader | No, only their team's chats | Within their team |
| Agent | No, only chats assigned to them | No |
| Viewer | Yes, read-only | No |
What is a daily routine for the keeper?
- Start of day: open the shared queue and read each new enquiry.
- Hand each to a person by city, language or product, or let a queue take turns for similar ones.
- Add a source label such as Website or IndiaMART, so reports can group them.
- Mid-day and end of day: check the backlog, which shows what is waiting and why nothing has taken it.
- Put anything stuck back with the right team, or reassign it by hand.
Why would a chat stay unassigned?
- Nobody is eligible: everyone is signed out, off shift, on time off or at their cap.
- The queue is set for one team and the chat belongs to another.
- Round-robin is off, and nobody is handing chats out.
- A closed chat came back because the customer wrote again; a customer's next message on a chat its holder closed brings it back into the queue.
The backlog shows what is waiting and why nothing has taken it, and a supervisor can requeue a chat. Read it before you change the cap or the shifts; the cause is usually one of the four above.
How long should a chat wait?
Set your own target and measure it. A first-reply target on a ticket runs from the moment it opens and never pauses; the example numbers on this site are invented, and a target is a goal you set, not a time anyone guarantees.
A shared queue is easier to keep when unassigned chats from every number sit in one list rather than on separate phones. That is how the WavesFlo inbox presents them, each marked with the number it came in on.
Questions
Who sees unassigned WhatsApp chats?
In WavesFlo, admins and managers see the shared queue. Reps and team leaders do not.
What happens when nobody is available?
The chat waits in the queue and shows in the backlog until someone eligible can take it.
What brings a closed chat back?
A customer's next message on a chat its holder closed brings it back into the queue.