The aggregator of messengers and social networks, Pact (a resident of the Astana Hub technopark), has launched a WhatsApp call function for businesses. This is the first affordable way in Kazakhstan to call clients on WhatsApp, record the call and save it in the communication history as well as correspondence. Previously, the feature was only available to users of WABA (WhatsApp Business API), now it is available to all users of the free WhatsApp application.

Before the launch of the new feature, only users of the WABA app could call customers via WhatsApp. To do this, you need to verify the business and pay for the use of the service. However, only a limited number of countries could test the beta version of the calls. Now an ordinary user of the free WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business applications can call a customer in a messenger, receive an incoming call and save a call record in CRM. Moreover, you can make calls not only from a physical phone, but also from a computer. 

Even those entrepreneurs who pay for WABA needed calls via regular WhatsApp. When using the WhatsApp Business Calling API, the cost of calls is per minute (calculated individually, the approximate cost is 5.97 tenge/min), so it is mainly suitable for businesses with a large number of correspondence and mailing lists in the messenger. It is unprofitable for most representatives of small and medium-sized businesses to connect the extended business version of WhatsApp.

Before development, Pact analyzed the network traffic between the WhatsApp mobile client and its servers. The developers needed to understand how calls occur: how they are initiated, what cryptographic protocols are used, what data is sent when the call status changes, and how the audio stream is transmitted. Pact was able to repeat this scheme and conduct testing. After successful testing, the prototype was wrapped in a module with a REST API and a WebSocket interface. 

"During the development, we collaborated with partners in Brazil, where WhatsApp is the main messenger. According to foreign sources and research, 147 million people in Brazil use WhatsApp. We adopted the experience of those who are among the top users in the world and were able to adapt the function for 200 million residents of the CIS countries," Sergey Budyakov, CEO of Pact.

The WhatsApp call feature is available to all users of the Pact messenger and social media aggregator. You can make a direct call from the aggregator window, and the call will be saved in your conversation history. To connect, you need to scan a special QR code using the WhatsApp application. The connection cost is fixed and does not depend on the number and duration of calls.

The aggregator also has the ability to receive incoming calls, record calls and save their recording in the chat for further analysis. The status of the call is also displayed in the correspondence: accepted or rejected. In addition, using the built-in AI assistant, the call recording can be decrypted, and the decryption will be broken down by the interlocutors.

WhatsApp calls are available for all countries.

A call through classical telephony looks to the client like a call over a cellular connection. In this case, the call is displayed in the messenger, aggregator and CRM system, which allows them to monitor and analyze their effectiveness.

When making a call through WABA, the company first needs to send a notification to the user that it wants to call him. If the user has approved the call, the company has 24 hours to make it. Then the request must be repeated.

You can make calls via Pact immediately. However, it is better to abandon calls to the "cold" database, and call customers who have already interacted with the company. Otherwise, the client may complain about the company's profile, and WhatsApp's algorithms will block it — the service cannot protect against this.