Skip to main content
Skip to article
MoltFlow|HomePricing

#Conversational Commerce on WhatsApp: Full Guide

13 min read
whatsappecommerceconversational-commerceautomation

Five hundred "Where's my order?" messages. Every day. Your support team is copy-pasting order numbers into admin panels, hunting down tracking links, manually replying four hours later. The customer's already left a 1-star review.

A buyer messages at 9 PM asking about sizing. Your team sees it at 10 AM. Too late. They ordered from a competitor whose AI chatbot answered in 3 seconds.

This is the cost of fragmented e-commerce. Product discovery on Instagram, ordering on your site, support via email, tracking through SMS. Nothing talks to each other. Everything requires human intervention.

Conversational commerce fixes this. One WhatsApp thread handles browsing, payment, tracking, and support. The customer never leaves the app they check 23 times a day. Cart abandonment drops from 70% to 30%. Support tickets fall by 60%. Revenue per conversation triples.

This guide shows you the exact implementation. Connect your store, set up webhooks, and configure bulk messaging for cart recovery. Real code. Working integrations.

What Is Conversational Commerce?

Conversational commerce is buying products through messaging apps instead of traditional website checkout. The customer browses a catalog, asks questions, selects items, pays, and tracks delivery, all within a chat conversation on WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, or similar platforms.

It works because messaging removes friction. No app to download. No account to create. No checkout form to fill out. The customer types what they want, the bot (or human) helps them find it, and payment happens through a link in the chat.

Why It Is Growing

WhatsApp has over 2 billion active users globally. In markets like Brazil, India, and Southeast Asia, WhatsApp is the primary way people communicate with businesses. Even in North America and Europe, adoption for business messaging is accelerating year over year.

Chat feels personal. A conversation thread creates a relationship that a website checkout page never can. When a customer can ask "Does this come in blue?" and get an answer in seconds, they buy with more confidence and return more often.

Key Benefits

  1. Higher conversion rates -- Website checkout sees 60-70% cart abandonment. Chat-based checkout drops that to around 30% because customers resolve their doubts before buying. They ask about sizing, shipping, returns, and once satisfied, they complete the purchase without leaving the conversation.

  2. Lower support costs -- Automated order status responses eliminate 70% of support tickets. The number one question across all e-commerce stores is "Where's my order?" Automate that answer and your support team can focus on real problems.

  3. Personalized recommendations -- AI can suggest products based on conversation history. "You bought running shoes last month. We just released a matching jacket. Want to see it?" That message converts at 3-5x the rate of a generic email blast.

  4. Instant checkout -- Payment links inside the chat eliminate the redirect-to-website-and-login-again flow. One tap, payment complete, order confirmed in the same thread.

The Conversational Commerce Funnel

text
Discovery --> Browsing --> Questions --> Purchase --> Tracking --> Support --> Repurchase

Every stage happens in one WhatsApp thread. No context switching. No "please provide your order number again." The entire conversation history is right there.

Building Blocks of WhatsApp Commerce

Component 1: Product Catalog

The WhatsApp Business API supports product catalogs with up to 1,000 items. Each product has a name, description, price, image URL, and SKU. The catalog can be synced from your e-commerce platform or populated manually.

Send a product catalog message through MoltFlow:

bash
curl -X POST https://apiv2.waiflow.app/api/v2/messages \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "session_name": "shop-bot",
    "chatId": "[email protected]",
    "text": "Here are our best sellers this week:\n\n1. Classic White T-Shirt - $29.99\n2. UltraRun Pro Shoes - $149.99\n3. Canvas Messenger Bag - $59.99\n\nReply with a number to see details, or type what you are looking for!"
  }'

For stores with large catalogs, use MoltFlow's AI auto-reply to handle natural language product searches. A customer types "I need running shoes under $100" and the AI searches your product database, returning matching results with descriptions and purchase links.

Component 2: In-Chat Payments

Two approaches exist for accepting payments inside WhatsApp:

WhatsApp native payments are available in select markets (India via UPI, Brazil via Pix). Customers pay without leaving the app.

Payment links work globally. Generate a Stripe, PayPal, or local gateway link and send it in the chat. The customer taps the link, completes payment in their browser, and the confirmation appears back in the WhatsApp thread.

Payment link flow:

  • Customer: "I want the blue T-shirt in size M"
  • Bot: "Great choice! Blue T-Shirt (Size M) - $29.99. Complete your order here: [payment link]"
  • Customer clicks link, pays, returns to WhatsApp
  • Bot: "Payment confirmed! Your order #8234 is being prepared. We will send tracking info when it ships."

Generate Stripe payment links and send them through MoltFlow:

javascript
const stripe = require('stripe')(process.env.STRIPE_SECRET_KEY);

// Create payment link for the selected product
const paymentLink = await stripe.paymentLinks.create({
  line_items: [{
    price: 'price_1A2B3C4D5E6F',  // Stripe price ID for Blue T-Shirt
    quantity: 1
  }],
  after_completion: {
    type: 'redirect',
    redirect: { url: 'https://yourstore.com/thank-you?order=8234' }
  }
});

// Send payment link to customer via MoltFlow
await fetch('https://apiv2.waiflow.app/api/v2/messages', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Authorization': `Bearer ${MOLTFLOW_API_TOKEN}`,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    session_name: 'shop-bot',
    chatId: customerWhatsAppId,
    text: `Your order is ready!\n\nBlue T-Shirt (Size M) - $29.99\nShipping: Free\n\nComplete your purchase: ${paymentLink.url}\n\nLink expires in 24 hours.`
  })
});

Component 3: Order Tracking Integration

Connect your e-commerce platform to MoltFlow so order status updates flow automatically to customers on WhatsApp. When Shopify marks an order as fulfilled, MoltFlow sends the tracking link. No manual effort.

javascript
// Shopify webhook handler: orders/fulfilled
app.post('/webhooks/shopify/order-fulfilled', async (req, res) => {
  const order = req.body;
  const trackingUrl = order.fulfillments[0]?.tracking_url;
  const customerPhone = order.customer?.phone;
  const orderNumber = order.order_number;

  if (!customerPhone || !trackingUrl) {
    return res.json({ skipped: true, reason: 'Missing phone or tracking' });
  }

  await fetch('https://apiv2.waiflow.app/api/v2/messages', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${API_TOKEN}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      session_name: 'shop-bot',
      chatId: `${customerPhone.replace(/\D/g, '')}@c.us`,
      text: `Great news! Your order #${orderNumber} has shipped.\n\nTrack your package: ${trackingUrl}\n\nEstimated delivery: 3-5 business days.\n\nReply if you have any questions!`
    })
  });

  res.json({ success: true });
});

Proactive updates at each stage reduce "Where's my order?" messages by 60-70%. Customers know their order status before they think to ask.

Component 4: AI Product Recommendations

MoltFlow's AI auto-reply can act as a product consultant. Upload your product catalog descriptions to the knowledge base and let the AI match customer questions to products.

Customer: "I need running shoes for marathons, something lightweight"

AI: "I recommend the UltraRun Pro. It weighs 7.8 oz, has responsive cushioning rated for 400+ miles, and runners rate it 4.8/5 for marathon distances. Price: $149.99. Want me to send a purchase link?"

This turns WhatsApp from a support channel into a sales channel. The AI handles product discovery 24/7, qualifying interest and generating purchase intent without human intervention.

E-Commerce Platform Integration Patterns

Integration 1: Shopify + MoltFlow

Shopify is the most common integration. Here is the setup:

  1. Create a Shopify private app with read access to products and orders
  2. Configure Shopify webhooks for order events (created, fulfilled, cancelled)
  3. Point those webhooks at your middleware that calls MoltFlow's API
  4. Sync your product catalog for AI-powered recommendations

Sync Shopify products to your MoltFlow-powered catalog:

javascript
// Fetch products from Shopify Admin API
const response = await fetch(
  'https://yourstore.myshopify.com/admin/api/2024-01/products.json',
  { headers: { 'X-Shopify-Access-Token': SHOPIFY_TOKEN } }
);
const { products } = await response.json();

// Format product catalog for WhatsApp messages
const catalog = products.map(product => ({
  id: product.id.toString(),
  name: product.title,
  description: product.body_html.replace(/<[^>]*>/g, ''),  // Strip HTML tags
  price: parseFloat(product.variants[0].price),
  currency: 'USD',
  image: product.images[0]?.src,
  url: `https://yourstore.com/products/${product.handle}`,
  variants: product.variants.map(v => ({
    id: v.id.toString(),
    title: v.title,
    price: parseFloat(v.price),
    sku: v.sku,
    available: v.inventory_quantity > 0
  }))
}));

// Store catalog for AI product search
// Upload to MoltFlow knowledge base for RAG-powered recommendations
for (const product of catalog) {
  const productText = `${product.name}: ${product.description}. Price: $${product.price}. Available at ${product.url}`;
  await uploadToKnowledgeBase(productText, { productId: product.id });
}

console.log(`Synced ${catalog.length} products to MoltFlow`);

Once synced, customers can ask questions like "Do you have red sneakers under $80?" and the AI searches the knowledge base to find matching products.

Integration 2: WooCommerce + MoltFlow

WooCommerce integrates through WordPress hooks. Add this to your theme's functions.php or a custom plugin:

php
// Send WhatsApp notification when order status changes to completed
add_action('woocommerce_order_status_completed', 'moltflow_order_complete', 10, 1);

function moltflow_order_complete($order_id) {
    $order = wc_get_order($order_id);
    $phone = $order->get_billing_phone();
    $order_number = $order->get_order_number();
    $total = $order->get_total();

    if (empty($phone)) return;

    // Clean phone number (remove spaces, dashes, country code prefix)
    $clean_phone = preg_replace('/\D/', '', $phone);

    $api_url = 'https://apiv2.waiflow.app/api/v2/messages';
    $api_token = get_option('moltflow_api_token');

    $message = "Your order #{$order_number} ({$total}) is complete and on its way!\n\n";
    $message .= "Track your delivery: " . $order->get_view_order_url() . "\n\n";
    $message .= "Thanks for shopping with us! Reply if you need anything.";

    wp_remote_post($api_url, array(
        'headers' => array(
            'Authorization' => 'Bearer ' . $api_token,
            'Content-Type'  => 'application/json'
        ),
        'body' => wp_json_encode(array(
            'session_name' => 'woo-shop',
            'chatId'       => $clean_phone . '@c.us',
            'text'         => $message
        ))
    ));
}

Add similar hooks for woocommerce_order_status_processing (order confirmed), woocommerce_order_status_on-hold (payment pending), and woocommerce_order_status_refunded (refund processed) to cover the complete order lifecycle.

Integration 3: Custom Store + MoltFlow API

If you run a custom e-commerce backend, MoltFlow's REST API is your integration layer. Your store's order management system calls MoltFlow directly at each order lifecycle event. The API accepts standard HTTP requests, so any language or framework works: Node.js, Python, Go, Ruby, PHP.

The pattern is the same regardless of platform: when an event happens in your store (order placed, payment confirmed, item shipped, delivered), your backend sends a message through MoltFlow to the customer's WhatsApp.

Cart Abandonment Recovery

Seventy percent of e-commerce shopping carts are abandoned. That is not a typo. Seven out of ten shoppers add items to their cart and leave without completing checkout.

The reasons vary: unexpected shipping costs, complicated checkout, price comparing, got distracted, saving for later. But the result is the same: lost revenue sitting in abandoned carts.

WhatsApp cart recovery messages recover 15-30% of those abandoned carts. Compare that to email recovery at 5-10%. The difference is open rates: 98% on WhatsApp versus 20% on email.

Recovery Workflow

  1. Customer adds items to cart and enters their WhatsApp number during checkout
  2. Customer leaves without completing the purchase
  3. After 2 hours, your system triggers a recovery message through MoltFlow
  4. The message includes cart contents, total, and a one-click payment link
  5. If no response after 24 hours, send a follow-up with a small discount offer
javascript
// Cart abandonment recovery job (runs every 30 minutes)
const abandonedCarts = await db.carts.find({
  status: 'abandoned',
  recoveryAttempts: 0,
  updatedAt: { $lt: new Date(Date.now() - 2 * 60 * 60 * 1000) }  // 2+ hours old
});

for (const cart of abandonedCarts) {
  const cartItems = cart.items
    .map(item => `- ${item.name} (${item.variant}) - $${item.price.toFixed(2)}`)
    .join('\n');

  const paymentLink = await generateCartRecoveryLink(cart.id);

  await fetch('https://apiv2.waiflow.app/api/v2/messages', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${API_TOKEN}`,
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      session_name: 'shop-bot',
      chatId: `${cart.customerPhone}@c.us`,
      text: [
        `Hi ${cart.customerName}! You left some items in your cart:`,
        '',
        cartItems,
        '',
        `Total: $${cart.total.toFixed(2)}`,
        '',
        `Complete your order: ${paymentLink}`,
        '',
        'Your cart is saved for 48 hours. Reply if you have any questions!'
      ].join('\n')
    })
  });

  // Mark recovery attempt
  await db.carts.update(cart.id, {
    recoveryAttempts: 1,
    lastRecoveryAt: new Date()
  });
}

Best Practices for Cart Recovery

  • Limit to two messages maximum. One at 2 hours, one at 24 hours. More than that is spam.
  • Personalize. Use the customer's first name and show the exact items they left behind.
  • Add incentive on the second attempt. A 10% discount code on the 24-hour follow-up significantly boosts recovery rates.
  • Include easy opt-out. "Reply STOP to unsubscribe from cart reminders." Respecting preferences builds trust.
  • Track what works. Monitor recovery rate by message timing, discount amount, and product category. Optimize based on data, not assumptions.

Order Tracking Automation

"Where's my order?" is the single most common customer support message across all e-commerce businesses. Automating the answer eliminates the majority of support tickets.

Proactive Tracking Updates

Send updates at each stage of the delivery journey before the customer asks:

  • Order confirmed: "Your order #12345 is confirmed! We are preparing it now. Estimated delivery: March 15-17."
  • Shipped: "Your order #12345 has shipped! Track your package: [tracking link]"
  • Out for delivery: "Your package is out for delivery today. Expected by 8 PM."
  • Delivered: "Your order has been delivered! We hope you love it. Reply if anything is not right."

Each message reduces the likelihood of a "Where's my order?" inquiry. Customers appreciate proactive communication. It builds trust and reduces anxiety about online purchases.

On-Demand Order Tracking

For customers who message between updates, build an automated lookup:

javascript
// MoltFlow webhook handler for incoming messages
app.post('/webhooks/moltflow/message', async (req, res) => {
  const { body: message, from } = req.body;
  const customerPhone = from.replace('@c.us', '');

  // Detect order tracking intent
  const trackingKeywords = ['where', 'order', 'track', 'shipping', 'delivery', 'status'];
  const isTrackingQuery = trackingKeywords.some(kw =>
    message.toLowerCase().includes(kw)
  );

  if (isTrackingQuery) {
    // Look up most recent order for this phone number
    const orders = await db.orders.find({
      customerPhone,
      status: { $in: ['processing', 'shipped', 'out_for_delivery'] }
    }).sort({ createdAt: -1 }).limit(1);

    if (orders.length === 0) {
      await sendMessage(from,
        "I could not find any active orders for your number. " +
        "Check your order history at yourstore.com/orders or reply with your order number."
      );
    } else {
      const order = orders[0];
      const trackingUrl = order.trackingUrl || 'yourstore.com/orders/' + order.id;
      await sendMessage(from,
        `Your order #${order.orderNumber} is currently ${order.status.replace('_', ' ')}.\n\n` +
        `Track it here: ${trackingUrl}\n\n` +
        `Estimated delivery: ${order.estimatedDelivery || 'Check tracking link for updates.'}`
      );
    }
  }

  res.json({ received: true });
});

The bot detects intent from keywords, looks up the order, and responds with current status. No human needed. Response time: under 3 seconds.

Measuring Success

Track these metrics to evaluate your conversational commerce performance:

  • Chat-to-purchase conversion rate: What percentage of WhatsApp conversations result in a sale? Target: 15-25%.
  • Cart recovery rate: What percentage of abandoned carts are recovered through WhatsApp messages? Target: 15-30%.
  • Support ticket reduction: How many fewer tickets does your team handle after automation? Target: 60-70% reduction.
  • Average response time: How quickly do customers get answers? Target: under 30 seconds for automated, under 2 minutes for human escalation.
  • Customer satisfaction (CSAT): Survey customers after WhatsApp interactions. Target: 4.5/5 or higher.

What's Next?

Conversational commerce turns WhatsApp from a support channel into a complete shopping experience. Catalog browsing, product questions, payment, tracking, and post-purchase support all happen in one thread. The customer never leaves the app they use every day.

The technology stack is straightforward: your e-commerce platform handles products and orders, MoltFlow handles WhatsApp messaging, and a thin middleware layer (or n8n workflows) connects them. Start by connecting your WhatsApp account, then configure bulk messaging for cart recovery, and set up webhooks for real-time order updates.

Ready to implement this? Follow our step-by-step guide: Send Bulk Messages for cart abandonment campaigns that recover 15-30% of lost sales.

Related guides:

Ready to build conversational commerce? MoltFlow integrates with Shopify, WooCommerce, and custom stores -- start automating your WhatsApp sales channel today. Free plan available, no credit card required.

> Try MoltFlow Free — 100 messages/month

$ curl https://molt.waiflow.app/pricing

bash-5.2$ echo "End of post."_