WhatsApp Business Al Assistant

Automates WhatsApp conversations for local businesses — replies, bookings, lead capture, and follow-ups. Designed for gyms, restaurants, salons, clinics, and service-based businesses.

marcvanstad@marcvanstad

Install

openclaw skills install @marcvanstad/whatsapp-business-ai

WhatsApp Business AI Assistant

Name & Purpose

Automates WhatsApp conversations for local businesses — handling replies, booking inquiries, lead capture, and intelligent follow-ups without requiring 24/7 human attention. Designed for gyms, restaurants, salons, clinics, and service-based businesses in South Africa.

Prerequisites

Requirement	Version/Detail
OpenClaw	v2.4+
Node.js	v18+
WhatsApp Business API (Meta)	Approved business account
Meta Developer App	With WhatsApp product configured
Python 3	v3.10+ (for NLP pipeline)
`wacli` CLI	Installed on host
ngrok or static IP	For webhook callback

Installation

1. Copy skill files

bash

cp -r streams/01_ClawHub_Skills/01_WhatsApp_Business_AI_Assistant/* ~/.openclaw/skills/

2. Install dependencies

bash

cd ~/.openclaw/skills/whatsapp-business-ai
npm install
pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Configure environment

Create ~/.openclaw/skills/whatsapp-business-ai/.env:

env

WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID=your_phone_number_id
WHATSAPP_ACCESS_TOKEN=your_permanent_token
WHATSAPP_VERIFY_TOKEN=your_webhook_verify_token
WHATSAPP_BUSINESS_ACCOUNT_ID=your_business_account_id
BUSINESS_HOURS_TIMEZONE=Africa/Johannesburg
DEFAULT_LANGUAGE=en
NLP_MODEL_PATH=./models/za_intent_classifier
LEAD_DB_PATH=./data/leads.db
BOOKING_CALENDAR_ID=your_google_calendar_id

4. Link to wacli

bash

# Verify wacli is available
which wacli || brew install wacli
wacli --configure

5. Set up webhooks

bash

# Start webhook receiver (uses ngrok for dev)
./scripts/start-webhook.sh

# Register webhook with Meta
curl -X POST "https://graph.facebook.com/v18.0/$WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID/subscriptions" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $WHATSAPP_ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -d "object=whatsapp_business_account&callback_url=https://your-ngrok-url.ngrok.io/webhook&verify_token=$WHATSAPP_VERIFY_TOKEN"

Usage

Start the assistant

bash

# Production mode
openclaw skill run whatsapp-business-ai

# Development / dry-run
openclaw skill run whatsapp-business-ai --dry-run

The assistant runs as a persistent OpenClaw process that:

Listens for incoming WhatsApp messages via webhook
Classifies intent (booking, inquiry, complaint, lead)
Generates context-aware replies
Logs leads to the local database
Schedules follow-ups based on business rules

Workflow Overview

text

Incoming Message → Intent Classifier → Response Generator → Send Reply
                                       ↓
                                  Booking Detected?
                                  ├── Yes → Check Calendar → Confirm Slot → Add Booking
                                  └── No  → Lead? → Log Lead → Schedule Follow-up

Available Commands

Command	Description
`/status`	Show assistant health, queue depth, message count today
`/leads`	Export leads as CSV or JSON
`/analytics`	Last 24h: sent/replied/followed-up counts
`/blacklist <phone>`	Block a number
`/broadcast`	Send bulk message to all leads (ask first)
`/pause`	Stop accepting new messages (resume with `/resume`)

Workflow Templates

Auto-reply templates are in ./templates/. Customise per business type:

text

templates/
├── auto_replies/
│   ├── booking_gym.yaml
│   ├── booking_restaurant.yaml
│   ├── booking_salon.yaml
│   ├── greeting_day.yaml
│   ├── greeting_night.yaml
│   ├── hours_inquiry.yaml
│   ├── pricing_inquiry.yaml
│   ├── complaint_acknowledgement.yaml
│   └── out_of_hours.yaml
├── follow_ups/
│   ├── no_reply_24h.yaml
│   ├── abandoned_booking.yaml
│   ├── post_service_feedback.yaml
│   └── promotion_blast.yaml
└── intents.yaml

Example: booking_gym.yaml

yaml

name: gym_booking
trigger:
  intents: [booking, tour_inquiry, membership_inquiry]
  confidence_threshold: 0.75
response:
  template: |
    Hi {{customer_name}}! 👋

    Thanks for reaching out to {{business_name}}.

    I can help you book:
    🏋️ A free trial session
    📋 A membership consultation
    🎯 A personal training intro

    What time works for you? Our hours are:
    Mon–Fri: 5:00 AM – 9:00 PM
    Sat: 6:00 AM – 6:00 PM
    Sun: 7:00 AM – 2:00 PM

    Just tell me your preferred day and time!
  buttons:
    - "Book Trial"
    - "See Pricing"
    - "Ask a Human"

Prompt Configuration

Edit ./config/prompts.yaml:

yaml

classifier_prompt: |
  Classify the incoming WhatsApp message into exactly one intent.
  Intents: [booking, pricing_inquiry, hours, complaint, lead, general, spam]
  Context: {business_type} in {location}
  Message: {text}
  Respond with only the intent name and confidence score.

response_prompt: |
  You are {assistant_name}, the friendly AI assistant for {business_name}.
  Location: {location}
  Business type: {business_type}
  Business hours: {hours}

  Customer message: {text}
  Detected intent: {intent}

  Reply in a warm, professional tone. Be concise. If it's a booking,
  ask for time and contact info. Never give away pricing you're unsure of.
  Use South African English.

Example Prompts for Human Operators

"Hey Marvis, can you check on the gym assistant? How many unqualified leads are waiting?" "Set up a new WhatsApp assistant for 'Jozi Cuts Barbershop' in Randburg." "What's the reply rate on the restaurant assistant this week?" "Add a 'Student Discount' promotion template to the gym assistant's broadcast queue."

Directory Structure

text

whatsapp-business-ai/
├── SKILL.md
├── README.md
├── config/
│   ├── business.yaml          # Business profile (name, hours, location, type)
│   ├── prompts.yaml           # LLM prompts for classification & reply
│   └── webhooks.yaml          # Webhook routing rules
├── templates/
│   ├── auto_replies/          # Pre-written reply templates
│   ├── follow_ups/            # Scheduled follow-up templates
│   └── intents.yaml           # Intent definitions & training data
├── scripts/
│   ├── start-webhook.sh       # Start webhook listener with ngrok
│   ├── register-webhook.sh    # Register with Meta APIs
│   └── export-leads.py        # Export leads to CSV
├── workflows/
│   ├── booking.yaml           # Booking: detect → confirm → create
│   ├── lead.yaml              # Lead: capture → enrich → follow-up
│   └── complaint.yaml         # Complaint: acknowledge → escalate → resolve
├── data/
│   ├── leads.db               # SQLite lead database
│   └── conversation_logs/     # Raw conversation transcripts (rotated)
├── requirements.txt
└── package.json

Integration Options

Google Calendar — auto-check and book appointment slots
Square / PayFast — send payment links for deposits
CRM webhooks — POST leads to HubSpot, Pipedrive, or custom API
Slack — notify human agent when escalation needed
Twillio — fallback SMS for low-signal areas

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Likely Cause	Fix
Assistant not replying	Webhook not registered	Run `register-webhook.sh`
Replies go to wrong chat	Wrong phone_number_id in env	Check `.env` values
"Message not allowed"	Sender hasn't opted in	Send template message first
Low confidence on intent	Trained on wrong business type	Update `config/business.yaml`
Calendar sync fails	Missing Google Calendar scope	Re-auth with `https://www.googleapis.com/auth/calendar` scope
Leads not saving	SQLite path not writable	`chmod 755 ./data/`
ngrok URL changed	Free ngrok rotates on restart	Use paid plan or static IP

WhatsApp Business Al Assistant

Install

WhatsApp Business AI Assistant

Name & Purpose

Prerequisites

Installation

1. Copy skill files

2. Install dependencies

3. Configure environment

4. Link to wacli

5. Set up webhooks

Usage

Start the assistant

Workflow Overview

Available Commands

Workflow Templates

Prompt Configuration

Example Prompts for Human Operators

Directory Structure

Integration Options

Troubleshooting

Related skills