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WhatsApp is no longer just a messaging channel — it’s a full commerce surface. With Soneka’s Catalog & Storefront features, your customers can browse products, add items to a cart, and complete a purchase without ever leaving the WhatsApp app. Whether you’re running a boutique with 20 SKUs or a multi-category store with thousands of products, Soneka connects your existing catalogue to WhatsApp and adds a branded storefront so your business looks professional at every touchpoint.

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How In-Chat Shopping Works

When a customer receives or requests a product message, WhatsApp renders an interactive card or carousel they can tap to view details, choose variants, and add to a cart. The cart lives inside the chat, and when the customer taps Send Order, you receive a structured order message in your Soneka Inbox — complete with product names, quantities, and the customer’s contact details. You can then send a payment link or process the order directly from the Inbox.

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Syncing Your Meta Product Catalog

Soneka connects directly to your Meta Business catalog — the same catalogue used for Facebook and Instagram Shopping.
1

Connect Your Meta Business Account

Go to Catalog → Settings → Connect Meta and authorise Soneka via Facebook Login. Soneka will list all catalogs associated with your Meta Business Manager.
2

Select a Catalog

Choose the catalog you want to use for WhatsApp. If you manage multiple brands or stores, you can connect separate catalogs to separate Soneka workspaces.
3

Sync Products

Click Sync Now. Soneka imports all approved products — including names, descriptions, prices, images, and availability. Subsequent syncs run automatically every 6 hours, or you can trigger a manual sync at any time.
4

Review and Organise

Once synced, your products appear in the Catalog tab. Use collections to group related items (e.g. “Summer Collection”, “Best Sellers”) for easier use in messages.
Only products with an approved status in Meta Business Manager are importable. If a product is missing, check its approval status in the Meta catalog first.

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Sending Product Messages

Soneka supports all three WhatsApp product message formats. Choose the one that fits the context.
A Single Product Message (SPM) highlights one item with its image, name, price, and a View button. Use SPMs for personalised recommendations, abandoned-cart nudges, or when a customer asks about a specific product.To send an SPM: in the Inbox compose bar, click the Catalog icon, select Single Product, and search for the item by name or SKU. The message renders a live preview before you send.

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Setting Up a Branded Storefront

Beyond in-chat product messages, Soneka generates a Storefront — a mobile-optimised web page that showcases your full catalogue and lets customers browse at their own pace. The storefront link can be shared in any WhatsApp message, placed in your WA Chat Link, or embedded in your website.
1

Enable the Storefront

Go to Catalog → Storefront → Settings and toggle Storefront On.
2

Customise Branding

Upload your logo, set your brand colours, write a short business description, and add a banner image. Changes are reflected in the live preview immediately.
3

Connect a Custom Domain

In Storefront → Domain, enter your custom domain (e.g. shop.yourbrand.com) and add the CNAME record shown to your DNS provider. Soneka provisions an SSL certificate automatically within a few minutes.
4

Organise Collections

Create collections to structure your storefront navigation. Customers can browse by category rather than scrolling through your entire catalogue.
Pin your Best Sellers collection to the top of the storefront. Data consistently shows customers who enter via a curated “most popular” view have higher conversion rates than those landing on an unfiltered all-products page.

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Shopify and WooCommerce Integration

If you’re already selling on Shopify or WooCommerce, you don’t need to manage your catalogue manually. Soneka integrates directly with both platforms to keep products, prices, and inventory in sync in real time. See the full setup guide: Shopify & WooCommerce Integration. Key benefits of the ecommerce integration:
  • Automatic product sync — new products and price changes in Shopify/WooCommerce appear in WhatsApp within minutes
  • Inventory gating — out-of-stock products are automatically hidden from product messages and the storefront
  • Order write-back — orders placed via WhatsApp are created directly in your Shopify/WooCommerce dashboard
  • Abandoned cart recovery — trigger a WhatsApp message when a customer abandons a cart in your online store
Once a customer sends an order, you can close the sale without asking them to visit an external site.
1

Generate a Payment Link

Open the order in your Inbox, review the items, and click Send Payment Link. Soneka generates a secure, branded checkout link pre-loaded with the order details.
2

Send to Customer

The payment link is sent as a WhatsApp message. The customer taps it, reviews their order, enters payment details, and completes checkout — all in a mobile browser without leaving their phone.
3

Receive Confirmation

When payment is confirmed, Soneka updates the order status in your Inbox and, if you’re using the Shopify/WooCommerce integration, marks the order as paid in your store.

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Order Management

All orders originating from WhatsApp — whether from a product message, a storefront link, or a catalog carousel — appear in Catalog → Orders. From here you can:
  • View order details, customer contact, and selected products
  • Update order status (Processing, Shipped, Delivered, Cancelled)
  • Send automated status-update messages using Utility templates
  • Export orders to CSV for accounting or fulfilment

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Best Practices for Catalog Product Descriptions

WhatsApp renders product descriptions in a compact format. Customers make quick decisions — your descriptions need to be scannable and persuasive.

Lead with the Benefit

Start with what the product does for the customer, not what it is. “Stays cold for 24 hours” beats “Stainless steel insulated bottle.”

Keep It Under 500 Characters

Descriptions are truncated in the WhatsApp product card. The first 150 characters are visible without expanding — make them count.

Include Key Specs Inline

Size, colour, material, and compatibility should appear in the description itself, not only as variants — customers don’t always expand the variant picker.

Use High-Resolution Square Images

WhatsApp crops product images to a square. Use 1:1 images at 1000×1000px or larger for crisp rendering on high-DPI screens.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. WhatsApp product messages are powered by Meta’s catalog infrastructure. If you don’t already have a Meta Business catalog, you can create one in Meta Business Manager for free. Soneka guides you through the connection process.
Customers complete payment through a secure link that opens in their mobile browser. Native in-app payments are available in some countries via WhatsApp Pay — Soneka will support this as Meta expands availability.
There is no limit imposed by Soneka. Meta allows up to 100,000 items per catalog. Performance of product messages (especially MPMs) is best when you organise items into focused collections rather than presenting very large lists.
Yes. Soneka provides a default storefront URL under storefront.soneka.app/your-business-name that works out of the box. Custom domains are available on the Growth plan and above.
The ecommerce integration is available on the Growth plan and above. Starter plan users can sync a Meta catalog manually but cannot connect a Shopify or WooCommerce store.