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Lead handoff to sales notice via WhatsApp API

The scenario sends the client a personalised WhatsApp template when their qualified lead is handed off to the sales team.

Use case overview

The scenario sends the client a personalised WhatsApp template when their qualified lead is handed off to the sales team. The message includes the client name, the product or request topic, and what happens next. A static URL button opens the offer page or CRM portal.

Template example

Hello, {{1}}! Your inquiry about "{{2}}" has been forwarded to the sales team. {{3}} We will contact you shortly.

Open portal
  • {{1}}
    customer or lead name
  • {{2}}
    product, service, or request topic
  • {{3}}
    next-step detail (e.g. a sales manager will call within one business day)
  • “Open portal”
    button — fixed in the Meta template
WhatsApp Business API for lead handoff to sales

When to use it

Reach for this scenario when marketing or an SDR qualifies a lead and CRM routes them to the sales queue, but the client still needs confirmation on WhatsApp before anyone picks up the thread. It fits SDR-to-AE handoffs, marketing-qualified leads that pass scoring and enter the sales queue, and agencies wiring CRM lead-routing webhooks to outbound WhatsApp.

Fewer leads lost between teams
Three body variables carry the client name, inquiry topic, and what happens next, so the handoff reads as a continuation rather than silence between marketing and sales.
First touch without an open chat
CRM fires the approved template when routing rules transfer the lead, so sales can reach the client even when no 24-hour conversation window is open.
Less manual handoff work
The routing event builds the template from handoff fields automatically, so no rep retypes the client name, topic, or next-step promise after the queue transfer.
Sales picks up with delivery logged
Delivery result is written back to CRM on send, so the AE sees the notification went out before making the follow-up call.
One tap to the offer or portal
The static URL button fixed in the Meta template opens the offer page or CRM portal while only the three body variables change per lead.

Workflow

  1. Trigger

    CRM or routing rules transfer a qualified lead to the sales queue.

    event · triggered

  2. Capture event

    The system resolves the client phone number and handoff fields.

    phone: "+…"

  3. Build & send

    A personalised handoff template is built with three body variables and a static URL button.

    POST /sendTemplate

  4. Delivered

    The client receives the WhatsApp handoff notification.

    delivered

  5. Status tracked

    Delivery result is logged in CRM for sales follow-up.

    status: "read"

WhatsApp Business API for lead handoff to sales

Technical implementation

Prerequisites

  1. 1MSG API Key · How to get API Key
  2. WhatsApp Business account · How to Connect WABA
  3. WhatsApp Template · How to Approve WABA Template
  4. Customer opt-in · How to Manage Customers Consent

Code examples

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

# === Configuration (replace "___" placeholders) ===

API_BASE_URL="https://api.1msg.io"        # production 1MSG API base URL
CHANNEL_ID="___"                           # channel ID from 1MSG dashboard
API_TOKEN="___"                            # channel JWT token (Bearer)

TEMPLATE_NAME="___"                        # approved template name
TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE="___"                   # template namespace (required — send fails without it)
TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE="___"                    # template language code, e.g. "en"



# === Test data ===
TEST_PHONE="___"                 # client phone in international format
TEST_CUSTOMERNAME="___"         # {{1}} customer name
TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME="___"         # {{2}} product or service name
TEST_NEXTSTEP="___"         # {{3}} next step

PHONE_NORM="$(printf '%s' "$TEST_PHONE" | tr -cd '0-9')"

for pair in "CHANNEL_ID=$CHANNEL_ID" "API_TOKEN=$API_TOKEN" \
            "TEMPLATE_NAME=$TEMPLATE_NAME" "TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE=$TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE" \
            "TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE=$TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE" "TEST_PHONE=$TEST_PHONE" \
            "TEST_CUSTOMERNAME=$TEST_CUSTOMERNAME" \
            "TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME=$TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME" \
            "TEST_NEXTSTEP=$TEST_NEXTSTEP"; do
    val="${pair#*=}"
    if [ -z "$val" ] || [ "$val" = "___" ]; then
        echo "Missing configuration value: ${pair%%=*}" >&2
        exit 1
    fi
done

if [ -z "$PHONE_NORM" ]; then
    echo "Error: phone number has no digits after normalization" >&2
    exit 1
fi

URL="${API_BASE_URL%/}/${CHANNEL_ID}/sendTemplate"

# params carries body ONLY. Button text is fixed in the Meta template — no button param.

# {{1}} customer name → ${TEST_CUSTOMERNAME}
# {{2}} product or service name → ${TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME}
# {{3}} next step → ${TEST_NEXTSTEP}
read -r -d '' PAYLOAD <<JSON || true
{
  "phone": "${PHONE_NORM}",
  "template": "${TEMPLATE_NAME}",
  "namespace": "${TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE}",
  "language": { "policy": "deterministic", "code": "${TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE}" },
  "params": [
    {
      "type": "body",
      "parameters": [
        { "type": "text", "text": "${TEST_CUSTOMERNAME}" },
        { "type": "text", "text": "${TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME}" },
        { "type": "text", "text": "${TEST_NEXTSTEP}" }
      ]
    }

  ]
}
JSON

RESPONSE="$(curl -s -w '\n%{http_code}' -X POST "$URL" \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer ${API_TOKEN}" \
    -d "$PAYLOAD")"

HTTP_CODE="$(printf '%s' "$RESPONSE" | tail -n1)"
BODY="$(printf '%s' "$RESPONSE" | sed '$d')"

case "$BODY" in
    *'"sent":true'*) ok=1 ;;
    *) ok=0 ;;
esac

if [ "$HTTP_CODE" -ge 200 ] && [ "$HTTP_CODE" -lt 300 ] && [ "$ok" -eq 1 ]; then
    echo "Message sent to client."
    echo "API response: $BODY"
else
    echo "Send failed. HTTP status: $HTTP_CODE" >&2
    echo "$BODY" >&2
    exit 1
fi

Response and delivery status

HTTP 2xx and JSON "sent": true mean 1MSG accepted the message for sending — not that it already reached the customer's phone. Save the id field (looks like wamid.…) to correlate delivery callbacks.

200 OKResponse
{
  "sent": true,
  "message": "Sent to [email protected]",
  "description": "Message has been sent to the provider",
  "id": "wamid.HBgLMzgwNjM5..."
}
  • sent

    Accepted for sending — not yet on the customer's phone

  • id

    Store it; delivery callbacks and hookInfo are keyed on this

Delivery statuses and webhooks →

Common errors

StatusAPI responseCauseFix
200Message was not sent: template is not definednamespace, template or language is missing from the request body.Send all three. Take namespace and the exact template name from GET /templates; language is an object: {"policy": "deterministic", "code": "en"}.
200template name (…) does not exist in <language>The template is approved in a different language than the one requested.Use the exact language code the template was approved in (for example es_MX is not the same as es). Check it in GET /templates.
200Message was not sent: provide chatId, phone, bsuid, or usernameNo recipient the channel could resolve.Pass exactly one recipient: phone (country code plus number, digits only), chatId (for example [email protected]) or bsuid.

All error codes →

Common questions

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