How to create a WhatsApp link for your business

The basic format

A WhatsApp link looks like this: wa.me/263771234567

It starts with wa.me/, followed by your country code, then your number without the leading zero. Zimbabwe's country code is 263, so a number that is normally dialled as 0771234567 becomes 263771234567 in the link.

The leading zero mistake

The most common error is leaving the zero in, producing wa.me/2630771234567, which does not work. Drop the zero straight after the 263 and check the finished link opens the correct chat on your own phone before sharing it anywhere.

No spaces, dashes or plus sign

Write the number as one continuous string of digits after wa.me/ — no plus sign, no spaces, no dashes. wa.me/263771234567 works; wa.me/+263 77 123 4567 does not reliably work across every device.

Adding a prefilled message

You can make the chat open with a message already typed, which the customer can edit or send as is. Add ?text= after the number, followed by your message with spaces replaced by %20, for example:

wa.me/263771234567?text=Hi%2C%20I%27d%20like%20to%20order

A prefilled message is useful for telling you which advert, page or sign the customer came from, for example "Hi, I saw your Facebook page" versus "Hi, I saw your website."

Testing the link

• Open it on your own phone using mobile data, not just Wi-Fi
• Check it opens WhatsApp, not WhatsApp Business by mistake, if you run both
• Ask a friend on a different phone to try it too

Where to put the link

• Your website's WhatsApp button
• Your Google Business Profile
• Printed adverts, flyers and invoices, as a short QR code
• Your Facebook and Instagram bio