How do you connect Click-to-WhatsApp ads to your CRM?

To connect Click-to-WhatsApp ads to your CRM, the first message of each ad conversation has to be saved with its ad data. WASync does this for Bitrix24 and Pipedrive: it reads Meta's referral and writes the ad, ad set and campaign on the lead or deal, plus a timeline note.

How a Click-to-WhatsApp lead reaches your CRM

A Click-to-WhatsApp (CTWA) ad is a Facebook or Instagram ad whose button opens a WhatsApp chat with your business instead of a landing page. The person never fills a form, so without extra work the CRM sees a chat and no source. This is the path the data takes with WASync:

The person taps the ad and sends a message. WhatsApp opens with your number. That first message carries a referral from Meta: the ad id, the ad headline and body, and the ad media.
WASync receives the message and the referral together. The message goes to the right Open Line or CRM record as usual. The referral is read at the same moment.
The contact and the CRM record are found or created. WASync matches the sender's phone number to a contact and its open lead or deal. If there is none, your "unknown chats" rule decides what is created.
The ad data is written on the record. The UTM fields are filled, and a note on the timeline says which ad the conversation started from, so the person who answers sees it before replying.
A Chat Flow can take over, if you set one. You can start a different flow for ad traffic than for people who write on their own. See the trigger "From a specific ad" in Chat Flows.
The ad conversation costs nothing on Meta's side for 72 hours. Conversations opened from an ad are free for 72 hours, so a quick reply does not add a messaging fee.

First touch wins. A later ad does not overwrite an attribution that is already on the record, and the attribution is written on the contact and on the open deals that have none. If a deal is created a few minutes after the message, it still receives it.

What you can measure

By default WhatsApp tells WASync only which ad it was. If you add a Meta System User token with the ads_read permission, WASync also reads the campaign and the ad set from your ad account and writes them the way Meta names them. Both layouts are below.

Field	Without a Meta token	With a Meta System User token	Where it lands in Bitrix24
Campaign	Ad id in `UTM Campaign`	Campaign in `UTM Campaign`	Standard UTM field on the lead or deal, usable in Bitrix24 source reports
Ad set	Not available	Ad set in `UTM Term`	Standard UTM field
Ad	Ad id in `UTM Campaign`	Ad in `UTM Content`	Standard UTM field
Click id	In `UTM Content`	Kept in a separate CTWA click id field	UTM field or custom field
Ad headline and names	Headline in the note	Campaign, ad set and ad names in the note	Timeline note on the record

In Bitrix24 you add the UTM fields to your lead or deal form once, with Select field. After that the ad source can be filtered, grouped and reported on like the source of a web-form lead. Everything above is written on the lead or deal and on the contact.

What you can answer with this:

Which campaign and which ad set bring the most conversations.
Which ad leads to deals and which only leads to chats.

Sending results back to Meta

Meta can optimise your ads for real customers if it learns which conversations ended well. WASync has a Bitrix24 robot that sends a conversion to Meta when a lead is qualified or a deal is won. It is in a limited pilot and available on request: write to [email protected] and we will tell you whether your portal can join. We do not promise a date for a general release.

Setting it up in 10 minutes

You need a Meta ad that opens WhatsApp, a WhatsApp number and Bitrix24 or Pipedrive with admin access.

Install WASync. For Bitrix24, install it from the Bitrix24 Market. The steps are in connect WhatsApp to Bitrix24. For Pipedrive, see WhatsApp for Pipedrive. Both start with a 7-day free trial.
Connect the number your ad opens. The number in the ad's WhatsApp setting must be the number you connect. Read QR or API number if you are not sure which type to use. A QR connection costs $19 per month and an API connection costs $29 per month, per connection.
Send a test from the ad. Open your ad in the Facebook or Instagram app with a test account, tap the button and write a message.
Open the record. In Bitrix24, show the UTM fields on the lead or deal with Select field, then check the values and the timeline note.
Optional: add the campaign and ad set names. In Meta Business settings, create a System User, give it access to the ad account, generate a token with ads_read and paste it in WASync under Settings, in the card for the campaign and ad set on conversations from ads. The step by step guide is in the WASync docs. New ads then arrive with the campaign and the ad set filled in.
Optional: route ad traffic to its own flow. In Chat Flows, create a flow that starts when the customer writes first, choose From a specific ad and list the ad ids from Ads Manager. For a whole campaign, list all of its ad ids.

Records that were attributed before you added the token keep their old values. The new layout applies to new conversations.

For incoming messages, ad attribution works on both QR and API numbers. Templates, which you need to write first or after the 24-hour window, need the API number.

Common problems

The referral arrives on a later message, not the first. Sometimes Meta delivers the referral with a message after the first one. WASync writes it when it arrives, on the contact and on the deals that were open in the last 24 hours. If a record shows no ad, look at the whole conversation before you decide the ad was missing. Count ad performance on deals in the CRM, not on message rows: a share of conversations without a referral is not the same as a share of deals without a UTM.

The ad is run from an agency's portfolio. The campaign and ad set names come from the ad account. A token created in your own Business settings cannot read an ad account that sits in the agency's portfolio. Ask the agency to share the ad account with your business, or to create the System User on their side and give you the token. Without a token you still get the ad id, the headline and the click id.

The number is on another WhatsApp provider. One number can be controlled by one provider. If the ad opens a number that is still with another provider, the messages go there and WASync sees nothing. Move the number to WASync first, or point the ad at the number that WASync serves. On an API number, also check in Meta Business Suite that no other partner still controls the conversations.

The record has the ad id but not the names. The token is missing, has expired, or does not cover the ad account that runs the ad. The test button in the card shows Meta's answer for one ad id.

Bitrix24 vs Pipedrive differences

The idea is the same on both: the first message of an ad conversation is saved with the ad that started it. The surrounding tools are not the same.

Bitrix24 first. The UTM fields, the timeline note, the Chat Flows trigger "From a specific ad" and the conversions robot are Bitrix24 features. Source reports in Bitrix24 read the UTM fields directly.
Pipedrive. WASync for Pipedrive is a separate app with its own page, WhatsApp for Pipedrive. Check there which attribution fields it writes before you plan your reporting. The conversions robot is a Bitrix24 automation robot and is not part of the Pipedrive app.
Prices and trial. The same on both: $19 for a QR connection, $29 for an API connection, per month, with a 7-day free trial.

For a longer walk through the Bitrix24 side, read ad attribution in Bitrix24.

FAQ

What is Click-to-WhatsApp attribution?

It is recording which ad, ad set and campaign started each WhatsApp conversation. Meta sends a referral with the first message of an ad conversation. Attribution means saving that referral on the CRM record, so you can compare ads by leads and deals, not only by clicks.

Does ad tracking work with a QR number or only with the API?

Incoming ad messages are tracked on both QR and API numbers. Templates, which you need to start a chat or write after 24 hours, need the API. If your whole use is people who answer your ad and you reply, a QR number is enough. See QR or API number.

Where do I see the ad on a Bitrix24 lead?

In the UTM fields of the lead or deal and in a note on its timeline. Add the UTM fields to your form with Select field if you do not see them. With a Meta token the fields hold the campaign, the ad set and the ad.

Are Click-to-WhatsApp conversations free?

Conversations opened from an ad are free for 72 hours on Meta's side. WASync has its own subscription: $19 per month for a QR connection and $29 per month for an API connection, with a 7-day free trial.

Can I send conversions back to Meta?

Yes, in a limited pilot. A Bitrix24 robot can send a conversion to Meta when a lead is qualified or a deal is won. It is available on request at [email protected], and there is no release date to promise.

Try it with one ad

Connect your number, send one test from your ad and open the record. Start the 7-day free trial, or install WASync from the Bitrix24 Market. If you use Pipedrive, begin at WhatsApp for Pipedrive.