Your business number is on the shop board, the visiting card and the Instagram bio. To message you, a customer has to type it in, save it as a contact, open WhatsApp, find the new contact and start a chat. Some do. Many give up somewhere between steps two and four.
A WhatsApp link for business removes those steps. One tap, or one scan of a QR code, opens a chat with you, often with a first message already typed. This post explains how the links are built, how to add a pre-filled message, the short link and QR code inside the Business app, where to put them in print and online, and how to tell which ones bring in customers.
How a wa.me link is built
WhatsApp’s official click-to-chat link uses the address wa.me followed by your number in full international format. The format rules are strict:
- Start with the country code, such as 91 for India or 44 for the UK.
- Then the number, without the leading zero you might dial locally.
- No plus sign, spaces, brackets or dashes.
So an Indian mobile number becomes https://wa.me/91XXXXXXXXXX, with the Xs replaced by the ten-digit mobile number. Tapping it on a phone opens WhatsApp with a new chat to that number. On a computer it opens WhatsApp Web or the desktop app.
Test the link yourself before printing or publishing it. A single wrong digit sends customers to a stranger, and you will not know until someone tells you.
Adding a pre-filled message
You can add text that appears in the customer’s message box, ready to send. Put ?text= after the number, followed by the message with spaces and special characters encoded for a web address. Spaces become %20.
For example: https://wa.me/91XXXXXXXXXX?text=Hi%2C%20I%20saw%20your%20menu%20card opens a chat with “Hi, I saw your menu card” in the box.
The customer can edit or delete the text before sending, so it is a suggestion, not a form. Good pre-filled messages:
- Start the conversation naturally. “Hi, I’d like to book a table” is easier to send than a blank box.
- Say where the customer came from. “I scanned the QR on your bill” or “I saw your Instagram post about the sale” tells you the source.
- Include the detail you need. On a product page: “Hi, I’m asking about the blue cotton kurta, size M.” Staff then know what to answer.
- Stay short. A long paragraph in someone’s message box is off-putting, and they may delete it.
Many free online tools will encode the message for you, or you can use the Business app’s own short link, below.
The Business app’s short link and QR code
The WhatsApp Business app can generate a short link and a QR code for your number, usually from its business tools. You can set a default message that appears when someone opens the link or scans the code. The app can also reset the short link if you need to stop an old one working.
This is the easiest option for a single general-purpose link, such as the one in your Instagram bio. Its limit is that it gives you one default message. If you want different messages for different places, so you can tell sources apart, build separate wa.me links yourself.
WhatsApp also offers QR codes for the account in the app’s settings. Whichever you use, save the image at a good resolution for printing.
WhatsApp QR codes on print and at the counter
A WhatsApp QR code works anywhere a customer is holding something of yours or standing near you. Some places that suit small businesses:
- Bills and receipts: “Scan to reorder or ask a question.”
- Packaging and delivery bags: “Scan to tell us how it went” or “Scan for care instructions.”
- Counter stands and table tents: “Scan to get our offers on WhatsApp.” This doubles as a clear opt-in, since the customer starts the chat.
- Flyers, posters and newspaper inserts: with a different pre-filled message for each, so you know which one worked.
- Vehicles and shop shutters: large enough to scan from a few steps away, with the number printed below for people who prefer to type.
Print tips that save reprints:
- Print the code large enough to scan easily, with a clear margin of white around it.
- Use dark on light. Inverted or colourful codes sometimes fail on older phones.
- Say what happens when someone scans: “Opens a chat with us on WhatsApp.”
- Test the printed proof with several different phones before the full print run.
- Do not put a QR code where it cannot be scanned, such as on a moving vehicle’s rear at road level or a billboard far from the footpath.
Where to use the WhatsApp link for business online
Online, the link belongs wherever someone might want to ask a question at that moment.
- Social profiles: Instagram bio, Facebook page button, YouTube channel links.
- Google Business Profile: where the profile allows a chat or messaging link, or in posts.
- Email signature and newsletters: “Questions? Message us on WhatsApp.”
- Your website: as a button on service and product pages, placed after the reason to use it. Placement page by page is covered in our post on click-to-call and WhatsApp buttons, so we will not repeat it here.
For buttons on a website, use a real link in the page, not a script that builds it after a click. Real links work on every phone and are easier to track.
Telling sources apart
If every link opens the same blank chat, you cannot tell whether customers came from your bill, your Instagram bio or your flyer. Two simple methods solve most of this.
A different pre-filled message for each source
Give each placement its own wording: “Hi, I scanned your bill”, “Hi, I saw your Instagram”, “Hi, I got your flyer”. When a chat opens with that text, label it with the source. Customers sometimes edit the message, so the count is rough, but it is usually good enough to compare.
A landing page with campaign tags
For print campaigns where you want website analytics, point the QR code to a page on your site with campaign tags in the address, and put the WhatsApp button on that page. GA4 records the visit and, if you track button clicks, the tap through to WhatsApp. Our free UTM builder creates the tagged address. It adds a step for the customer, so use it where the page gives them something useful, such as a menu or price list.
A fuller method for counting chats, replies and orders is in our post on measuring WhatsApp marketing results.
Testing before anything goes live
Run through this list for every new link or QR code:
- Open it on an Android phone and an iPhone, with WhatsApp installed.
- Open it on a computer, to see what desktop visitors get.
- Check the pre-filled message reads correctly, with no stray symbols from bad encoding.
- Check the chat opens to the right number and shows your business name.
- Send a test message and make sure it arrives on every device your staff use.
- For printed codes, scan the actual print, not the file on screen.
For the full order of setting up WhatsApp for marketing, from profile to measuring, see our WhatsApp marketing for small business guide. Chat links are one small piece of the wider plan described in digital marketing for small businesses.
Frequently asked questions
Does a wa.me link work if the customer does not have WhatsApp?
On a phone without WhatsApp, the link usually opens a web page suggesting the customer download the app, which most will not do just to contact you. That is why the number itself should still appear on your website and in print, with a call option, for people who do not use WhatsApp.
Can I change where my QR code points after printing it?
Not if the code contains the WhatsApp link directly. To change it later, you would need to reprint. If you expect changes, point the code to a page on your own website that you control, and put the WhatsApp link there. You can then update the page without touching the printed code.
Should the QR code go to my number or my catalogue?
For most uses, a chat with a short pre-filled message is best, because the customer can ask anything. A catalogue link suits packaging or flyers aimed at people browsing products. You can print two small codes side by side if both are useful, each clearly labelled with what it opens.
Is it safe to use a free online QR code generator?
Choose a generator that creates a static code containing your link directly, without forcing a redirect through its own servers. Some free tools route scans through their own short links, which can stop working or show ads later. Test the code and check that scanning it goes straight to WhatsApp.
Creating links, QR codes and source tracking for each placement is part of our WhatsApp marketing services. You can do all of it yourself with the formats and checks above, and many businesses do.
Next in this series: WhatsApp Channels for Business: Who They Suit
