Take the order in the chat.
Nobody leaves the chat to place an order, so fewer of them leave at all.
In-chat ordering lets a customer choose items, confirm a total and give delivery details inside a WhatsApp conversation, without a website or an app. For businesses whose customers already message to order, it replaces a manual back and forth where prices are quoted from memory and orders are lost in a busy thread.
- Menu shown as a selectable list inside WhatsApp
- A typed-out order turned into a basket with the right prices
- Prices and availability re-checked before placing
- Delivery or pickup details captured in the conversation
How it works.
- 01
Turn ordering on
Ordering stays dormant until you enable it for the workspace, so connecting WhatsApp does not silently put a shop in your inbox.
- 02
Customer asks
They ask for the menu or describe what they want. The agent answers from your live item list, so only real items and real prices are quoted.
- 03
Basket and confirmation
The order is assembled into a basket and sent back as a confirmation. The customer replies to confirm, and the total is re-priced against the live list before anything is placed.
- 04
Fulfilment details
Delivery or pickup, the address and a time are captured in the conversation, then the order is placed and the owner is notified.
A menu the customer can tap
Free text is fine for a regular, but a first-time customer needs to see what is available. The item list is sent as a selectable list inside WhatsApp.
- Interactive list of items with short descriptions
- Built from your live catalogue
- A typed-out order lands in the same basket
Prices that cannot drift
The gap between quoting and confirming is where chat ordering usually breaks. The total is recalculated at confirmation and unavailable items are caught then.
- Re-priced at confirmation against the live list
- A small tolerance, surfaced once it is exceeded
- Sold-out items re-checked before placement
- A basket that goes cold expires instead of placing itself later
Fulfilment captured properly
Delivery or pickup, an address and a requested time are collected in the conversation, with a short form where WhatsApp supports one.
- Delivery or pickup selection
- Address capture, with the order held until it is present
- Scheduled time for later orders
- Owner notified when an order is placed
Order status without asking a person
Once an order exists, the reply agent can answer questions about it from the order record, and it never invents one.
- The customer's recent orders used to answer
- Status answered from the record, or not at all
- Order confirmation playbook for cash on delivery
Bulk and gift orders
Two larger shapes are handled as their own paths: bulk and event requests, and orders sent to more than one recipient.
- Catering and bulk quote requests
- Gift orders with multiple recipients
- Both captured in the same conversation
Payment inside the chatsoon
Payment links generated in the conversation and settled against the order, so a cash on delivery order can be converted to prepaid before dispatch.
- Payment link created against the order
- Payment state recorded on the order
- Prepaid conversion offered during confirmation
What it does not do.
Ordering runs on WhatsApp only. Other channels handle the conversation but not the ordering flow.
Payment runs through the provider you connect. Otobiz does not hold the money.
The interactive list is limited by what WhatsApp allows in one message, so very long menus need grouping.
Common questions
Which channels support ordering?
- WhatsApp. The interactive list, the confirmation and the fulfilment capture are built on what WhatsApp supports.
Where does the menu come from?
- From the catalogue in your workspace. The live list is given to the agent so it can only quote real items, prices and identifiers.
What stops a wrong total?
- The order is re-priced at confirmation against the live list, within a small tolerance, and unavailable items are caught before placement.
Can customers order in their own words?
- Yes. A typed-out order is turned into a basket, and the tappable list is there for customers who prefer to browse.
Can I take payment in the chat?
- Yes. A payment link goes out in the conversation through the provider you connect, and cash on delivery is available as a playbook.
Does the AI answer questions about an order?
- Yes. The customer's recent orders are used to answer, and it never invents one.
Is ordering on by default?
- No. It stays dormant until you enable it, so connecting a channel does not put an ordering flow in front of customers.
Can I connect my existing store?
- Orders placed through the chat are recorded in your workspace, and your store connection keeps the catalogue and the order feed in step.
The reason a customer comes back a second time.