WhatsApp One Integration Is Not Enough

With over three billion users worldwide and 98% message open rates, WhatsApp is where a lot of organizing happens. That’s why it has been a key Belcoda feature from the very beginning.

While many organizing platforms treat WhatsApp as an add-on, we’ve put a lot of thought into how to integrate the app’s functionality across the entire surface of our organizing features, and we believe it’s paying off.

Building confidently on uncertain ground

We expect that WhatsApp will continue to grow and evolve, and we don’t exactly get a say in which direction. Meta (the parent company of WhatsApp) calls the shots, and it’s regularly tweaking, adding and removing features and functionalities. What works today might not work tomorrow. That is a risk, and that is why we’re building in flexibility so that our platform is robust and continues to meet the needs of digital campaigners and organizers.

Our approach has been to offer multiple touchpoints of WhatsApp integration, from messaging and support for WhatsApp groups, to taking action via WhatsApp messages and QR codes. You can think of it as a sort of modular architecture where we’re diversifying risk by not putting all our eggs in one basket.

We’re also aware that WhatsApp’s many moving parts and features weren’t built with community organizers in mind. Still, that hasn’t stopped us. Neither will future updates that might be challenging to integrate into our platform. As WhatsApp evolves, so will we. Challenge accepted!

Built in from the ground up

Our modular approach to integrating WhatsApp shows up throughout Belcoda. Each touchpoint may seem small on its own, but together, they create something new: an organizing platform where WhatsApp isn’t bolted on, but built in from the ground up.

Action links and QR codes let people sign up for events or take action by sending a WhatsApp message. Scan a code, hit send, done. We match the incoming message to the action and create or update their record automatically.

Attendance tracking works the same way. Display a QR code at your event, attendees scan it with their phones, and they’re marked present. No clipboards, no manual data entry.

Smart surveys help complete user profiles. When someone new signs up via WhatsApp, we can automatically send them a quick form—delivered inside WhatsApp itself—to collect their name, email, and any custom fields you need for that specific event.

Group monitoring gives you visibility into your WhatsApp groups from inside Belcoda. Track membership changes, see activity levels, and keep your CRM in sync with where organizing actually happens.

What’s coming next

We’ve still got some work to do. Two major developments are on our roadmap that we’re very excited about:

A desktop application that will unlock even more integration possibilities by running directly on organizers’ computers, using their own internet connections. This will open up features—including fuller integration of WhatsApp group functions—that are currently more limited.

A conversational interface that will let organizers interact with Belcoda directly through WhatsApp messages. Send a message to update a contact, check event registrations, or draft a campaign message—all without leaving WhatsApp.

Belcoda makes the difference

To our knowledge, we’re the only organizing platform that combines multiple WhatsApp integration approaches across the entire application. Others offer messaging modules. Some provide basic integrations. None weave WhatsApp throughout the organizing experience the way we do.

This isn’t just about having more features or checking more boxes. It’s about recognizing that effective organizing doesn’t happen in neat, separate channels. It happens wherever people are—and increasingly, that’s WhatsApp.