Comparing channels

Use the table below to compare the available channels before deciding where to publish your agent.

Channel	Best suited for	Interaction type	Interactive elements	Prerequisites	Setup effort
Website	Website visitors, lead generation, customer support, FAQs	Synchronous	Buttons, carousels, forms, media, rich web interactions	Website access to add the WotNot widget	Low
WhatsApp	Customer support, notifications, lead generation, transactional conversations	Synchronous / asynchronous	Reply buttons, lists, templates, media, catalogue and other WhatsApp-native interactions	WhatsApp Business API/BSP, phone number configuration, and approved templates where required	High
Instagram	Customer engagement and support through Instagram conversations	Synchronous / asynchronous	Instagram-supported messaging interactions	Connected Instagram account/Page and Meta configuration	Medium
Facebook Messenger	Customer support and engagement through Facebook	Synchronous / asynchronous	Messenger-supported buttons, media and messaging interactions	Connected Facebook Page and Meta configuration	Medium
SMS	Notifications, reminders, simple support and text-based conversations	Asynchronous	Text-based interactions and supported SMS options	SMS provider and API credentials; regional registration may also be required	Medium
Mobile app	In-app customer support and assistance	Synchronous	Interactions supported by the selected SDK or WebView implementation	Mobile app integration using Android SDK, iOS SDK, or WebView	High
API	Custom applications, backend systems and custom chat experiences	Synchronous / asynchronous	Depends on the interface and message types implemented by your application	API integration and developer implementation	High
Voice	Phone-based support, automated assistance and call handling	Synchronous	Voice conversations and voice-specific settings	Telephony provider and configured phone number	High
Email	Email-based customer communication and automated responses	Asynchronous	Email content, links and supported email elements	Email channel configuration and required account settings	Medium

If you are publishing an agent for the first time, Website is generally the simplest starting point. For messaging channels such as WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, or SMS, check the channel prerequisites before building a flow around channel-specific interactions.

Running one agent on multiple channels

You can use the same agent across multiple channels instead of maintaining a completely separate agent for every platform. You can clone the bot into another channel. However, publishing the same agent to multiple channels does not mean that every step will look or behave exactly the same. Each channel has its own message formats and supported interactive elements.

How a flow adapts

When a flow runs on a channel that does not support a particular action block, that block may not be available or may not render in the same way as it does on another channel. For example, a Carousel is supported only on the Web channel, while Reply Buttons are supported on WhatsApp for supported BSPs. Before using a channel-specific action block, check its supported channels in the Action blocks documentation.

When to build separate flows

Use separate flows when the customer experience needs to be substantially different between channels. Consider separate flows when:

The channel supports very different interactive elements.
The flow contains many buttons, lists, carousels, or other channel-specific components.
Messages need to be shorter or more conversational on messaging channels.
Your Web experience depends heavily on rich formatting or visual components.
WhatsApp, SMS, or Voice requires a different conversation structure from your Web experience.
The same business process needs different questions or steps depending on the channel.

Channel-specific branching

You can detect the channel during a conversation and use it to branch the flow. WotNot provides a channel system variable, which contains the name of the channel where the conversation is taking place. For example, you can use the channel variable in a Condition block to create different paths for different channels:

Website → Show a rich Web experience.
WhatsApp → Use WhatsApp-supported buttons or lists.
SMS → Keep the response text-based.
Voice → Use a voice-friendly conversation structure.

This approach lets you keep common parts of the conversation in one flow while adapting only the channel-specific sections.

Channel pages

Website

Publish your agent on your website and interact with visitors through the Web chat widget.

Connect your agent to WhatsApp for customer conversations, notifications, and support.

Instagram

Connect your agent to Instagram to engage with customers through Instagram messaging.

Facebook Messenger

Use your Facebook Page’s Messenger conversations to connect customers with your agent.

SMS

Connect an SMS provider and use your agent for text-based customer conversations.

Mobile app

Add your agent to a mobile application using the available SDK or WebView options.

API

Connect your own application or backend to WotNot using APIs.

Voice

Use your agent to handle customer conversations over the phone.

Email

Use your agent to handle conversations through email.

Prerequisites by channel

Before starting the setup for a channel, make sure you have the required accounts, credentials, or integrations available.

Channel	What you need before publishing
Website	Access to the website where you want to install the WotNot chat widget.
WhatsApp	WhatsApp Business API access through a supported BSP, a WhatsApp phone number, and approved WhatsApp templates when templates are required. WotNot currently supports BSPs including Meta, 360Dialog, GupShup, Twilio, and TechAlpha.
Instagram	A connected Instagram account and the required Meta account/Page configuration.
Facebook Messenger	A connected Facebook Page and the required Meta configuration.
SMS	An account with a supported SMS provider and the required API credentials. WotNot currently documents Twilio and TechAlpha as SMS providers. Regional registration requirements may also apply depending on the provider and destination.
Mobile app	Access to your mobile application’s source code and the appropriate WotNot Android SDK, iOS SDK, or WebView integration.
API	Developer access to your application or backend and the ability to integrate with WotNot’s APIs.
Voice	A supported telephony provider and a phone number configured for voice. WotNot currently supports Twilio for the Voice channel.
Email	The required email channel configuration and access to the email account or service used for sending and receiving messages.

Getting started

Build

Operate

Deploy

Reports

Account

Channels

Comparing channels

Running one agent on multiple channels

How a flow adapts

When to build separate flows

Channel-specific branching

Channel pages

Website

WhatsApp

Instagram

Facebook Messenger

SMS

Mobile app

API

Voice

Email

Prerequisites by channel

​Comparing channels

​Running one agent on multiple channels

​How a flow adapts

​When to build separate flows

​Channel-specific branching

​Channel pages

Website

WhatsApp

Instagram

Facebook Messenger

SMS

Mobile app

API

Voice

Email

​Prerequisites by channel

Comparing channels

Running one agent on multiple channels

How a flow adapts

When to build separate flows

Channel-specific branching

Channel pages

Prerequisites by channel