Your visitors can be kept up to date by WhatsApp or by text messages, never both at once. You choose one for the whole business.
The web page and email always work for everyone, free, whichever you choose, even when both are Off.
Text messages are not open in any country yet. turnda opens text messages in a country only after testing them there, and at launch none is open. Until one opens, visitors are not offered text updates, so choose WhatsApp or Off for now. The text-message parts of this page describe how the choice will work once texts open.
What it is
The Visitor updates card in Billing has three tiles: Off, WhatsApp and Text messages (SMS). You pick one, and it applies to all your locations.
How to check it in turnda
- Open Billing and find the Visitor updates card at the top of the add-ons. The chosen tile says “Selected”.
- Below it, the WhatsApp messages and Text messages cards are always there, each with its state — such as On or Off — right beside its name. The one you do not use says why, for example “Your business uses WhatsApp”.
- On the Free package the card is greyed out and says “Works on a paid package — choose a package first.” Choose a package to unlock it.
- A manager has no Billing page; only the owner switches. Staff do not see Billing at all. Only the owner switches.
A real example
Your café uses WhatsApp today and wants texts for visitors who do not have WhatsApp. You press Switch to text messages. WhatsApp stays on while you set up and pay your first text pack. When the payment goes through, WhatsApp turns off and texts take over. Your unused WhatsApp messages are kept in case you switch back.
What happens in the system
| Off | WhatsApp Popular | Text messages (SMS) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Businesses that want no messages | Visitors who use WhatsApp | Visitors without WhatsApp or data, on any mobile phone (once texts open) |
| What visitors get | Web page and email only, free | Two fixed messages on WhatsApp: “you’re in” and “almost your turn” | Two texts per visit: “you’re in” and “almost your turn” |
| What it costs | Nothing | About US$0.012–0.13 a visit, by zone | About US$0.24–0.90 a visit, by zone |
- 1Press Switch to text messagesA box explains the three short steps
- 2Choose countries, the name on the texts, then limit and payThe card says “Switching to text messages…”
- 3WhatsApp stays on until the first text pack is paidVisitors never lose their updates
- 4Texts take overWhatsApp turns off. Unused WhatsApp messages are kept
What you need to do
- To switch, press Switch to text messages or Switch to WhatsApp and follow the short steps.
- If the payment fails, nothing is lost: the first channel simply stays on. Press Finish switching on to try again.
- Going the other way works the same: press Switch to WhatsApp, pay your first WhatsApp pack, and text messages turn off when it is paid.
Want WhatsApp in one location and texts in another? A business uses one channel for all its locations. To run a location differently, run it as its own paid turnda account with its own channel.
What turnda does not cover
- Which channel your visitors prefer. That is your call, so ask a few of them.
- The visitor’s phone and network, on either channel.
- The channel’s own rules, set by WhatsApp (Meta) or by the phone networks.
Common questions
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Can a visitor get both? | No. A business uses one of the two for all its locations. |
| Do I lose my WhatsApp messages if I switch? | No. Unused WhatsApp messages are kept in case you switch back. |
| What do visitors get on Off? | The web page, the lobby TV and email, free. |
| Can a manager switch it? | No. Only the owner. |
Related: Switching WhatsApp on · Billing & packages