Many small businesses run on WhatsApp, and much of the day goes to the same handful of questions. What time do you open, how much is it, do you deliver, is this available. You answer them between customers, after hours, and in the middle of everything else, and a slow reply can cost you a sale. The information a customer needs already lives in your head or in a document somewhere. Answr turns that into automatic replies on your WhatsApp, without asking you to build a bot.
What automated WhatsApp replies mean with Answr
This is not a separate app your customers have to use. It works inside the conversations you already have.
- Customers keep messaging your business number. Nothing changes for them.
- Answr replies from your business knowledge. The facts you gave it, in your own wording.
- Answers happen inside the real chat. Not a menu or a form, just a reply in the thread.
- Anything it doesn't know goes to you. If your knowledge does not cover the question, Answr hands it back instead of guessing.
Focused on service inquiries? See an AI customer-service agent for WhatsApp.
What owners usually hand off first
Many owners start with the questions they answer over and over. Common ones:
- Opening hours
- Standard prices
- Services you offer
- Delivery information
- Policies, like returns or cancellations
- Your most frequent questions
It looks different in every business: for a clinic it is consulting hours and what to bring, for a shop delivery and returns, for a tradesperson the service area and call-out price, for a studio the class days.
If you take bookings, Answr can answer "which days do you work?" from what you've told it. Whether a particular time is free right now, it checks or passes to you, so it doesn't promise a slot that has gone. Not every question fits automatic handling, and that is the point of the next parts.
Away messages, greeting messages and quick replies: what they do, and what Answr adds
The free WhatsApp Business app already has three tools that help you reply faster. They are useful, and it is worth knowing exactly what each one does:
- Away message. Sent automatically to people who message you when you are not available: always, on a schedule you choose, or outside the business hours in your business profile. Everyone gets the same text, whatever they asked.
- Greeting message. Sent automatically when a customer messages you for the first time, or after 14 days with no activity in the chat. It is also a fixed text.
- Quick replies. Up to 50 saved replies that you send yourself with a shortcut. They save typing, but someone still has to read each message, pick the right reply and send it. When several customers write at once, that someone is still you.
Answr works differently: it reads the customer's question and answers it from what you taught it about your business, even when you are away from your phone. Anything it cannot answer comes back to you.
| Question | Free WhatsApp Business tools | Answr |
|---|---|---|
| Who sends it | Away or greeting message: the app, by itself. Quick reply: you, every time | Answr, by itself |
| What the customer gets | A fixed text, the same for everyone, or the saved reply you picked | An answer to the question they asked, from your business information |
| A customer asks about a price late at night | Your fixed text, such as "We'll get back to you soon", then a wait until you see the message | The price, if it is in what you taught Answr. If not, the question comes to you |
| Cost | Free in the app | Monthly plan |
When are the free tools enough? When you get few messages, or when almost every message needs you anyway, like a personal quote. In that case a clear away message and a tidy set of quick replies can be enough. The away message also has real strengths: the app sends it automatically as soon as someone writes, and it is completely predictable, because every customer gets exactly the text you wrote. Answr writes each reply for the question in front of it, so what it says depends on what you taught it, and anything your information does not cover comes to you instead. Answr is worth it when the same questions come in every day and customers write while you are busy, expecting a real answer rather than a note that you are away.
Answr has two plans, Basic and Unlimited, both on the Answr pricing page. Both start with one free month and no credit card, and there is no setup fee on either plan. If your business needs a custom integration, it may be charged separately.
Why this is not a flow builder
Most WhatsApp automation asks you to map out conversations in advance: if the customer says this, reply that, then branch here. That works until real customers ask things you did not map, or until your prices and hours change and the flow is suddenly wrong.
Answr is knowledge-first, not flow-first. You give it the facts about your business in plain language, and it answers from them. When your information changes, you update the information, not a diagram of every possible conversation. You should not have to maintain logic trees to answer customers. See the full comparison: flow builder or learning assistant.
How it works, start to finish
- Sign up. No credit card, no sales call.
- Teach Answr. Share your website, a price list, or just tell it how your business works in plain language.
- Connect WhatsApp Business. Connect your number - the WhatsApp Business app or the Business Platform - through Meta's official process. Connecting does not turn on replies.
- Test the answers. In your own chat with Answr, ask customer-style questions and see how it would reply. Customer replies are still off.
- Turn on replies. You make the explicit choice to let Answr start answering customers.
On regular WhatsApp? Switch to the free WhatsApp Business app first - your chats and groups come with you on the same phone (back up first, and save any contacts that exist only inside WhatsApp to your phone).
What stays with you
Automatic does not mean out of your hands. You keep the decisions that should be yours:
- Custom decisions and exceptions. The judgment calls stay with you.
- Sensitive and restricted topics. Reserve subjects like discounts, custom pricing or refunds, and Answr routes them to you.
- Manual takeover. Reply to a customer yourself and Answr goes quiet in that thread.
- Pause and resume. Turn automatic replies off and on whenever you want.
The two questions owners ask next
Two concerns usually come up before going live, and each has its own page:
- Is the connection official and safe? See the official Meta connection.
- What stops it from giving a wrong answer? See how Answr avoids guessing.
Answr answers what you've taught it and passes the rest to you. Some questions should stay with you, and it is worth reviewing what it knows as your business changes.
Common questions
What questions can Answr answer?
The ones your business knowledge covers, such as hours, standard prices, services, delivery and your frequent questions. Anything your knowledge doesn't cover is handed to you instead of guessed.
Do I need to build a chatbot or a flow?
No. There are no decision trees or flows to build. You provide your business facts in plain language and Answr answers from them.
Isn't the free away message enough?
Sometimes. An away message tells customers you are not available, which beats silence. It does not answer what they asked, because everyone gets the same text. If most of your messages are the same questions, like hours, prices or delivery, Answr answers those itself and passes you only what needs you.
Does it work with regular WhatsApp?
Answr connects to WhatsApp Business - the free Business app or the Business Platform - and you keep your existing number. On regular WhatsApp? Switch to the free WhatsApp Business app first - your chats and groups come with you on the same phone (back up first, and save any contacts that exist only inside WhatsApp to your phone). Connecting does not turn on replies.
Can I test Answr before it answers customers?
Yes. Connecting your number does not start replies. In your own chat with Answr, ask it the kinds of questions customers ask and see how it would answer from what it knows about your business. It only starts answering customers when you tell it to.
What happens when Answr does not know?
It's built not to improvise. When your knowledge does not cover the question, Answr hands it to you on WhatsApp rather than inventing an answer.
Can I keep answering customers myself?
Yes. When you reply to a conversation yourself, Answr goes quiet in that thread so it does not talk over you.
Can I keep using greeting messages and quick replies?
Yes. If you use the WhatsApp Business app, quick replies stay your tool for the chats you handle yourself. Answr is built to recognize the greeting and away messages the app sends by itself, so they normally don't count as you stepping into the chat and Answr keeps answering. Once Answr is answering your customers, an away message is usually redundant, so if Answr notices one going out from your number it may suggest that you switch it off.
Can I pause automatic replies?
Yes. You can pause automatic replies at any time and turn them back on when you want.
Can it answer only at certain hours?
Yes. You can tell Answr which days and hours it answers customers, for example Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 18:00. A message that arrives outside those hours is not ignored: Answr holds the reply until your hours begin, and meanwhile you can answer it yourself. WhatsApp only allows a free-form reply within 24 hours of the customer's message. So if a customer writes on Friday evening and your hours only start again on Monday morning, more than a day later, Answr may reply with a pre-approved WhatsApp message or pass the conversation to you instead. You can also ask it to wait a few minutes before replying. If you answer the customer yourself while it waits, it normally stays quiet in that chat.
How do I update information?
Tell Answr the new value in plain language or share an updated document, and the new information replaces the old. You can also remove information that is no longer true.
Does Answr replace me completely?
No. It handles the repetitive questions from your knowledge and keeps the judgment calls, exceptions and reserved topics with you. You stay the authority.
See how Answr works and pricing, or read what to automate on WhatsApp and what to keep. Ready to try it? Start for free.
