Getting started

Setup is four steps, and the app tracks which one you're on. Pages that aren't useful yet stay locked with an explanation — Compose has nothing to target before you've tagged a group, Analytics has nothing to chart before your first send — so you can't get lost in a half-configured app.

Before you start: use a dedicated WhatsApp number, not your personal one. Everything about the product works the same either way, but if WhatsApp ever restricts the number, you want that to happen to a spare SIM rather than to your own account. See Staying unbanned.

Step 1 — Connect a WhatsApp number#

Go to Numbers and start a connection. You'll get a QR code; open WhatsApp on the phone holding that number, go to Settings → Linked devices → Link a device, and scan it.

Two things to expect:

• The QR refreshes every few seconds. That's WhatsApp, not a bug — just scan whichever one is on screen.
• History sync runs after pairing. WhatsApp pushes your chat history to the new device, which is how we discover your groups. It usually takes under a minute. If it stalls, there's a Continue without history button — you keep the connection and your group list fills in as messages arrive.

Full detail, including multiple numbers and reconnecting: Numbers.

Step 2 — Import your groups#

Once the number is linked, open Groups. Every WhatsApp group the linked account is a member of shows up here. PromotionBot cannot create or join groups — you add the linked account to a group from WhatsApp, like any other member.

The web app sends to groups only; there's no one-to-one messaging in it. (The MCP tools can send to an individual number, for human-in-the-loop replies.)

New groups land in a default bucket called general. That's deliberate: nothing is targetable in a meaningful way until you tag it.

Step 3 — Tag your groups#

Tags (also called categories) are how you target sends. Instead of picking 40 groups by hand every time, you tag once — first-year, alumni, committees, sports — and then send to a tag.

Two ways to do it:

• By hand — select groups, assign a tag. Fast for a handful.
• AI auto-tag — if AI is enabled on your deployment, PromotionBot reads group names and suggests tags in bulk. Always review the result; it's a first pass, not a decision.

While you're here, set a daily cap per group. This is the maximum number of messages any one group can receive from you per day, and it's the main reason your members don't start muting you. One or two is right for almost everyone. More on both: Groups, tags & caps.

Tagging at least one group off the general bucket is what unlocks Compose.

Step 4 — Send your first message#

Open Compose. Pick a tag, write your message, and look at the delivery preview before you send. It tells you exactly what will happen:

Reaches 12 of 14 groups · 1 cooling down until 18:40 · 1 over daily cap

That line is computed by the same code that runs the real send, so it doesn't lie. If a group is going to be skipped, you find out now rather than afterwards.

Hit send and Compose switches to a live progress view — a bar, a per-group status list, and an ETA. It moves slowly on purpose. PromotionBot types like a person: a typing indicator, a pause proportional to message length, then a randomised gap before the next group. A 40-group send takes several minutes. That pacing is the anti-ban feature; there's no fast mode, and you don't want one.

What to do next#

• Put a link in your message. Any URL gets rewritten into a per-group tracking link automatically, which is what makes Analytics useful — you'll see which year group actually clicks.
• Set up your first event. If you're promoting something with a date, Events builds the whole timeline (save-the-date → announcement → reminder → last call → day-of) from one form.
• Invite your team. Roles and approvals let committee members draft sends that an admin approves, all from one shared number.
• Read the ban-avoidance rules. Staying unbanned is fifteen minutes that will save you a number.