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How to Set Up WhatsApp Conversation Routing in Inaiy

Set up WhatsApp conversation routing in Inaiy: create a queue, turn on round-robin assignment, add agents, and write rules that send chats to the right queue.

Updated · 6 min read

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WhatsApp conversation routing sends each new chat to the right people automatically, so nobody has to hand out conversations by hand. In Inaiy you set it up in three parts: create a queue under Settings → Queues, turn on auto-assignment so the queue shares chats between its agents, and add routing rules under Settings → Routing Rules that decide which queue, team, or agent gets each chat. A workflow with the Route Conversation step applies the rules.

The result: order questions land with the order team, VIP customers reach senior agents, and the workload stays even.

Who this is for and what you need first

This guide is for Owners, Admins, and support leads who manage the inbox.

You need:

  • Your team invited and active. See invite team members Inaiy.
  • Permission to manage queues. Owners, Admins, and Managers have it.
  • A rough plan: which kinds of chats go to which group of people.

Steps to set up WhatsApp conversation routing

1. Create a queue

Click Settings, then Queues under Inbox. A new workspace shows No queues yet. Click New queue and fill in:

  • Name and Description, such as Order support and "Order and delivery questions".
  • Capacity (callout 1): the most open conversations the queue holds before Inaiy treats it as full.
  • Color: helps agents spot the queue.
  • Queue type: Default, Department, Team, Priority, Overflow, VIP, or Custom.
  • Queue priority weight: a number that ranks this queue against your other queues.
  • Tags: optional, comma-separated.
  • Overflow queue (callout 2) and Fallback queue: where chats go when this queue is full or cannot take them.
  • Default SLA policy: the response-time target for chats in this queue.
Set the capacity (callout 1) and an overflow queue (callout 2) so chats always have somewhere to go.

2. Turn on auto-assignment

Scroll to the bottom of the form.

  • Tick Respect tenant business hours for new joins if the queue should only take new chats during your business hours.
  • Tick Enable auto-assignment (callout 1) and choose how chats are shared: Round robin, Least active, Least conversations, Random, Previous agent, Sticky assignment, First available, or Priority-aware. Manual only turns automatic sharing off.

Round robin is a good start: each agent gets the next chat in turn. Click Save (callout 2).

Enable auto-assignment (callout 1), pick a strategy, then click Save (callout 2).

3. Add agents to the queue

The queue appears in the list with its status and an Auto-assign tag (callout 1). Click the pencil (callout 2) to edit it. Under Queue agents, tick each person who should receive chats from this queue. Use Pause to stop sending chats to someone for a while, such as during a break, and Resume to bring them back.

The bin icon archives the queue. Conversations already routed to it are not removed.

The new queue with its Auto-assign tag (callout 1). Click the pencil (callout 2) to add agents.

4. Add a routing rule

Click Routing Rules under Inbox. The note at the top explains how rules work: lower priority numbers run first, and the first rule that matches wins. Click Add rule (callout 1).

Routing Rules before any rules exist. Click Add rule (callout 1).

5. Match a condition and pick a destination

In New routing rule:

  1. Enter a Name that says what the rule does.
  2. Set the Priority (callout 1). Use 10, 20, 30 so you can add rules in between later. Leave Enabled on.
  3. Enter the Variable to check, such as conversation.priority.
  4. Choose an Operator: Equals, Not equals, Contains, or Exists. Then type the Value, such as high.
  5. Choose the Action: send to a Team, a Queue, or an Agent, and pick which one.
  6. Add a short Reason. It helps teammates understand the rule later.

Click Save (callout 2).

Set the priority (callout 1), the condition, and the queue, then click Save (callout 2).

6. Apply the rules in a workflow

Rules do not run on their own. Open Workflows & AI, edit the workflow that handles new messages, and add the Route Conversation step where you want routing to happen. It checks your enabled rules in priority order and assigns the first match. When you change a rule later, you do not need to republish the workflow.

How to confirm it worked

  1. Send a test message from your own phone that matches a rule.
  2. Open the chat in the Inbox. The header shows the queue, team, or agent the rule chose instead of Unassigned.
  3. Send a second test message from another phone. With round robin, it should go to the next agent in the queue.

Common mistakes

  1. Creating rules but no workflow step. Routing rules only run from the Route Conversation step. Without it, chats stay unassigned.
  2. Turning on auto-assignment with no agents in the queue. The queue has nobody to give chats to. Edit the queue and tick at least two agents.
  3. Giving two rules the same priority. The order between them becomes unclear. Space priorities out and put the most specific rule first.

Frequently asked questions

What happens when no routing rule matches a conversation?

If the Route Conversation step has a fallback destination set, the chat goes there. Otherwise the step takes its failure path in the workflow, so connect that path to a general queue and the chat never sits unassigned. You can also add a last catch-all rule with a high priority number.

What is the difference between a queue and a team?

A team is a group of people, used for permissions, reports, and assignment. A queue is a line of conversations waiting for agents, with its own capacity, assignment strategy, overflow, and SLA. A routing rule can send a chat to either one, or straight to a single agent.

Can routing follow our business hours?

Yes. Tick Respect tenant business hours for new joins on the queue, and it only takes new chats during the hours set in Settings, then Business Hours. Pair it with an after-hours message so customers who write at night know when to expect a reply.

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