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Route a first-time channel connect to the right onboarding surface

The first-channel guide is the general picker: it covers the shared shape every channel follows (Messages hub → Connect → send → verify) and holds SMS and WhatsApp as the worked examples. Four first-channel picks, though, have dedicated single-surface runbooks, and starting from the picker when one of these is your target adds a detour. This page routes you.

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1. The decision: picker or surface runbook

For each of the four most common first picks, one question decides which door to open: If your pick is not one of these four, stay on the picker — SMS, RCS, Telegram, and outbound email all flow through it cleanly.

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2. Per-surface runbook pointer

Each runbook differs from the picker on one specific scope line:
  • Native chat widget channel config — the Settings → Channels → Native Chat surface: brand color, position, agent identity, business hours, GDPR consent, and origin locking, then the install snippet for your site.
  • Inbound email and SMS routing — the inbound direction: domain-based email parse, match rules for incoming SMS, keyword auto-replies, and bounce/unsubscribe handling.
  • WhatsApp Business Account setup — the full production path: Meta Business Manager, WABA verification, and the ~3–7 business-day document checklist, ending at your first approved template.
  • Push notifications end to end — the library/SDK connect: token registration, targeting modes, per-device results, scheduling, and push.delivered / push.opened engagement acks.

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3. Anchor map

The four runbook pages above are complete onboarding paths; the first-channel picker remains the authoritative guide for overall channel strategy — which channel to pick, how the connect → send → verify shape holds across channels, and how to hand off between channels. This page is only the router from that strategy decision to the correct surface runbook; it grants no other page authority over the pick. For sandbox-first validation of any pick, the sandbox and test mode guide covers the simulated surface both doors feed into.

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Next steps