Send a Contact

In this code snippet you learn how to send a contact to WhatsApp using the Messages API. This uses Vonage's Custom object feature. Further information on the specific message format can be found in the WhatsApp developers Contacts message documentation.

Example

Ensure the following variables are set to your required values using any convenient method:

Key	Description
`BASE_URL`	For production use the base URL is `https://api.nexmo.com/`. For sandbox testing the base URL is `https://messages-sandbox.nexmo.com/`.
`MESSAGES_API_URL`	For production use the Messages API endpoint is `https://api.nexmo.com/v0.1/messages`. For sandbox testing the Messages API endpoint is `https://messages-sandbox.nexmo.com/v0.1/messages`.
`WHATSAPP_NUMBER`	The WhatsApp number that has been allocated to you by Vonage. For sandbox testing the number is 14157386170.
`TO_NUMBER`	Replace with the number you are sending to. E.g. `447700900001`

NOTE: Don't use a leading + or 00 when entering a phone number, start with the country code, for example, 447700900000.

Prerequisites

If you do not have an application you can create one. Make sure you also configure your webhooks.

Write the code

Add the following to send-contact.sh:

curl -X POST $MESSAGES_API_URL \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer' $JWT \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
  "from": {
    "type": "whatsapp",
    "number": "$WHATSAPP_NUMBER"
  },
  "to": {
    "type": "whatsapp",
    "number": "$TO_NUMBER"
  },
  "message": {
    "content": {
      "type": "custom",
      "custom": {
        "type": "contacts",
        "contacts": [
          {
            "addresses": [
              {
                "city": "Menlo Park",
                "country": "United States",
                "country_code": "us",
                "state": "CA",
                "street": "1 Hacker Way",
                "type": "HOME",
                "zip": "94025"
              },
              {
                "city": "Menlo Park",
                "country": "United States",
                "country_code": "us",
                "state": "CA",
                "street": "200 Jefferson Dr",
                "type": "WORK",
                "zip": "94025"
              }
            ],
            "birthday": "2012-08-18",
            "emails": [
              {
                "email": "test@fb.com",
                "type": "WORK"
              },
              {
                "email": "test@whatsapp.com",
                "type": "WORK"
              }
            ],
            "name": {
              "first_name": "John",
              "formatted_name": "John Smith",
              "last_name": "Smith"
            },
            "org": {
              "company": "WhatsApp",
              "department": "Design",
              "title": "Manager"
            },
            "phones": [
              {
                "phone": "+1 (940) 555-1234",
                "type": "HOME"
              },
              {
                "phone": "+1 (650) 555-1234",
                "type": "WORK",
                "wa_id": "16505551234"
              }
            ],
            "urls": [
              {
                "url": "https://www.facebook.com",
                "type": "WORK"
              }
            ]
          }
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}'

View full source

Run your code

Save this file to your machine and run it:

bash send-contact.sh

Prerequisites

If you do not have an application you can create one. Make sure you also configure your webhooks.

npm install @vonage/server-sdk@beta

Write the code

Add the following to send-contact.js:

const Vonage = require('@vonage/server-sdk');

const vonage = new Vonage(
    {
        apiKey: VONAGE_API_KEY,
        apiSecret: VONAGE_API_SECRET,
        applicationId: VONAGE_APPLICATION_ID,
        privateKey: VONAGE_APPLICATION_PRIVATE_KEY_PATH,
    },
    {
        apiHost: BASE_URL,
    }
);

vonage.channel.send(
    { type: 'whatsapp', number: TO_NUMBER },
    { type: 'whatsapp', number: WHATSAPP_NUMBER },
    {
        content: {
            type: 'custom',
            custom: {
                type: 'contacts',
                contacts: [
                    {
                        addresses: [
                            {
                                city: 'Menlo Park',
                                country: 'United States',
                                country_code: 'us',
                                state: 'CA',
                                street: '1 Hacker Way',
                                type: 'HOME',
                                zip: '94025',
                            },
                            {
                                city: 'Menlo Park',
                                country: 'United States',
                                country_code: 'us',
                                state: 'CA',
                                street: '200 Jefferson Dr',
                                type: 'WORK',
                                zip: '94025',
                            },
                        ],
                        birthday: '2012-08-18',
                        emails: [
                            {
                                email: 'test@fb.com',
                                type: 'WORK',
                            },
                            {
                                email: 'test@whatsapp.com',
                                type: 'WORK',
                            },
                        ],
                        name: {
                            first_name: 'John',
                            formatted_name: 'John Smith',
                            last_name: 'Smith',
                        },
                        org: {
                            company: 'WhatsApp',
                            department: 'Design',
                            title: 'Manager',
                        },
                        phones: [
                            {
                                phone: '+1 (940) 555-1234',
                                type: 'HOME',
                            },
                            {
                                phone: '+1 (650) 555-1234',
                                type: 'WORK',
                                wa_id: '16505551234',
                            },
                        ],
                        urls: [
                            {
                                url: 'https://www.facebook.com',
                                type: 'WORK',
                            },
                        ],
                    },
                ],
            },
        },
    },
    (err, data) => {
        if (err) {
            console.error(err);
        } else {
            console.log(data.message_uuid);
        }
    }
);

View full source

Run your code

Save this file to your machine and run it:

node send-contact.js

Try it out

When you run the code a WhatsApp contact message is sent to the destination number. In WhatsApp you can view the contact details and add to address book if required.

Further information

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