At 9:40 on a Tuesday night, a parent messages a coaching institute on WhatsApp asking about fees, batch timings and whether a demo class is possible. Nobody replies until the next afternoon, by which time the parent has spoken to two other institutes. This is the quiet cost of manual replies: not angry customers, but enquiries that cool before anyone answers.
This page explains how an AI chatbot development company in Delhi, PC Media House, builds chat assistants and workflow automation for businesses, working online across NCR and India. It covers what can safely be automated, how WhatsApp's rules and costs work in 2026, where AI helps and where it should be kept on a short lead, how a build is run, why pricing is a custom quote, and what India's data protection law expects.
A chatbot is not a replacement for your team and cannot promise perfect answers. Done well, it answers the repetitive questions quickly, gathers details properly, and brings in a person when it matters.
What we build: assistants, flows and automations
The word chatbot covers several different things. Being clear about which one you need prevents overspending and disappointment.
| Type | What it does | Example use |
|---|---|---|
| Rule-based flow | Follows fixed menus, buttons and forms, so answers are predictable | Collecting name, city and course interest, then booking a call |
| Knowledge-grounded assistant | Understands free-text questions and answers from your approved content only | Answering fee, timing and document questions in natural language |
| Workflow automation | Moves data and triggers actions between tools without a conversation | Sending a new lead from a form to the CRM and alerting the owner |
| Follow-up sequences | Sends reminders, confirmations and updates at set moments | Appointment reminders, payment status updates, order dispatch notes |
| Hybrid with human handover | Mixes the above and passes complex cases to staff with the history attached | Complaints, custom quotes and sensitive questions |
Most useful builds are hybrids. Predictable steps stay rule-based, free-text understanding is limited to approved content, and anything risky goes to a person.
Beyond conversations, much of the value is in plumbing. A lead captured at 11 pm should land in the CRM with the right owner, source and follow-up date, not in someone's phone gallery as a screenshot. If your numbers also need to be visible at a glance, the data these automations collect can feed a custom business dashboard.
WhatsApp in 2026: rules, windows and costs
For most Indian businesses, WhatsApp is where customers actually talk. It is also the channel with the most rules, so it is worth understanding them before building.
Business App versus Business Platform
The WhatsApp Business App suits a small team replying by hand, with quick replies and labels. Automation at scale, integrations and multiple agents need the WhatsApp Business Platform, accessed through Meta's API directly or through a provider. This is what we set up for chatbot projects.
Opt-in, windows and templates
- Opt-in: WhatsApp's business policy says you may contact people only if they have given you their number and opted in, and you must honour opt-outs.
- 24-hour customer service window: opens when a customer messages you. Non-template replies are free while it is open, and utility templates sent inside it are also free.
- Approved templates: messages you start, or send after the window closes, generally need a template approved by Meta.
- 72-hour free entry point window: when someone messages you through a Click to WhatsApp ad or a Facebook Page call-to-action button and you respond within 24 hours, all message types are free for 72 hours.
- Quality limits: if users block or report your number often, WhatsApp may limit how many messages you can send.
How charges work
Meta replaced conversation-based pricing with per-message pricing on 1 July 2025. You are charged when a template message is delivered, by category. Marketing messages are always charged, even inside an open window. Utility messages are charged outside a window and free inside one. Authentication messages are charged, with volume discounts. Utility and authentication volume tiers reset monthly.
Two India-specific points from Meta's pricing documentation matter for planning. The India marketing rate increased on 1 January 2026, and billing localisation began for eligible Indian customers on the same date, with WhatsApp Business Accounts required to migrate to INR billing by 31 December 2026. After 1 January 2027, Meta stops delivering messages from non-INR accounts of eligible customers. If you already use WhatsApp with a foreign-currency account, ask your provider about migration now. We do not quote per-message rates here because they are revised periodically; check Meta's rate card and add GST.
Categories are assigned by Meta, and you accept the charge for the category applied when a message is sent. We write templates carefully so that a utility message, such as an order update, is not mixed with promotion and reclassified as marketing.
Where AI helps, and where it needs guardrails
Language models are good at understanding messy, free-text questions, such as 'fees for class 11 science with coaching kya hai?' They are less reliable when asked to state precise facts. A responsible build therefore separates understanding from answering.
- Answer only from approved content. The assistant draws on a knowledge base you control, and says it does not know when the answer is not there.
- Keep fixed facts fixed. Prices, dates, eligibility and policies come from approved fields, not from the assistant's own improvisation.
- Set forbidden topics. Medical advice, legal opinions, refund decisions and anything involving distress go straight to a person.
- Tell users what they are talking to. A short opening line that this is an automated assistant, with an easy way to reach a person, builds trust.
- Log and review. Conversations are reviewed regularly, and wrong or weak answers become fixes.
WhatsApp's own policy points in the same direction. It allows automation within the 24-hour window, but expects prompt, clear and direct escalation, such as transfer to a human agent, a phone number, email or a support form.
Meta also changed its terms in a way that affects what you can build. On 15 January 2026, the WhatsApp Business Solution terms were updated to bar AI providers from using the platform to distribute general-purpose assistants. Customer-service chatbots for a business, handling things like order tracking and appointment booking, remain allowed. We therefore build assistants that serve your business content, not open-ended conversation.
Who benefits, and what we need from you
The strongest cases are businesses where the same questions repeat and where speed of reply affects the outcome. A clinic answering timing and fee questions. An interior design studio qualifying budget and location before a site visit. An online store handling 'where is my order'. A B2B firm routing demo requests to the right salesperson with the details already collected.
- Real enquiries: a month of messages, call notes or emails, so we design around what customers actually ask.
- Approved answers: prices or ranges, timings, policies and documents, in the words you want used.
- Channel access: a WhatsApp number that can be used for the Business Platform, your Meta Business account, and website access.
- CRM or sheet access: role-based access, never shared passwords.
- Handover plan: who takes over, in which hours, and how quickly they will respond.
- Consent and privacy material: your privacy notice and where permission for messaging is collected.
The most common delay is not technology but content. Writing down accurate answers to your own frequent questions takes longer than most owners expect, and it is the foundation of a reliable assistant.
How a chatbot project runs
Step 1: Conversation audit
We read your real enquiries, group them and decide what to automate, what to route and what to leave to people.
Step 2: Flows and knowledge base
We write conversation paths, approved answers, tone and handover rules for your approval.
Step 3: Channel and integration setup
WhatsApp Business Platform, website widget and CRM or sheet connections are prepared and tested.
Step 4: Build and internal testing
The assistant is tested on real, vague and off-topic questions, and failures are logged and fixed.
Step 5: Limited launch
A pilot group or share of traffic uses the assistant while we review conversations and tighten answers.
Step 6: Full launch and monthly improvement
The assistant goes fully live, your team is trained, and monthly reviews improve flows using real conversations.
Integrations deserve their own attention. Zoho CRM's current API family includes record operations, a composite call that combines up to five requests, bulk transfers, SQL-style queries and notification APIs. HubSpot versions its APIs by date, and its free CRM offers only limited chatbot features. These details decide whether a lead lands in the right field with the right owner, so we map every field and test with real records before launch.
Pricing: a custom quote, and the costs around it
Our pricing label for this service is Custom quote. The price depends on data sources, integrations, platforms and complexity: how many channels, how many conversation paths, which tools must be connected and how sensitive the topics are. We do not publish a number, because a number without an audit would mislead you.
| Cost | Paid to | What drives it |
|---|---|---|
| Build and setup | PC Media House, as a custom quote | Channels, integrations, conversation complexity and testing |
| WhatsApp per-message charges | Meta, through your provider | Message category, volume and recipient country, with GST extra |
| Provider or platform fee | Your messaging provider | Provider plan and features; ask for it itemised |
| CRM and tool subscriptions | Zoho, HubSpot or other vendors | Plan, number of users and features required |
| Monitoring and improvement | PC Media House, quoted separately | Review frequency, new flows and fixes after changes |
Each cost is shown separately, so you can see what is a PC Media House fee and what belongs to a vendor.
A sensible way to control cost is to start small: one channel, the ten most common questions, one integration. Prove that it saves time and captures leads, then add more. It is far easier to extend a clean small assistant than to repair a sprawling one.
Comparing your options
| Option | Where it works | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| WhatsApp Business App quick replies | Very small businesses with a few repeat questions and one person replying | Manual and limited, and unsuitable once volume or staff numbers grow |
| No-code chatbot builder on your own | Owners with time to learn who need a basic FAQ flow | Weak testing, weak handover and fragile integrations can create more work later |
| Chatbot inside your CRM | Teams on a CRM whose features already cover their conversations | Free tiers are often limited; check what your plan includes |
| Custom assistant by an agency | Businesses needing answers from their own content, CRM integration, handover and monitoring | Requires approved content, clear scope and ongoing improvement |
| General-purpose assistant on WhatsApp | Not available to new setups, given Meta's January 2026 terms | Customer-service assistants for your business content remain allowed |
If you are also working on your site, a chatbot is most effective when the website is clear and fast. See our website development service, and for people arriving from ads, our performance marketing team can run Click to WhatsApp campaigns that open the chat directly.
Data protection: what the DPDP Act and Rules mean for chats
A chat is a data collection event. Names, phone numbers, locations, order details and sometimes health or financial information flow through it. India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and the DPDP Rules, 2025 apply to this. The summary below is informational, not legal advice.
- Notice and consent: notices should clearly describe the personal data processed and the specific purpose, with a way to withdraw consent that is about as easy as giving it. Consent should be obtained before processing begins.
- Security safeguards: the Rules ask for measures such as encryption, masking or virtual tokens, and these extend to data handled by processors, with appropriate provisions in processor contracts.
- Breach intimation: the Board must be told without delay, with a detailed report within 72 hours, and affected people must be informed.
- Children's data: processing a child's data requires verifiable consent from a parent or lawful guardian, which matters for education-related bots.
- Rights: people can seek access, correction and erasure of their data, and the Rules set a maximum response time of 90 days.
The Rules were notified on 13 November 2025. The framework for consent managers is scheduled from 13 November 2026, and the core duties above from 13 May 2027. MeitY has discussed shortening some timelines, particularly for large-volume processors, but no change had been confirmed in the sources we checked. A legal summary notes penalties of up to ₹200 crore for breach-reporting failures. The practical lesson is to design chats around minimal collection, clear notice and secure storage now.
Mistakes to avoid, life after launch, and how we work
- Automating the wrong things. Complaints, bereavement, medical worries and money disputes need people.
- Free-wheeling answers. A bot that improvises prices or policies will eventually say something you cannot honour.
- Messaging without opt-in. Blocks and reports can lower your sending limits and damage the number.
- No handover. A customer trapped in a loop is worse than a slow human reply.
- Set and forget. Offers change, prices change and customers find new ways to ask. Review conversations monthly.
After launch
The first month teaches the most. Real customers ask things you did not predict, and each miss becomes a new answer or a better handover rule. Plan a monthly review of conversations, failed handovers and leads that did not reach the CRM. Where your data needs to be visible to managers, connect the results to a dashboard. Where automation sits alongside your marketing, coordinate with social media management and content writing, since the same approved answers can power your website pages and posts.
How PC Media House works
- Online-first from Delhi, serving Delhi NCR and India, with calls and meetings by appointment.
- A conversation audit before any quote, so the price reflects real scope.
- Assistants that answer from your approved content, with human handover built in.
- Accounts, numbers and data in your own name, with documentation at handover.
- No promises of perfect answers or fixed results, only careful design and honest reporting.
To begin, contact PC Media House with your top ten customer questions and the tools you use today, and we will scope the audit.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
A rule-based bot follows fixed paths, such as menus and buttons, so answers are predictable. An AI chatbot can understand free-text questions and reply in natural language. For businesses, the safest design often combines both: AI to understand the question, and approved answers or fixed flows to respond.
Because cost depends on the channels, integrations, number of conversation paths, message volume and subject sensitivity, none of which we know before the audit. A fixed price would either overcharge a simple build or underprice a complex one. After the audit you get a scoped proposal with each cost shown separately.
Since 1 July 2025, Meta charges per delivered template message by category. Marketing messages are always charged. Utility messages are free inside an open 24-hour customer service window and charged outside it. Replies within that window are free. Check Meta's current India rate card, and remember GST applies.
When a customer messages you, a 24-hour customer service window opens, during which non-template replies are free. If the customer arrives through a Click to WhatsApp ad and you reply within 24 hours, a 72-hour free entry point window applies. After the window closes, you can send only approved templates.
Meta updated the WhatsApp Business Solution terms on 15 January 2026 to bar AI providers from using the platform to distribute general-purpose assistants. Customer-service bots that handle tasks such as order tracking or appointments remain allowed. We build assistants for your own business content, within Meta's rules.
Any automated system can. We reduce the risk by tying answers to approved content, setting topics it must not discuss, testing awkward questions before launch, logging conversations and routing doubtful cases to your staff. We cannot promise it will never err, so review and handover are part of the design.
Its job is to take repetitive questions and after-hours enquiries, so your people spend time on conversations that need judgement and warmth. WhatsApp's policy also expects automation to offer a clear path to a human. We design handover so customers can always reach someone.
Chats often contain names, numbers and sometimes sensitive details. The DPDP Rules, 2025 require clear notice of what is collected and why, consent before processing, security safeguards and breach intimation, with core duties scheduled from 13 May 2027. Children's data needs verifiable parental consent. We build notices and minimal collection into the flow.
Usually yes. Zoho CRM provides REST APIs with bulk, query and notification options, and HubSpot provides APIs for contacts and deals. The effort depends on your plan, the fields involved and data quality. We map each field, test with real records and add alerts for failed updates.
You do. Accounts, WhatsApp numbers, CRM data and logs sit in your own business accounts, with documentation of flows and answers handed over. If you change provider, another professional can take over. We recommend deciding in advance how long conversation logs are kept.
Sources and Official Links
Facts on this page were checked against the sources below, last reviewed on 7 October 2026. Fees, thresholds and rules can change, so confirm the current position on the official site before you pay or file.
- developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/pricing
- whatsappbusiness.com/policy
- dataslayer.ai/blog/meta-bans-general-purpose-ai-chatbots-on-whatsapp-business
- zoho.com/crm/developer/docs/api/v8
- zoho.com/crm/zohocrm-pricing.html
- hubspot.com/pricing/crm
- developers.hubspot.com/docs/api/overview
- pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2190014®=3&lang=2
- jsalaw.com/?p=55573
- consentos.in/learn/dpdp-compliance-timeline
- chambers.com/articles/meity-plans-to-cut-short-dpdp-compliance-timeline-and-notify-cross-border-restrictions-for-sdfs