Onboard and launch a location
Learn how to onboard and launch a location with Business Messages.
Go back
Create an agent
In this guide, you'll learn what a Business Messages agent is, how it works, and how to create your own. For now, create and test a simple agent with a name you choose. Don't worry about conversation starters, messaging availability, or locales yet. This step is easier if you use the Developer Console.
Onboard locations from Business Profile
This guide shows you how to associate locations from Business Profile with your agent. In particular, if you've already verified locations on Business Profile, you can have them auto-verified on Business Messages. This is the recommended flow, since it makes onboarding easier. Don't actually run the verification yet. We'll do that in a later step.
Add locations
This guide shows you how to add a location to Business Messages and associate it with your new agent. If you've already added a location in the previous step, you can also use the information in this guide to test your new location.
Surface your agent on Google Search
In order for your agent to appear on some entry points, including Google Search, you need to set the non-local information, even if your business is based in a physical location. This guide describes non-local information in detail and outlines how to set it for your agent.
Set messaging availability
In this guide, learn how to set the messaging availability for your agent. This information is required to verify your agent.
Set conversational settings
This guide explains the different conversational settings you can adjust for your agent. These include welcome messages, conversation starters, and offline messages.
Configure locales
In this guide, learn about localization with Business Messages. Even if you expect messages from only one locale, it's still important to understand how locales are handled and resolved in Business Messages. Every agent must have a default locale.
Learn about sending and receiving messages
This guide provides an overview of everything that happens when your agent sends or receives a message.
Develop your own message flow using an example
You can use the "Hello, World" example in this guide as a starting point for developing your own message flow.
Verify the agent and location
You must verify an agent and all of its associated locations before launching it. This guide provides a verification checklist and instructions for completing verification. If you've already verified your location in Business Profile, don't forget to use what you learned in "Onboard locations from Business Profile" to automatically extend that location's verification to Business Messages.
Launch the agent
Once you verify an agent, you can make it available to users by launching it. This guide provides a checklist to ensure you're ready for launch, as well as instructions for launching.
Launch the location
After you've launched your agent, you can launch its associated verified locations. This guide explains how. After this step, you'll have finished onboarding and launching a location in Business Messages. Congratulations!