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Setting Up WeChat

Connect a WeChat Official Account to your Intercom workspace so messages land in Intercom and replies go back on WeChat.

Written by Tarek Khalil

Before you start

You need:

  • A WeChat Official Account — a registered business account on WeChat, not a personal WeChat ID.

  • Admin access to the WeChat Official Account platform (mp.weixin.qq.com).

  • The Official Account credentials you’ll configure below: AppID, AppSecret, Token, and EncodingAESKey.

  • Admin access to the Octopods workspace.

Note: Only Service Accounts and Subscription Accounts (WeChat’s business Official Account types) support the Developer interface. Personal WeChat accounts cannot be connected.

Step 1: Enable developer settings on WeChat

  1. Sign in to the WeChat Official Account platform (mp.weixin.qq.com).

  2. Go to Development → Basic configuration.

  3. If the interface is disabled, click Enable and follow the prompts (for Subscription Accounts, this may require administrator approval).

  4. Note the AppID displayed at the top of the page.

  5. Click Reset (or Generate) next to AppSecret to obtain the current AppSecret. Copy it to a safe place — WeChat only shows it once.

Step 2: Configure the server URL, Token, and EncodingAESKey

Still on the Basic configuration page:

  1. Click Modify next to Server Configuration.

  2. WeChat asks for four fields (described below).

The fields are:

  • Server URL (URL) — the callback URL Octopods needs to register. You’ll paste this from Octopods in Step 4.

  • Token — a free-form string you make up. It’s used to verify messages coming from WeChat. Choose something random and keep a copy.

  • EncodingAESKey — click Random Generation to create one. Copy it.

  • Message encryption/decryption mode — choose Safe mode.

Leave this form open — you’ll come back to it in Step 4 to enter the server URL.

Step 3: Start the WeChat channel setup in Octopods

  1. Open the workspace you want to add WeChat to.

  2. Click the option to add a new channel.

  3. In the Add a Channel modal, select WeChat.

  4. A setup panel opens with fields for WeChat credentials.

Step 4: Enter credentials and copy the callback URL

Fill in the Octopods form with the credentials listed below:

  • AppID — from the WeChat Official Account platform.

  • AppSecret — copied in Step 1.

  • Token — the same value you set (or will set) in WeChat.

  • EncodingAESKey — the value you generated in Step 2.

Then:

  1. Click Activate WeChat Channel.

  2. Octopods generates the server URL for your channel and displays it on the channel’s detail page. Copy this URL.

  3. Go back to the WeChat Official Account platform’s Server Configuration form and paste the URL into the Server URL (URL) field. Keep the Token and EncodingAESKey identical to what you entered in Octopods.

  4. Click Submit on the WeChat side. WeChat performs a verification handshake with the URL.

If verification succeeds, WeChat saves the configuration and the Octopods channel shows Connected. If it fails, double-check that the Token and EncodingAESKey match on both sides exactly — any whitespace or character difference breaks the handshake.

Step 5: Send a test message

  1. From a personal WeChat account, search for your Official Account and follow it.

  2. Send a message to the Official Account.

  3. Open the Intercom Inbox for this workspace. A new conversation appears with the message.

  4. Reply from Intercom.

  5. The reply arrives on WeChat from your Official Account.

What WeChat allows

  • Inbound messages from WeChat users who follow your Official Account arrive in Intercom. Users who haven’t followed you cannot message you.

  • Text, images, voice messages, video, shortvideo, location, and links are supported as inbound message types.

  • Outbound messages must be sent within a 48-hour customer service window after the user’s last interaction with your Official Account. Outside that window, WeChat blocks outbound messages except through approved template messages submitted to WeChat for review.

  • Template message submission and approval is managed in the WeChat Official Account platform. Octopods sends messages using the approved templates you’ve set up there.

Common issues

  • “Token verification failed” — the Token or EncodingAESKey values don’t match between Octopods and WeChat. Copy them exactly (no extra whitespace) and retry the handshake.

  • “Outside 48-hour window” — you’re trying to send to a user who hasn’t messaged the Official Account in the last 48 hours. Wait for them to interact, or send an approved template message.

  • “AppSecret incorrect” — AppSecrets change when you click Reset in the Basic configuration page. If you reset on WeChat, copy the new secret into the Octopods channel and save.

  • Messages don’t reach Intercom — confirm that the server URL is still configured in WeChat and that the Official Account is in Safe mode. Fallback modes change the payload format.

What’s next

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