Chats: Manage Group Chats
Once you or your team member link WhatsApp number/s, TimelinesAI will automatically sync new WhatsApp messages to TimelinesAI Chats list as they come in. This also applies to WhatsApp Group Chats. In this article, we'll walk you through how to effectively manage your WhatsApp Groups within TimelinesAI.
Let’s get started 🚀
Filter Group Chats – View only your group chats.
Bulk Actions – Perform actions on multiple groups at once.
Read and Send Messages – Read and send messages in Group Chats.
View and Search Members – See group members and search by name or phone number.
Export Members – Export a list of group members.
Get group members using API call - How to get group members using API call.
Start Direct Chats – Message any group member directly.
View Group Info - How to view group info.
Bookmark - Bookmark and Access Bookmarked Messages – View all your saved messages.
Share messages - Share messages within a chat.
Group Chats in Live WhatsApp Chat - Group Chats in Live WhatsApp Chat view within CRM integrations.
View Attachments – See all attachments in a group.
Group chats appear in the main chat list alongside your regular chats, which can make it difficult to navigate through a large number of conversations. To make things easier, you can create a permanent list that shows only your group chats. Here's how to create the list:
Click New Filter button at https://app.timelines.ai/chats/filter_all
Give your filter a name and select Groups only under "Chat Types" in an opened window
Configure any other filter parameters as needed .
Once created, the filtered list will appear as a separate tab with the name you chose at https://app.timelines.ai/chats/filter_all. On click only WhatsApp Group chats will be displayed.
With TimelinesAI, you can select multiple chats, including group chats, and perform bulk actions on them. This is especially convenient if you have a filtered list, as you can use the "Select All" option to choose all filtered group chats at once, instead of selecting them one by one (though that option is still available). To perform a bulk action:
Open desired chats list at https://app.timelines.ai/chats .
Use the checkboxes to select the chats you want, or click "Select All" to choose all visible chats.
Use the toolbar to perform the desired action on the selected chats.
You can perform the following bulk actions on the selected chats:
Close/reopen chats
Send WhatsApp message ( Bulk Reply) to all selected chats
Assign/Unassign
Mark as Read
Add labels
Mute/Unmute
Delete
If your WhatsApp number is no longer a group member or the group has been deleted you will see a warning within the Group Info block.
When the Group Chat is synced to TimelinesAI the following information about the group will be available on group details page
Group Name (Chat Name) – Displays the name of the group, with the option to rename it within TimelinesAI (this change does not affect the name in WhatsApp).
WhatsApp Number – Shows the number from which the group chat was synced. This is helpful if multiple WhatsApp numbers are part of the same group, allowing you to identify which number synced which chat.
Group Description – Displays the group’s description (if available). If the description is too long, you can click to view the full text in a modal window.
Group JID – The unique WhatsApp Group identifier. Useful for automations or sending messages to group chats via the TimelinesAI Public API.
TimelinesAI Chat ID – A unique internal identifier for the synced group chat, used within TimelinesAI.
Group Chats in TimelinesAI support all the features available in regular direct chats, including:
Sending WhatsApp messages to group chats from your own number or on behalf of another number connected to your TimelinesAI account
Sending attachments as messages to group chats
Ability to view messages sent and received in a group chat
Ability to view internal TimelinesAI activities such as notes and comments
In the group chat details page of TimelinesAI, click the "Members" tab to view the group members. On the Group Members page, you can view all group members with their names ( as seen in TimelinesAI), phone numbers, and roles within the group. If a member doesn't have a name, their phone number will be used as the name.
Members are displayed in a paginated list, with 10 members per page and can be filtered by name or phone number
Group Members Export feature is available only on paid TimelinesAI plans.
To export group members, open the desired group chat in TimelinesAI, navigate to the "Members" tab, and click the "Export Contacts" button. The download will start automatically.
The output will be a .csv file containing the following data:
Contact's name (as seen in TimelinesAI). If a contact doesn't have a name, their phone number will be used as the name.
Contact's phone number in international format
User's role in the group: Owner, Admin, or Member
You can retrieve group members using the TimelinesAI Public API.
The Public API documentation is available at: https://app.timelines.ai/integrations/api/redoc
Swagger Playground is available at: https://app.timelines.ai/integrations/api/swagger
The Get details of a chat endpoint retrieves chat details by the TimelinesAI Chat ID. For group chats, the output will also include the group members' names, phone numbers, and their role in a group chat. Sample output:
To start a 1-on-1 direct chat with a group member, open the desired group chat in TimelinesAI, navigate to the "Members" tab, hover over the desired group member, and click the "Chat" button to open a direct conversation.
If you already have an existing private chat with the member, the existing conversation will open, allowing you to continue chatting.
If no previous conversation exists, you’ll be able to start a new chat by sending the first message to the selected group member.
TimelinesAI offers a Live WhatsApp Chat view within various CRM integrations. The general concept is that you can open WhatsApp conversations directly from your CRM, for example, while viewing a contact's or deal’s details. Due to natural differences between CRMs, group chats are displayed in the Live Chat view using different methods:
Monday.com Live WhatsApp Chat View – Group chats are linked based on the Chat ID column.
Pipedrive CRM – Group chats are linked using the JID entered as the phone number for a contact.
HubSpot CRM – Group chats are linked using the JID entered as the phone number for a contact.
Creating a New Group – It is not possible to create a new group directly from TimelinesAI. You must use the WhatsApp application to create a group.
Inviting New Group Members – You cannot invite new group members from the TimelinesAI Group Management page. Invitations must be sent using the WhatsApp app.
Syncing Past Messages – TimelinesAI cannot sync messages that were sent in a group chat before the number was connected to TimelinesAI. Only new messages, going forward, will be displayed.
Let’s get started 🚀
Group Management Features in TimelinesAi
Filter Group Chats – View only your group chats.
Bulk Actions – Perform actions on multiple groups at once.
Read and Send Messages – Read and send messages in Group Chats.
View and Search Members – See group members and search by name or phone number.
Export Members – Export a list of group members.
Get group members using API call - How to get group members using API call.
Start Direct Chats – Message any group member directly.
View Group Info - How to view group info.
Bookmark - Bookmark and Access Bookmarked Messages – View all your saved messages.
Share messages - Share messages within a chat.
Group Chats in Live WhatsApp Chat - Group Chats in Live WhatsApp Chat view within CRM integrations.
View Attachments – See all attachments in a group.
How to filter group chats?
Group chats appear in the main chat list alongside your regular chats, which can make it difficult to navigate through a large number of conversations. To make things easier, you can create a permanent list that shows only your group chats. Here's how to create the list:
Click New Filter button at https://app.timelines.ai/chats/filter_all
Give your filter a name and select Groups only under "Chat Types" in an opened window
Configure any other filter parameters as needed .
Once created, the filtered list will appear as a separate tab with the name you chose at https://app.timelines.ai/chats/filter_all. On click only WhatsApp Group chats will be displayed.
Bulk actions in group chats
With TimelinesAI, you can select multiple chats, including group chats, and perform bulk actions on them. This is especially convenient if you have a filtered list, as you can use the "Select All" option to choose all filtered group chats at once, instead of selecting them one by one (though that option is still available). To perform a bulk action:
Open desired chats list at https://app.timelines.ai/chats .
Use the checkboxes to select the chats you want, or click "Select All" to choose all visible chats.
Use the toolbar to perform the desired action on the selected chats.
You can perform the following bulk actions on the selected chats:
Close/reopen chats
Send WhatsApp message ( Bulk Reply) to all selected chats
Assign/Unassign
Mark as Read
Add labels
Mute/Unmute
Delete
View Group Info
If your WhatsApp number is no longer a group member or the group has been deleted you will see a warning within the Group Info block.
When the Group Chat is synced to TimelinesAI the following information about the group will be available on group details page
Group Name (Chat Name) – Displays the name of the group, with the option to rename it within TimelinesAI (this change does not affect the name in WhatsApp).
WhatsApp Number – Shows the number from which the group chat was synced. This is helpful if multiple WhatsApp numbers are part of the same group, allowing you to identify which number synced which chat.
Group Description – Displays the group’s description (if available). If the description is too long, you can click to view the full text in a modal window.
Group JID – The unique WhatsApp Group identifier. Useful for automations or sending messages to group chats via the TimelinesAI Public API.
TimelinesAI Chat ID – A unique internal identifier for the synced group chat, used within TimelinesAI.
Read and send messages in Group Chats.
Group Chats in TimelinesAI support all the features available in regular direct chats, including:
Sending WhatsApp messages to group chats from your own number or on behalf of another number connected to your TimelinesAI account
Sending attachments as messages to group chats
Ability to view messages sent and received in a group chat
Ability to view internal TimelinesAI activities such as notes and comments
View and Search for Group Chat members
In the group chat details page of TimelinesAI, click the "Members" tab to view the group members. On the Group Members page, you can view all group members with their names ( as seen in TimelinesAI), phone numbers, and roles within the group. If a member doesn't have a name, their phone number will be used as the name.
Members are displayed in a paginated list, with 10 members per page and can be filtered by name or phone number
Exporting Group Members
Group Members Export feature is available only on paid TimelinesAI plans.
To export group members, open the desired group chat in TimelinesAI, navigate to the "Members" tab, and click the "Export Contacts" button. The download will start automatically.
The output will be a .csv file containing the following data:
Contact's name (as seen in TimelinesAI). If a contact doesn't have a name, their phone number will be used as the name.
Contact's phone number in international format
User's role in the group: Owner, Admin, or Member
Get group members using API call
You can retrieve group members using the TimelinesAI Public API.
The Public API documentation is available at: https://app.timelines.ai/integrations/api/redoc
Swagger Playground is available at: https://app.timelines.ai/integrations/api/swagger
The Get details of a chat endpoint retrieves chat details by the TimelinesAI Chat ID. For group chats, the output will also include the group members' names, phone numbers, and their role in a group chat. Sample output:
Start Direct Chats
To start a 1-on-1 direct chat with a group member, open the desired group chat in TimelinesAI, navigate to the "Members" tab, hover over the desired group member, and click the "Chat" button to open a direct conversation.
If you already have an existing private chat with the member, the existing conversation will open, allowing you to continue chatting.
If no previous conversation exists, you’ll be able to start a new chat by sending the first message to the selected group member.
Group Chats in Live WhatsApp Chat view within CRM integrations
TimelinesAI offers a Live WhatsApp Chat view within various CRM integrations. The general concept is that you can open WhatsApp conversations directly from your CRM, for example, while viewing a contact's or deal’s details. Due to natural differences between CRMs, group chats are displayed in the Live Chat view using different methods:
Monday.com Live WhatsApp Chat View – Group chats are linked based on the Chat ID column.
Pipedrive CRM – Group chats are linked using the JID entered as the phone number for a contact.
HubSpot CRM – Group chats are linked using the JID entered as the phone number for a contact.
Limitations
Creating a New Group – It is not possible to create a new group directly from TimelinesAI. You must use the WhatsApp application to create a group.
Inviting New Group Members – You cannot invite new group members from the TimelinesAI Group Management page. Invitations must be sent using the WhatsApp app.
Syncing Past Messages – TimelinesAI cannot sync messages that were sent in a group chat before the number was connected to TimelinesAI. Only new messages, going forward, will be displayed.
Updated on: 12/04/2025
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