How to Connect Zalo OA to Converge

You need a Zalo Official Account (OA) to connect to Converge. Personal Zalo accounts cannot be connected due to Zalo's API policies for business messaging.

What is a Zalo OA? An Official Account is Zalo's business account type, similar to Facebook Pages or WhatsApp Business. It allows businesses to send messages, provide customer service, and interact with customers at scale.

How to create an OA: Go to oa.zalo.me and click "Register Official Account". You'll need to provide business information including:

• Business name and registration
• Business license or tax ID
• Contact information
• Account administrator details

Verification process: Zalo reviews OA applications and may take 1-3 business days to verify business information. Make sure all information is accurate to avoid delays.

Account types: Zalo offers different OA tiers (Public OA, Internal OA). For customer support, you typically want a Public OA which allows anyone to message your business.

Once your Zalo OA is approved, connect it to Converge using the OAuth flow.

In Converge, navigate to Settings → Platforms → Zalo (only Owners and Admins can access this). Click Connect Zalo to start the authorization process.

What happens: Converge redirects you to Zalo's official authorization page. Log in with the account that manages your Zalo OA and grant Converge permission to access your OA's messaging API.

Why OAuth: Similar to WhatsApp and Messenger, Zalo uses OAuth for secure third-party integration. This means Converge never sees your Zalo password. You authorize access through Zalo's own login page, and Converge receives tokens to communicate with your OA.

Permissions requested: Converge requests access to read and send messages on behalf of your OA. We don't access your personal Zalo account or any data outside of OA messaging.

After logging in and selecting your OA, click Authorize to grant Converge access. You'll be redirected back to Converge.

What Converge receives: After authorization, Zalo provides Converge with access tokens and your OA ID. The connection status will update to "Connected" with your OA ID displayed.

How the connection works: Once connected, when a customer sends a message to your Zalo OA, Zalo pushes it to Converge via webhook. You'll see the message in your unified inbox. When you reply from Converge, we send it through the Zalo API back to the customer.

Token refresh: Zalo access tokens expire periodically. Converge automatically refreshes tokens using the refresh token provided during authorization — you don't need to manually reconnect.

Once connected, the best way to verify everything is working is to send a test message to your Zalo OA from a personal Zalo account.

What you should see:

• The message appears in your Converge inbox within 5-10 seconds
• The customer profile shows their Zalo display name and user ID
• You can type a reply in Converge and it will be sent through Zalo
• Conversation history is preserved and searchable

Common connection issues:

• "Invalid OA ID" error: Make sure you copied the correct OA ID from the developer portal. It should be a numeric string.
• "Access denied" error: Verify your access token is valid and hasn't expired. Generate a new token if needed.
• Messages not appearing: Check that webhooks are properly configured in your Zalo OA settings. Converge should have provided a webhook URL during the connection process.
• Zalo API rate limits: Zalo has rate limits on API calls. If you're sending a high volume of messages, you may need to implement rate limiting or contact Zalo for higher limits.

Success indicator: When a customer messages your Zalo OA and it appears in Converge — and when you reply from Converge and the customer receives it in their Zalo app — your connection is fully working.

Pro tip: Zalo is particularly popular in Vietnam. If you have Vietnamese customers, adding Zalo as a support channel can significantly improve accessibility and customer satisfaction.