Kola helps you sell online without any technical knowledge. You get three things:
Your own shop website where customers can see your products, place orders, and pay you.
An AI assistant on your WhatsApp that chats with customers and takes orders for you, even while you sleep.
A simple control panel where you manage everything: products, orders, money, and settings.
Here's what happens when a customer buys from you:
A customer finds your shop through your link, QR code, or WhatsApp
They browse your products and pick what they want
They choose how to get it: delivery, pickup, or walk-in
They pay via bank transfer or online payment
You get a notification and accept the order
You prepare and hand over the order
The money goes to your Kola balance. Withdraw to your bank anytime
Customers visit your shop link, browse your products, add to cart, and check out. Just like any online store.
Customers message your WhatsApp number, and the Kola assistant helps them browse and order. Like chatting with a shop attendant.
Both ways lead to the same place. Whether a customer orders from your website or WhatsApp, it all shows up in your dashboard.
Setting up takes about 3 minutes. Here's what to do:
Enter your phone number. You'll get a code on WhatsApp to verify it.
Enter your shop name, address, how customers can get their orders, and pick your shop link.
Upload your products with photos and prices, add your bank account, and share your shop link. You're live!
Go to the Kola merchant app, enter your phone number, verify with the code sent to your WhatsApp, and follow the steps on screen.
Send a message to the Kola WhatsApp number. The assistant will ask you a few questions and set everything up through the chat.
This is where you manage your business. Here's what each section does:
See how your shop is doing at a glance: today's sales, pending orders, and quick shortcuts.
See every order that comes in. Accept, reject, or track them all from here.
Add new products, update prices, change photos, or mark items as sold out.
Check how much you've earned, send money to your bank, and see your full transaction history.
See who's buying from you and send them WhatsApp messages about new products or offers.
Change how your online shop looks, update your opening hours, and set up delivery areas.
Find out which products sell best, which days are busiest, and how your sales are trending.
Update your profile, add your bank account, change your PIN, and manage your team.
Read help articles or chat with our support team on WhatsApp.
Step-by-step walkthroughs that show you how to use every feature.
To start selling, you need to add your products. Here's how:
Go to Products in your dashboard, tap Add product, then fill in the name, price, photo, and description. Tap save and it appears in your shop right away.
Sell the same product in different sizes, colors, or flavors. Each can have its own price.
Tap "Sold out" on any product to hide it. Tap again when it's back in stock.
Have lots of products? Upload them all at once using a spreadsheet (CSV file).
Describe your product in your own words and Kola creates the listing for you. Name, price, description, and all.
Your online shop is a website that works on any phone. Your customers visit it at yourshop.getkola.shop. Here's what they see:
Your shop name, location, opening hours, and all your products. Customers can search and filter by category.
Each product has its own page with photos, price, description, and an "Add to cart" button.
Customers add products, enter their name, phone number, choose delivery or pickup, and pay.
After ordering, customers get a page where they can check their order status in real time. They can also track it on WhatsApp.
Share your shop link directly, download a QR code to print or post on social media, or share to your WhatsApp Status in one tap.
When someone places an order, it goes through these steps:
Waiting for payment
The customer has a short time to complete payment
Waiting for you
Payment received. Check your notifications and accept the order
Accepted
You're preparing the order
On the way / Ready
You've dispatched it or it's ready for pickup
Completed
The customer has received their order. Done!
From the Orders page in your dashboard, you can accept orders, reject them if needed, mark them as dispatched, and create orders manually for walk-in or phone customers. You can search and filter to find any order quickly.
When a customer pays, the money goes to your Kola balance. From there, you send it to your bank account whenever you want.
Every payment from customers shows up here. Go to the Money section to see how much you've earned.
Go to Money then Cash out, type the amount, confirm with your 4-digit PIN. The money arrives in 1 to 2 business days.
Want your money to go to your bank automatically? Turn on Auto Cash Out and choose how often.
Go to Settings \u2192 Bank account. Pick your bank, enter your account number, and save. That's it.
Kola puts an AI assistant on your WhatsApp number. It talks to your customers and helps you manage your shop, all through WhatsApp chat.
Just type any of these words to the bot:
products
See your product list
orders
See and manage your orders
money / balance
Check how much you've earned
catalog
Add, edit, or mark products sold out
help
Get help and support
settings
Update hours, holiday mode, welcome message
When a customer messages your WhatsApp, the bot can:
Browse products
'What do you sell?'
Ask questions
'Do you have cake?'
Place orders
The bot walks them through it step by step
Track orders
'Where's my order?'
Pay
The bot sends them payment instructions
Report problems
'I have a problem with my order'
The bot understands normal everyday language, including Pidgin. Your customers can just chat naturally.
Kola keeps track of everyone who buys from you. You can see who your best customers are and reach out to them directly.
See every customer, how many times they've ordered, how much they've spent, and when they last bought.
Send WhatsApp messages to your customers. Let them know about new products, special offers, or restocked items.
Add labels to your customers (like "Regular" or "VIP") to keep things organized.
You choose how customers can receive their orders. You can offer one, two, or all three:
You deliver to the customer. Set your delivery areas and how much you charge. You can offer free delivery for bigger orders.
The customer comes to you. Your address is shown at checkout so they know where to go.
For customers who walk into your shop. This helps you track walk-in sales alongside your online orders.
Set this up in My Shop → Delivery & pickup on your dashboard.
If a customer has a problem with their order, here's how it's handled:
They tell us about the problem through WhatsApp or your online shop.
We let you know right away so you can look into it.
Re-deliver the order, offer a discount, or give a refund. Whatever makes it right.
If it's not resolved, Kola support takes over to help both sides.
Add at least 5 products with clear photos and descriptions. Shops with good product listings get more orders.
Share your shop link everywhere. WhatsApp Status, Instagram bio, Twitter, or even print it on a flyer.
Turn on automatic payouts so your money goes to your bank without you having to do it manually each time.
Set your opening hours correctly. Customers can't order when your shop shows as closed.
Accept orders quickly. The faster you respond, the happier your customers will be.
Try ordering from your own shop to see exactly what your customers experience.
Test the WhatsApp assistant. Try browsing products, checking your balance, and managing orders from WhatsApp.
We've set up a WhatsApp Community for all beta testers. It has two groups:
Share feedback, ask questions, suggest features, and connect with other beta testers.
Found something broken? Post it here with a screenshot so we can fix it fast.
How to report a bug:
1. Screenshot Take a screenshot showing the problem
2. What happened Tell us what went wrong
3. What you expected Tell us what should have happened instead
That's it, just three things. There's a pinned message in the bug group with a template you can copy and paste.
Stuck on something? Here are three ways to get help:
Open the Help section in your dashboard. There are articles and step-by-step guides for every feature.
Tap "Chat with support" in the Help section to talk to a real person on WhatsApp. We're available 8 AM to 8 PM daily.
Send "help" to the Kola WhatsApp number anytime for quick answers.
Welcome to the beta. We're building Kola with you. Every bug you report and every suggestion you share helps us build something better for Nigerian businesses.