The latest articles on DEV Community by Tapan Jain (@jaint). https://dev.to/jaint https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3864771%2F10b1376d-035b-45c0-8fde-9cab821f0aa4.png https://dev.to/jaint en Tapan Jain Tue, 07 Apr 2026 02:14:38 +0000 https://dev.to/jaint/were-an-it-services-company-we-built-a-whatsapp-mcp-server-now-were-trying-to-find-who-actually-25ab https://dev.to/jaint/were-an-it-services-company-we-built-a-whatsapp-mcp-server-now-were-trying-to-find-who-actually-25ab <p>I'll be honest — we didn't start as a product company.</p> <p>JCS has been doing IT services for 15+ years. <br> Staff aug, custom dev, the usual. Good business. <br> Predictable. Not particularly exciting.</p> <p>About 8 months ago we started noticing something. <br> Every client we worked with — agencies, D2C brands, <br> consultants — had the same problem. WhatsApp was <br> their primary customer channel but their entire <br> setup was manual. No automation. No unified inbox. <br> No API layer that actually worked across providers.</p> <p>So we built one.</p> <p>We called it Jina Connect. A WhatsApp MCP server <br> that unifies WATI, Gupshup, Twilio and Meta Direct <br> into a single API. One integration. Switch providers <br> without touching your backend code.</p> <p><strong>Where we are now</strong></p> <p>The product works. We've tested it internally and <br> with a handful of clients.</p> <p>But we're an IT services company trying to find <br> PMF for a SaaS product. That's a different muscle <br> entirely and we're feeling it.</p> <p>What we think we know:</p> <ul> <li>Digital marketing agencies managing 10+ clients on WhatsApp are the most obvious fit</li> <li>D2C brands running Meta ads where leads land on WA with no follow-up are close second</li> <li>The "unified API" pitch resonates with developers but less so with agency owners who just want it to work</li> </ul> <p>What we're unsure about:</p> <ul> <li>Whether to go direct to brands or through agencies</li> <li>Whether the aggregator angle is the right hook or if we should lead with a specific use case</li> <li>How to sell this without a sales team</li> </ul> <p><strong>Why I'm posting this</strong></p> <p>Not to pitch. Genuinely to think out loud and <br> hear from people who've navigated this — <br> especially the services-to-product transition.</p> <p>If you've built something in the WhatsApp / <br> messaging API space, or if you're an agency <br> that manages WhatsApp for clients, I'd love <br> to hear what actually matters to you.</p> <p>Happy to share more as we go.</p> <p>— Tapan<br> Co-founder<br> JCS / Jina Connect</p> buildinpublic saas startup webdev