Sending Template Messages
WhatsApp message templates are specific message formats that businesses use to send out notifications or customer care messages to people that have opted in to notifications. Messages can include appointment reminders, shipping information, issue resolution or payment updates.
Currently, you can send the following template types:
- Text-based message templates
- Media-based message templates
- Interactive message templates
Template Pacing
Starting April 30, 2024, Template Pacing Applies to Marketing and Utility Templates
As of April 30, 2024, template pacing now applies to both Marketing and Utility templates.
For Marketing Template campaigns with fewer recipients that do not reach their 'pace limit', their messages will not be subjected to pacing. The 'pace limit' number is dynamically determined by Meta and may vary depending on the template or business.
Template pacing is a mechanism designed to provide time for customers to offer early feedback on newly created or unpaused marketing or utility templates. This process identifies and pauses templates that have received poor feedback, giving businesses the opportunity to adjust their contents before they are sent to a large number of customers. This proactive approach reduces the likelihood of negative feedback negatively impacting the business.
Template pacing applies to both utility and marketing templates. Newly created templates, paused templates that are unpaused, and templates lacking a GREEN quality rating are potentially subject to pacing. Template quality history, such as low quality resulting in a template pause, is one of the primary reasons for template pacing, and you may observe other templates being paced accordingly.
When a template is paced, messages will be sent normally until an unspecified threshold is reached. Subsequently, messages using that template will be held to allow sufficient time for customer feedback. Upon receiving a positive quality signal, subsequent messages using that template will be scaled to the entire target audience. Conversely, if a negative quality signal is received, subsequent messages using that template will be dropped, providing the business with an opportunity to adjust content, targeting, etc.
Utility Template Pacing
Pacing for utility templates applies only if a utility template has been paused previously. Following the pausing of a utility template, newly created templates, paused templates that are unpaused, and templates lacking a GREEN quality rating are potentially subject to pacing for the subsequent 7 days.
WhatsApp message templates are specific message formats that businesses use to send out notifications or customer care messages to people that have opted in to notifications. Messages can include appointment reminders, shipping information, issue resolution or payment updates.
Delivery Sequence of Multiple Messages
When sending a series of messages, the order in which messages are delivered is not guaranteed to match the order of your API requests. If you need to ensure the sequence of message delivery, confirm receipt of a delivered status in a messages webhook before sending the next message in your message sequence.
Per-User Marketing Template Message Limits
We are rolling out new approaches, starting with consumers in India, that create high-quality user experiences and maximize marketing template message engagement. This may include limiting the number of marketing template message a person receives from any business in a given period of time, starting with a small number of conversations that are less likely to be read. Note that the limit is determined based on the number of marketing template message that person has already received from any business, and is not related to your business specifically.
The limit only applies to marketing template messages that would normally open a new marketing conversation. If a marketing conversation is already open between you and a WhatsApp user, you may send one additional marketing template message. Further marketing template messages can only be sent in an open marketing conversation if the person responds to any message.
Example:
- The first marketing template message is delivered and opens a new 24-hour marketing conversation customer service window. The per-user marketing template message limit applies
- A second marketing template message can be sent in an existing conversation.
- Each time the WhatsApp user responds in an existing conversation window, you can send one additional marketing template message. You can also send unlimited free-form messages.
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How We Notify via Error Code
Soon, we will also introduce a new error code to help businesses understand when a message has not been delivered in order to maintain ecosystem health.
If a marketing template message is not delivered to a given user due to the limit, Cloud API will return error code 131049 with the description “This message was not delivered to maintain a healthy ecosystem.”
If you do receive this error code and suspect it is due to the limit, avoid immediately resending the template message. Doing so will only result in another error response since the limit may be in effect for differing periods of time. Instead, retry sending the message in increasingly larger time increments until it is delivered.
We will continue to refine our approach, and we appreciate your partnership as we invest in making WhatsApp the best possible experience for your business and your customers.