The guide to WhatsApp Business message templates.

3 October 2019

WhatsApp Business is a platform exclusive to businesses that allows them to communicate with customers via WhatsApp. Businesses need to use message templates to start conversations with customers thus message templates are essentially the foundation of all business-initiated customer interactions. Read on to gain a better understanding of message templates and start connecting with your customers confidently using WhatsApp Business.

What is WhatsApp template message?

WhatsApp template messages are pre-approved messages that can be delivered to a large audience. The message content can also be varied using custom fields (e.g. {{1}} where 1 is customer’s name) to maintain the element of a personal touch. This helps businesses to save time by eliminating the need to reproduce the same message countless times while ensuring consistent standards and quality experiences.

All companies on WhatsApp Business must use template messages to send notifications or initiate conversations with customers. Customers can reply to the messages which will open up a 24-hour window for the agent and customer to engage in two-way communication freely. If more than 24 hours have elapsed since the last customer response, another pre-approved message template needs to be sent and the customer needs to reply before another window can be opened.

These regulations apply to all businesses using WhatsApp Business to ensure compliance to WhatsApp's policies and protect customers from excessive marketing.

When do you use WhatsApp template messages??

WhatsApp template messages can be used for different occasions and purposes. The flexibility of the templates makes it a suitable tool for virtually any industry.

E.g. Template message to get in touch with customers who have shown interest towards your business offerings.

{{1}} Customer’s name

"Hi {{1}}, thank you for your interest in our products and services. How can we assist you?"

Template messages can also be tailored for different groups of customers. As such, businesses can create multiple template messages for easy dissemination of information to different target audiences.

E.g. To existing customers: Template message to notify customers on points balance.

{{1}} Customer’s name

{{2}} Points balance

"Hi {{1}}, you have {{2}} points left in your membership card. Visit our stores to redeem exciting rewards!"

WhatsApp template messages are a versatile tool that makes interacting with customers an effortless task. Regardless of industry, you can always create a template message catered precisely to your needs.

How to create a WhatsApp template message?

All it takes is a few easy steps to create your own WhatsApp template messages.

Firstly, you need to name your template message. The name can only include lowercase letters, numbers and underscores. Example: delivery_update

For companies who would like to reach out to an international audience in various languages, WhatsApp Business helps you to translate your template messages.

Now for the most important part - message content. The maximum length of each message is 1024 characters. You can also format your message with bold (*text*), italics (_text_), monospace (```text```) and strikethrough (~text~) using the specific code for each feature. The message cannot consist of any tabs, newlines or more than 4 consecutive spaces.

The custom fields as mentioned earlier can be used to vary name, tracking numbers, promotional codes and other information unique to each customer. The variables must begin counting from 1 - {{1}}.

Message templates can be deleted if you find that they are outdated or no longer in use. Do note that the name of an approved template that was deleted cannot be used again for the next 30 days.

Make the connections, make it count

Being on the channels that your customers are on helps to narrow the distance between you and your customers for better customer engagement. In view of the ubiquity of WhatsApp, many businesses have set up their own WhatsApp Business account to improve customer connections.

In addition to making your business accessible on the right channels, you also need to be able to communicate effectively with customers in order to deliver experiences that brings customer engagement to the next level. Hence, it is essential that WhatsApp Business users gain a thorough understanding of WhatsApp Business message templates so that they can plan out effective messages and provide customers with seamless support to boost their overall experience.

With a thorough understanding of WhatsApp's message templates, you can now go ahead to craft engaging message templates to facilitate effective customer communications. While you’re at that, why not make a template to let your customers know that your business is now available on WhatsApp, they'll be more than delighted to be able to connect with your business on a platform that they frequent and are more than familiar with.

As the pool of customers you interact with via WhatsApp Business grows, integrating WhatsApp Business onto your existing interfaces can help to improve the efficiency of managing customer conversations and save your agents the hassle of switching between platforms. Moobicast’s WhatsApp Business API helps you integrate WhatsApp Business onto your existing platform or applications so that you can connect with your customers effortlessly. Additionally, we also have a complete customer support platform with WhatsApp Business integrated to get you started immediately.

Talk to us to find out more!

Written by Si Min

About the Author

Si Min is an intern at Maven Lab. She loves animals but prefers to admire them from afar. A creator at heart, you can find her either typing away or crafting up a storm at home.