How to create WhatsApp Template Messages in AiSensy?

How to submit a New WhatsApp Template Message?

Open the Template Message Section in AiSensy App

Go to Manage 👉 Template Message and click on the “+ New” button on the top right corner.

You can also choose a pre-approved Template message from the Template Message Library and submit it for approval.

There are various details to be added while submitting a new template message from the Template Message dashboard.

As soon as the Template Message is submitted, it directly goes to WhatsApp for approval and the Status of the message changes to PENDING.

If the Template Message complies with the WhatsApp policies and rules, it gets APPROVED, otherwise it gets REJECTED.

Template Message Library

Customize the Template Message

Following are the fields and the format of the input text –

Template Category

There are various template categories according to the different use cases of WhatsApp Template Messages.

Given the pricing updates coming to WhatsApp API starting June 1, 2023, templates in AiSensy will now be classified under Utility, Authentication & Marketing.

1 - Utility - Transaction-focused messages used to confirm/ cancel a transaction or a subscription.
2 - Authentication - OTPs & login code messages used to authenticate a user.
3 - Marketing - All messages that relate to a business's products & services (except for transactional messages)

Template Type

This defines the type of WhatsApp template message you want to send. The different types are TEXT, IMAGE, VIDEO & FILE.

You cannot just send images. You must add text along with the images, videos, or files you want to send.

Once the template message gets approved, you will be asked to attach a relevant media file to your users while broadcasting. The sample media file is for the approval process and informing WhatsApp of the kind of media file that will be sent by the business.

Please note that the media file needs to be sent along with some text. It is not like you can send only Images, Files, or Videos. TEXT is mandatory because, based on Text, WhatsApp Approves or Rejects a template message.

Template Language

You can choose the language of your WhatsApp template message from all the global languages and vernacular as well.For each template message, you can only pick one language.

Template Name

Keep the Template Name the SAME as Template Label. Just make a few changes like writing the initial letter Small and replacing the white space with an Underscore. For example, account_update, otp_verification etc.

FORMAT – The template name can only be in lowercase alphanumeric characters and underscores. Special characters and white spaces are not allowed.

Template Format

The template format is your WhatsApp template message content. Write down the template message that you want to send to users after getting approved by WhatsApp.

The template message can have various dynamic values that are specific and unique to every user such as Name, OTP Number, Order ID, Payment Links etc.

These dynamic values are depicted by {{1}}, {{2}}, {{3}} and so on and so forth. If there are multiple dynamic values in a template message, it should always start with {{1}}, the next {{2}}, the next {{3}}…{{n}}.

WhatsApp Template message has the same formatting rules as normal WhatsApp. Here are a few you must know:
- For bold text add asterisks (*) at the start and end of the phrase (*Text*).
- Add underscores for Italics (_Text_).
- Add tides for Strikethrough (~strikethroughText~)
- To make a text evenly spaced or monospaced, place three backticks on both sides of the text (```text```)

FORMAT – The template message should not be more than 1024 characters.

Add Sample Values to the Template Message

After filling in the Template Format, you need to give a sample value to the template parameters.

Add Interactive Actions to make messages more actionable

If there are no interactive actions required, simply choose None. You can either add "CTAs" or a "Quick Replies" to a WhatsApp Template Message. You can't have both in one Template Message.

Call to Actions: There are 2 types of Call to Action buttons namely URL and Phone Number. A template message can have a URL or a Phone Number or a URL & a Phone Number both as CTA. You can not have two CTAs of the same type with a template message.

URL as Call to Action

After choosing the URL as the action type, you have to write the Button Title that appears as the clickable button and Button Value is the redirection link. The redirection link can be Static or Dynamic in nature.

Example of static button value: https://aisensy.com/docs
Example of dynamic button value: https://aisensy.com/{{5}}

The numeric digit inside double curly brackets in the dynamic link is the next numeric digit after the ones in the Template Format. Like, if there are 6 dynamic values in the template format and there is a need for the dynamic link as well then the dynamic parameter will be represented by {{7}}.

Phone Number as Call to Action

After choosing the Phone Number as the action type, you have to write the Button Title that appears as the clickable button and the Button Value is the Phone Number.

Note that the Phone Number must be written along with the country code without the plus (+) sign. If the number is submitted without the country code, it violates the format and gets rejected by WhatsApp.

Quick Replies

These interactive action buttons are the user response buttons. This means if the user clicks on these buttons, the text in the buttons becomes the user’s message.

There can be a maximum of 3 Quick Replies that can be sent with a template message (limitation by Facebook itself) and can have a maximum of 20 characters.

The WhatsApp template messages with the Quick Reply buttons can be used to take feedback from the customers or to make customers choose between two or more given options.

Submit Template Message for Approval

That's it! You have created your first WhatsApp Template Messages in AiSensy.

WhatsApp Template Message Guidelines

WhatsApp Template Message gives Businesses to reach out to their customers by sending them notifications on WhatsApp. In order to send these templates to users, we need to get them approved from WhatsApp.

In case your template messages are getting rejected, here are a few reasons why:WhatsApp doesn't allow spamming and harmful content. So, these are two things on what Business cannot send a Template Message:

- No threatening content
- No data collection

WhatsApp Template Messages cannot contain threatening or abusive content. For example, Template Messages that threaten customers with legal action if they don't pay back their loans are not allowed.

Moreover, businesses can't collect data using WhatsApp Template Messages. Though you can certainly conduct polls and surveys, you can't ask for sensitive personal information such as credit card numbers through Template Messages.

In addition to the content constraints above, you need to comply with WhatsApp Template Message formatting rules.

WhatsApp Template Message Formatting Rules

Proofread your content for spelling and grammar before submitting it for review. Messages with incorrect spelling or any grammatical errors may prompt customers to view these messages as spam.Make sure to use variable parameters (e.g., {{1}}, {{2}}, etc.) and that they have the correct number of curly brackets (i.e., there need to be 2 brackets on the left and 2 on the right of the variable)Make sure the parameters (e.g., {{1}}) contains some text with it.

For example:
✅ Correct Format:
Hello {{1}}

❌ Wrong Format:
Hello
{{1}}
{{2}}

Make sure the language selected matches the content of your message template:
- If you select Spanish as the message template language but the content is in English, your message template will be rejected.
- Ensure that your content is in one language. A mixture of languages such as "Hinglish" or "Spanglish" will not be approved.

If you’re going to submit a message template for testing your API connection, please ensure it’s in the correct format. Any other variation will be rejected

Message template name: test
Content: Hello {{1}}

Refrain from using a URL shortener for your links (e.g., bit.ly, TinyURL, or goo.gl) because they obscure the intended link destination
The URL domain in your links should belong to your business.
Refrain from using extra spaces at the end of your template or double spacing in between your content. Generally, this spacing results in the rejection of the message.

Refrain from adding double-line space between your texts. For example:

Correct Format:
Hello {{1}},

How may I help you?
Incorrect Format:Hello {{1}},

How may I help you?
Avoid using Emoticons in Quick Reply Buttons.
Phone Number as Call to Action:
The Phone Number must be written along with the country code without the plus (+) sign. If the number is submitted without the country code, it violates the format and gets rejected by WhatsApp.

FAQ

Q. What is a WhatsApp Template Message?

WhatsApp allows businesses to interact with their users with any message until 24 hours from the user’s last message.Once this 24-hour window is closed, you are only allowed to send a Template Message that needs approval from WhatsApp.This is done to ensure that businesses do not spam users on WhatsApp.The WhatsApp Template message can be anything ranging from a promotional message, product launch, weekly newsletter, abandoned cart, festive greetings and much more.

Q. Do these WhatsApp Template Messages need to be approved by the WhatsApp Team?

Yes, each WhatsApp template message undergoes rigorous checks by the WhatsApp Team personally.The message only gets approved if the team finds the message to be correct & rid of any errors such as grammar errors.

Q. What kind of Template Messages does WhatsApp approve?

Since October 2021, WhatsApp now approves all messages including Promotional & Offer Messages. This includes Transactional, Non-transactional, Notifications, Updates and Follow Up Messages.We have gotten various Template Messages approved for our clients, do check out those Sample Promotional Template Messages for different industry verticals.

Q. Can I edit any approved WhatsApp Message Templates?

No! Once a WhatsApp Template Message is approved, you can't make changes or edit the Template Message. Only the dynamic values in the Template Message can be edited which is set while submitting it.

Q. What all media format does the WhatsApp Template Message supports?

The WhatsApp Template Message formats can be Text, Image, File or Video. Text must be included in any of these media formats since it is mandatory. This means only Images, Files or Videos can not be sent to the users as a Template Message.

Q. Is there any size limit on the media files attached in WhatsApp Template Messages?

Yes, there is a size limit on the media file in the WhatsApp template messages. The following is the size limit of different media files:
Video 16 MB
Image 5 MB
Document 100 MB
Sticker 100 KB

Q. Where can I see the list of all my WhatsApp Template Messages?

To view all your Template Messages with their approval status, Go to Manage👉 Template Message.
The list of all your submitted WhatsApp template messages with their status is listed there. There's also an option to select from pre-approved Template Messages from the WhatsApp Template Message Library. The library contains 100+ pre-approved WhatsApp templates across multiple industries.After submitting the template messages you can also see the Status across these sections – PENDING, APPROVED, ACTION REQUIRED.
There's also a drafts section where all your unsubmitted messages are saved automatically for you to edit at a later date.
By clicking on any of the Template Message rows in the Approved section, you can preview the template message as well. You can also search for any template message by their names & approval status.