Working with WhatsApp template messages

<p id="docs-hc-snippet" style="display: none;">If you want to bypass the 24-hour rule by WhatsApp, you can send WhatsApp template messages to your end users, as long as they have already reached out to your business by opening a ticket via WhatsApp.</p>
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<div class="note attention">
<span class="attentiontitle"></span> Customers without Zendesk Suite must have Support and Chat with the Social Messaging add-on to use this feature.</div>
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<p class="p">If you want to bypass the 24-hour rule by WhatsApp, you can send WhatsApp template
messages to your end users, as long as they have already reached out to your business by
opening a ticket via WhatsApp. </p>
<p class="p">Before you can set this up, you must have at least one phone number connected to the
WhatsApp Business API. If you haven't already done so, complete the process to <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408842821786" target="_blank">add WhatsApp channels to the Zendesk Agent workspace</a>.</p>
<p class="p">This article covers the following topics:</p>
<div class="p">
<ul class="ul" id="messaging_whatsapp_templatesusing__ul_acd_dvw_wxb">
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_gjr_mvw_wxb">About the 24-hour rule</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_jfy_tvw_wxb">Creating and submitting WhatsApp
template messages via the WhatsApp Business account UI</a></li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_zkl_qyw_wxb">Using shorthand syntax to send
WhatsApp template messages</a></li>
<li class="li">
<a class="xref" href="#topic_dtq_w1x_wxb">Using Sunshine Conversations API
to send WhatsApp template messages</a>
</li>
<li class="li"><a class="xref" href="#topic_wmv_y1x_wxb">Troubleshooting WhatsApp
templates</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title2" class="topic nested1" id="topic_gjr_mvw_wxb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title2">About the 24-hour rule</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">The starting point for the 24-hour window is when the end user sent the message from
WhatsApp. It’s not when the message was received by Support and the ticket was
created, for example. If you fail to reply within the 24-hour window, you can’t
reply to the end user until the end user sends another message, reopening the
24-hour window. The 24-hour period restarts every time the end user sends a message. </p>
<p class="p">If you reply after 24 hours, the reply is still added to the ticket and appears in
the ticket interface, but the end user doesn’t actually receive the reply (meaning a
reply in WhatsApp or an email ticket notification). Error messages about the failure
appear in the upper-right portion of the agent interface and in the Events log. </p>
<p class="p">Messages sent automatically through the auto-responder meet the criteria for
WhatsApp's 24-hour response times.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title3" class="topic nested1" id="topic_jfy_tvw_wxb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title3">Creating and submitting WhatsApp template messages via the WhatsApp business account UI</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr">After you've connected your phone number to the WhatsApp Business API, you
can create and submit WhatsApp template messages within the WhatsApp Business
account UI. For more information about the process, see <a class="xref" href="https://www.facebook.com/business/help/2055875911147364?id=2129163877102343" target="_blank">Create message templates for your WhatsApp
Business account</a> in the Meta documentation.</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">If you submit a WhatsApp template message with a variable, parameter,
and/or media, you must submit the actual content as a sample, otherwise WhatsApp
will reject it. </p>
<div class="p" dir="ltr">The sample of a variable must be clear, general, and understood by all, for
example:<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>“Hi {{1}},
Welcome to the {{2}}, we wish you a great stay. If you need anything, feel free to reach out to {{3}} and they’ll be happy to assist you.
Have a great day,”</code></pre>
</div>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">In this example, the variables are:</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><code class="ph codeph">{{1}}</code> The end user name</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><code class="ph codeph">{{2}}</code> The hotel name</p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><code class="ph codeph">{{3}}</code> The team name </p>
<div class="p" dir="ltr">WhatsApp can take anywhere from one minute - five business days to provide
an update. <div class="note important">
<span class="importanttitle">Important:</span> Only Meta can approve or reject WhatsApp template
messages, Zendesk does not control this approval process. </div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title4" class="topic nested1" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title4">Using shorthand syntax to send WhatsApp template messages</h2>
<div class="body">
<div class="p">Use shorthand syntax to bypass the 24-hour rule by WhatsApp when a WhatsApp end user
has reached out to your WhatsApp Business number and a ticket has been
created.<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> You cannot use shorthand syntax to send proactive WhatsApp
templates to end users who have never reached out to your business. You need to
use the Sunshine Conversations <a class="xref" href="https://docs.smooch.io/guide/outbound-messaging/#notification-api" target="_blank">Notification API</a> for this.</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__section_hhq_tjx_wxb">
<h3 class="title sectiontitle" id="h_01KQD67YY877PT98HKK61SA34N">Bypassing the WhatsApp 24 hour rule</h3>
</div>
<p class="p">If you can't reply to a message sent via WhatsApp within 24 hours, consider bypassing
the WhatsApp 24 hour rule so you can still reply later.</p>
<div class="section" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__section_o3s_nr1_yxb">
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><strong class="ph b">To bypass the WhatsApp 24 hour rule</strong></p>
<div class="p">
<ol class="ol" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__ol_mth_yjx_wxb">
<li class="li">An end user has messaged your business and opened a ticket.</li>
<li class="li">Use Sunshine Conversations shorthand syntax (see <a class="xref" href="https://docs.smooch.io/guide/whatsapp/#shorthand-syntax" target="_blank">Sunshine conversations
WhatsApp</a>). </li>
<li class="li">After the WhatsApp template message is approved, create a <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408844187034-Creating-macros-for-tickets#topic_zh2_4nw_4y" target="_blank"><span class="ph u wysiwyg-underline">macro</span></a> to send the
WhatsApp template message to end users who have already opened a
ticket.<div class="p">Here are two examples of how to create the content of the
macro:<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>&amp;((template=[[template]] fallback=[[text_fallback]] language=[[language]] body_text=[[param_1]]))&amp;</code></pre>
</div>
<p class="p">or</p>
<div class="p">
<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>&amp;((
template=[[template]]
fallback=[[fallback]]
language=[[language]]
body_text=[[param_1]]
))&amp;</code></pre>
</div>
<div class="p">
<ul class="ul" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__ul_i4g_vfx_wxb">
<li class="li">
<code class="ph codeph">template</code> - enter a name for your
template.</li>
<li class="li">
<code class="ph codeph">language</code> - for the language code, see <a class="xref" href="https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/business-management-api/message-templates/supported-languages" target="_blank">Supported
languages</a> in the Meta for developers
documentation.</li>
</ul>
</div>
</li>
<li class="li">Thoroughly test the functionality of each WhatsApp template message
macro, before deploying to production.<div class="p" dir="ltr">
<div class="note note">
<span class="notetitle">Note:</span> WhatsApp template message content is not reconstructed within
the ticket after you have sent it (it appears only as shorthand
syntax to the agent). However, your end users will see the
content of the WhatsApp template message.</div>
</div>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__section_ivw_qjx_wxb">
<h3 class="title sectiontitle" id="h_01KQD67YY8H0T3KGSNE4HFT7DB">Testing your macro functionality</h3>
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><strong class="ph b">To test text without variables</strong></p>
<div class="p">
<ol class="ol" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__ol_u5s_gkx_wxb">
<li class="li">Create a <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408844187034-Creating-macros-for-tickets#topic_zh2_4nw_4y" target="_blank"><span class="ph u wysiwyg-underline">macro</span></a>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Actions</strong>, paste the following example in the <strong class="ph b">Rich content
field</strong> and insert the relevant information for your template,
fallback text, and
language.<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>&amp;((template=[[template]] fallback=[[text_fallback]] language=[[language]]))&amp;</code></pre>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To test text with variables</strong></p>
<div class="p">
<ol class="ol" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__ol_gb4_klx_wxb">
<li class="li">Create a <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408844187034-Creating-macros-for-tickets#topic_zh2_4nw_4y" target="_blank"><span class="ph u wysiwyg-underline">macro</span></a>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Actions</strong>, paste the following example in the <strong class="ph b">Rich content
field</strong> and insert the relevant information for your template,
fallback text, language, and for example the ticket requester’s first
name.<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>&amp;((template=[[template]] fallback=[[text_fallback]] language=[[language]] body_text=[[ticket.requester.first_name]]))&amp;</code></pre>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To test text with variables and a media image</strong></p>
<div class="p">
<ol class="ol" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__ol_kmt_4lx_wxb">
<li class="li">Create a <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408844187034-Creating-macros-for-tickets#topic_zh2_4nw_4y" target="_blank">macro</a>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Actions</strong>, paste the following example in the <strong class="ph b">Rich content
field</strong> and insert the relevant information for your template,
fallback text, language, and for example the URL location of the header
image.<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>&amp;((template=[[template]] fallback=[[text_fallback]] language=[[language]] header_image=[[image_location]]
body_text=[[param_1]] body_text=[[param_2]]))&amp;</code></pre>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
<p class="p"><strong class="ph b">To test text with variables, media, and buttons</strong></p>
<div class="p">
<ol class="ol" id="topic_zkl_qyw_wxb__ol_w14_plx_wxb">
<li class="li">Create a <a class="xref" href="https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408844187034-Creating-macros-for-tickets#topic_zh2_4nw_4y" target="_blank">macro</a>.</li>
<li class="li">Under <strong class="ph b">Actions</strong>, paste the following example in the <strong class="ph b">Rich content
field</strong> and insert the relevant information for your template,
fallback text, language, and for example the URL location of the header
image, two different types of body text, the button index, and the URL
location of the
button.<pre class="pre codeblock wysiwyg-code-block"><code>&amp;((template=[[two_variable_media_buttons]] fallback=[[text_fallback]] language=[[language]]
header_document=[[document_location]] body_text=[[param_1]] body_text=[[param_2]] button_index=[[1]] button_url=[[url]]))&amp;</code></pre>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title5" class="topic nested1" id="topic_dtq_w1x_wxb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title5">Using Sunshine conversations API to send WhatsApp template messages</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p">If the end user has not yet messaged your business, you can still send an outbound
message to them by using the Notifications API feature, see the <a class="xref" href="https://docs.smooch.io/guide/whatsapp/#how-to-start-conversations" target="_blank">How to start conversations</a> section of
Sunshine Conversations: WhatsApp. You or your Engineering team can do this by using
the Sunshine Conversations API.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div aria-labelledby="ariaid-title6" class="topic nested1" id="topic_wmv_y1x_wxb">
<h2 class="title topictitle2" id="ariaid-title6">Troubleshooting WhatsApp templates</h2>
<div class="body">
<p class="p" dir="ltr"><strong class="ph b">WhatsApp rejected my WhatsApp template </strong></p>
<p class="p" dir="ltr">To find out why your template was rejected, click the template. Depending
on the reason for rejection, you can either edit the body, the variable, and the
media of your WhatsApp template message, or <a class="xref" href="https://developers.facebook.com/micro_site/url/?click_from_context_menu=true&amp;country=DK&amp;destination=https%3A%2F%2Fdevelopers.facebook.com%2Fdocs%2Fwhatsapp%2Fmessage-templates%2Fguidelines%2F%23appeals&amp;event_type=click&amp;last_nav_impression_id=0tDVHEoBbZkpJ8129&amp;max_percent_page_viewed=93&amp;max_viewport_height_px=842&amp;max_viewport_width_px=1621&amp;orig_http_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fdevelopers.facebook.com%2Fdocs%2Fwhatsapp%2Fmessage-templates%2Fguidelines%2F&amp;orig_request_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fdevelopers.facebook.com%2Fajax%2Fdocs%2Fnav%2F%3Fpath1%3Dwhatsapp%26path2%3Dmessage-templates%26path3%3Dguidelines&amp;region=emea&amp;scrolled=true&amp;session_id=1yMi3aXekKv0MHXPT&amp;site=developers" target="_blank">appeal the decision</a>. However, if your
template keeps being rejected, you must create a new one with a new name and
content. For more information, see <a class="xref" href="https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/message-templates/guidelines/" target="_blank">Message template guidelines</a> in the Meta
for developers documentation.</p>
</div>
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