How to run an official WhatsApp campaign, from template to results

First things first: what an official WhatsApp campaign is

A campaign is sending one message to a group of contacts at once: a notice, a new product, a due-date reminder. On official WhatsApp, every message started by the company uses a template approved by Meta and can only go to people who agreed to be contacted by the company.

These rules exist to protect the people receiving messages. For the company, they mean reliable reports and less risk of the number being limited because of reports.

Step 1: define the goal

Before writing, answer this: what should the person do after reading? Reply, click a link, book, pay? A campaign with a single goal is easier to write and to measure.

The goal also defines the template category. Notices about something the customer has already purchased, such as a due date or an order confirmation, are usually Utility. Offers and news are Marketing. The category changes the price of each message, and Meta may reclassify a template if the text sounds like advertising.

Step 2: write the template

• Start with the person's name and say right away who the message is from.
• One main piece of information per message. Short text works better.
• Use variables to personalize: name, due date, amount, order number.
• Image, video or document when they help understanding, not just for decoration.
• Buttons for the most likely reply: “Tell me more”, “View order”, “Talk to the team”.
• Always a way out: an opt-out button respects the customer and protects the account's quality.

Once written, the template goes to Meta for approval. Only approved templates can be used.

Step 3: choose the audience

Send only to people who opted in and, preferably, only to those interested in that subject. Splitting contacts by tags, such as “active customers”, “quote sent” or “birthdays this month”, makes the same campaign perform better and bother people less.

Purchased lists or contacts who have never talked to the company should not receive campaigns. Besides going against data protection laws and Meta's rules, they lead to blocks that bring down the account's quality.

Step 4: schedule at the right pace

• Days and hours when your audience usually reads messages, within business hours.
• Gradual volume: limit the number of new contacts per day, especially on new numbers.
• Frequency: avoid sending advertising to the same person several times in a few days.

Meta also limits how many different people the account can contact per day. That is why there is no unlimited sending: large lists take a few days.

Step 5: test before sending

Send the campaign to your own phone before releasing it to the list. Check that the variables were filled in, that the image shows up and that the buttons go to the right place.

Step 6: track and learn

The numbers that matter in a campaign:

• Delivered: how many messages arrived. Many failures point to wrong numbers in the list.
• Read: how many people opened it.
• Replies and clicks: how many did what you asked.
• Opt-out requests: if they grow, review the audience, the text or the frequency.

Reply to the messages the campaign generates. A successful campaign increases conversations, and your support team needs to be ready for it.

Common mistakes that sink a campaign

• Sending to the whole list without splitting by interest.
• Long text, without a clear goal and without a button.
• A promotion disguised as a notice, which Meta may reclassify.
• Sending everything at once from a new number.
• Not replying to people who answered the campaign.