WhatsApp Templates

In this section, you will learn how to create WhatsApp templates that will later be validated by META. indigitall is a Meta Business Partner so the process is easy for all our clients.

Creating templates

• Go to the principal menu at the left area: Tools/Chat/WhatsApp templates.

• Click on the green button at the right area: New Template.
• A pop-up appears to complete these fields:

• Name: Choose the name for your template. It is good to write a descriptive title to identify it later.
• Category: Meta has developed 3 main categories: Marketing, Utility and Authentication. Only you need to choose the most appropriate for your message and then Meta will approve it. Please check all explanation here.
• Language: Choose the language of your text.

Now we explain the following fields of the content. The maximum file upload size is 64 MB, which means this limit also applies to any image, document, or video you send with a message.

• Header: You can choose these options:

Text: 60 characters maximum.

Image: With .jpeg or .png format. Meta doesn't support images with transparent backgrounds.

Document: With .pdf format.

Location: Location headers can only be used in templates categorized as Utility or Marketing. Real-time locations are not supported.

Video: mp4, 3gpp. Only H.264 video codec and AAC audio codec is supported.
Meta supports videos with single audio stream or no audio stream.

• Body: Text-only component and it is required by all templates. It supports multiple variables with a maximum of 1024 characters.
  The variables for the text are written in this way: {{1}}, {{2}}, {{3}}... Learn how to add variables into text for massive sending and .CSV sending.

• Footer: It is an optional field that appears immediately after the body component. A maximum of 60 characters.
• Buttons: Buttons are optional interactive components that perform specific actions when tapped. Templates can have a mixture of up to 10 button components total, although there are limits to individual buttons of the same type as well as combination limits. Please check the guidelines here. Meta has enabled more flexibility of button usage for both Marketing and Utility messages:
  • Combine the Quick Reply and Call-to-Action (CTA) buttons.
  • Include a maximum of 2 URLs from the previous 1 URL.

Quick Reply: Text-only buttons that immediately message you with the specified text string when tapped by the app user. A common use case-case is a button that allows your customer to easily opt-out of any marketing messages.

Phone Call: Phone button numbers call the specified business phone number when tapped by the app user. Business phone numbers have 20 characters maximum.

URL: URL buttons load the specified URL in the device's default web browser when tapped by the app user. The URL of the website supports 1 variable and has 2000 characters maximum.

Messaging Limits

Messaging limits refer to the maximum number of business-initiated conversations (conversations started by sending a marketing, utility, or authentication template to a WhatsApp user) that a business phone number can initiate within a 24-hour rolling period.

Initially, business phone numbers are capped at 250 business-initiated conversations within a 24-hour rolling period, but this limit can be raised. Messaging limits can be increased to the following:

• 1K business-initiated conversations
• 10K business-initiated conversations
• 100K business-initiated conversations
• An unlimited number of business-initiated conversations

You can increase your messaging limit to 1K on your own using the following methods. Higher limits, however, can only be achieved through automatic scaling, which happens after your limit has been increased to 1K.

Note that in order for your business phone number to be eligible for an increase, it must have a connected status(how to know Phone Number Status), and if your business phone number has a low quality rating, it may continue to be limited to 250 business-initiated conversations until its quality rating improves.

Business Verification

Submit your business for verification (How to Verify Your Business on Meta). Once approved, Meta will evaluate your messaging quality to determine whether your messaging activity justifies an increase in your messaging limit. Based on this evaluation, Meta will either approve or deny the limit increase. You can learn here about your WhatsApp Business phone number´s quality rating.

Official Business Account (OBA)

You can apply for an Official Business Account (OBA) directly through WhatsApp Manager.

Minimum Requirements to Submit an OBA Request:

• A Verified Business Manager with an approved Display Name that aligns with the company’s external branding. (The Business Manager must not belong to another company or agency, and the display name cannot be under review or rejected.)
• The phone number’s quality rating must be high at the time of application, and the minimum messaging limit must be 1,000 messages.
• The brand must comply with WhatsApp’s policies, especially the Commerce Policy.
• The company must have at least 500 employees and/or generate $50 million in annual revenue.
• Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) must be enabled when submitting the application.
• If appealing a decision, provide the number of the initial request with Meta.

Important: indigitall cannot guarantee that an account will be approved as an OBA. The WhatsApp API Support Team reviews all applications, and the process may take up to 7 days.

Key Note: Once a number is granted OBA status, it is linked to the current Display Name. If you need to change the display name, it’s best to do so before applying for an OBA. Otherwise, you will need to submit an appeal to Meta.

Where to Apply: Go to WhatsApp Manager > Phone Numbers > Profile

• Submitting a Request for Business Verification

To initiate the verification process, click Submit Request and provide the required information. You may include up to five supporting links to demonstrate the business's notability. Carefully select these links, as resubmission is only possible after 30 days if the request is denied.

Key Considerations to Strengthen Your Application: Before submitting your request, ensure that your business meets the following criteria to improve the chances of approval:

• Your website must contain clear and comprehensive information about your products and services, including the display name, physical address, and contact details.
• The display name should match the name used on your official website.
• Provide at least five external media coverage links from reputable sources such as newspapers and magazines. Links from your own website, social media pages, or articles older than 12 months are not accepted.
• Avoid submitting irrelevant or low-quality news articles that do not directly relate to the business.
• All submitted links must be published within the last 12 months to be considered valid.
• Sponsored or paid content is not accepted by Meta, as its review team continuously refines verification criteria to maintain authenticity.
• Social media links are not considered valid supporting sources by Meta and should not be included.
• A high number of Facebook page likes can serve as an additional indicator of business relevance.
• Including the number of employees and financial performance metrics may further support your business’s credibility.

By adhering to these guidelines, you can strengthen your application and increase the likelihood of approval.

Identity Verification

After your business is approved for verification, you may be required to verify your identity.

If identity verification is needed, the WhatsApp Manager > Overview > Limits panel will display the following notification: Identity verification required.

In addition, an accountalerts webhook (see examples) with alert_type set to _INCREASED_CAPABILITIES_ELIGIBILITY_NEED_MORE_INFO will be triggered.

If you successfully complete identity verification and your identity is confirmed, Meta will approve an increase in your messaging limit. However, if your identity cannot be confirmed, the request will be denied, and the WhatsApp Manager > Overview > Limits panel will display one of the following notifications: Identity verification has failed. Your business can continue sending messages to unlock your limits or limits cannot be increased at this time.

Initiate 1K Conversations Within 30 Days

Start 1,000 or more business-initiated conversations within a rolling 30-day period using templates with a high-quality rating. Once this threshold is met, Meta will review your messaging quality to assess whether your activity justifies an increase to your messaging limit. Following this evaluation, Meta will either approve or deny the limit increase.

Deliver High-Quality Messages

If your business or identity verification is denied, focus on sending high-quality messages. Meta will periodically reassess your messaging activity and quality, and based on this review, an increase to your messaging limit may be granted.

Tips for Sending High-Quality Messages:

• Ensure all messages comply with the WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy.
• Only message users who have explicitly opted in to receive communications from your business.
• Craft highly personalized and valuable messages. Avoid generic welcome or introductory messages.
• Monitor your messaging frequency carefully. Limit the number of messages sent to customers each day, and prioritize concise, informative content.

Requesting a Limit Increase

If you have completed business or identity verification or reached the threshold of 1,000 conversations within 30 days but are still restricted to 250 business-initiated conversations, you can request a messaging tier upgrade by submitting a direct support ticket. Navigate to Ask a Question > WABiz: Phone Number & Registration > Request Type > Request a Messaging Tier Upgrade.

Based on the details of your request and the quality of your messaging, Meta will determine whether to approve or deny the upgrade.

Increase Approvals

If a messaging limit increase is approved, your business phone number’s limit will be raised to 1K, and you will be notified via email and a developer alert. Additionally, a business_capability_update webhook will be triggered (see examples), with the max_daily_conversation_per_phone property reflecting the new limit.

After approval, your business phone number becomes eligible for automatic scaling.

Increase Denials

If a messaging limit increase is denied, your business phone number’s limit will remain at its current level. You will be notified via email and a developer alert. Furthermore, an accountalerts webhook will be triggered (see examples), including the _alert_type and alert_description properties with information on alternative actions to take for increasing your limit.

Automatic Scaling

Once your business phone number’s messaging limit is raised to 1K business-initiated conversations, Meta will evaluate whether to increase the limit further each time it is used to initiate a new conversation. This evaluation is based on the following criteria:

• Your business phone number is active and connected.
• The quality rating of your business phone number is either Medium or High.
• Over the past 7 days, your business phone number has been used to initiate at least X business conversations, where X is half of its current messaging limit.

If all these conditions are met, the messaging limit will be increased by one level within 24 hours. However, if the quality rating has been set to Flagged for the last 7 days, the limit will immediately be reduced by one level.

Examples:
A messaging limit can increase from 1K to 10K within 2 days:

*If the 500th conversation is opened at 3pm (for example), the messaging limit is increased at 3pm the following day (i.e. 24 hours later).

Messaging limit increased from 1K to 10K in 4 days:

*If the 500th conversation is initiated at 7pm (for example), the messaging limit is increased at 7pm the following day (i.e. 24 hours later).

Hitting Your Messaging Limit

When you reach your messaging limit, you can start new conversations as soon as one or more active conversations come to an end. As the image below shows:

Reviewing Your Limit

Before your business phone number's messaging limit is raised to 1K business-initiated conversations, the WhatsApp Manager > Overview > Limits panel provides valuable insights and guidance on steps you can take to request a limit increase.

Once your business phone number's messaging limit is increased, the WhatsApp Manager > Account Tools > Insights panel will show your new messaging limit, including any adjustments made through automatic scaling.

Messaging Quality

Your messaging quality is assessed based on how recipients have interacted with your messages over the last seven days, with more recent interactions having a greater impact. This evaluation uses various quality signals from your conversations with WhatsApp users. Examples of these signals include user feedback such as blocks, reports, and the reasons users provide when they block a business.

You can view your business phone number’s status, quality rating, and messaging limits in the WhatsApp Manager > Account Tools > Phone Numbers panel.

Keep in mind that it’s common for phone numbers with high messaging activity to experience fluctuations in quality over short periods (sometimes within minutes).

For more details about your WhatsApp Business phone number’s quality rating, refer to About your WhatsApp Business phone number’s quality rating.

Editing Templates

There are some restrictions:

• Only templates with a status of APPROVED, REJECTED, or PAUSED are eligible for editing.
• You can modify the category or components of a template, but not both.
• The category of an approved template cannot be changed.
• Approved templates can be updated up to 10 times within a 30-day period or once within 24 hours. Rejected and paused templates have no restrictions on the number of edits.
• When editing an approved or paused template, it will automatically regain approval unless it does not meet the template review standards.

Deleting Templates

It is important to know:

• If you delete a template that has been used in a message but hasn’t been delivered yet (for example, if the customer’s phone is turned off), the template status will change to PENDING_DELETION, and we’ll continue to attempt delivery for up to 30 days. After this period, you’ll receive a "Structure Unavailable" error, and the message will no longer be sent to the customer.
• Additionally, the name of any approved template that has been deleted cannot be reused for a period of 30 days.