Message Template Guidelines

Rejections

If your template(s) have been rejected, it may have been for one of the following reasons.

The message template(s) are considered promotional

Advertising, marketing, or promotional messages are not permitted. Some examples of this include the following:

• Offering coupon codes and/or free gifts
• Upselling
  For example: “Here is your boarding pass, with seat assignment and gate information. If you would like to save 10% on your in-flight dinner, order your meal through our app.”
• Cold call messages
  For example: “Is now a good time to talk?”, “Thank you for your interest, can we speak now?”, “I tried contacting you but you weren't available. When are you free?”, etc.
• Sending a survey or poll to collect data
  For example: “Hi, we're interested in knowing how you feel about certain food groups. Do you mind participating in a survey?”
• Inclusion of certain words or phrases that make the message template promotional (even though the content of your template may be fine)
  Tip: Think about how your template sounds when read out loud.

We do not approve message templates with floating parameters (i.e., lines with just parameters and no text). In the below example, we're referring to {{3}} and {{4}} as the floating parameters.

--
TICKET NO: {{1}}
PASSENGER NAME: *{{2}}*
--
{{3}} - {{4}}

Tip: Surround the parameters with textual information so it's clear what will be inserted.

Formatting is incorrect

Some examples of this include the following:

• Message templates with spelling mistakes will be rejected.
• Make sure to use parameters like {{1}}, {{2}}, etc. and include the correct number of curly brackets (i.e., 2 on the left side of the number and 2 on the right side of the number).

You can find out more out more about formatting in the Creating Message Templates documentation.

Templates contain potentially abusive or threatening content

Some examples of this include the following:

• Message templates that threaten customers with a legal course of action will be rejected.
• Message templates that threaten to add customers to a WhatsApp group with their friends and family to shame them if they don't pay back their loans will be rejected.

Tips

In addition to the above, please consider the following to accelerate the approval process.

• Make your message template name clear. Instead of using a name like "template_014," use "bus_ticket_details".
• Remember that someone outside of your business will be reviewing your templates. Providing more clarity gives reviewers context around how the template will be used.

Note: You can add a sample template by clicking the Add Sample button. This helps us during the review and approval process, so we can understand what kind of message you plan to send. Make sure these are examples and do not include any confidential or personal information.

• If you need to write a message template to re-open the 24-hour window, we would suggest starting with some mention of the previous conversation thread.
  For example: “I'm sorry that I wasn't able to respond to your concerns yesterday but I’m happy to assist you now. If you’d like to continue this discussion, please reply with ‘yes’.” or “I was able to do some follow-up based on our previous conversation, and I’ve found the answer to your question about our refund policy. If you’d like to continue our conversation, please say ‘yes’.”

Last Updated: 22 October 2019