Email open rates keep sliding; WhatsApp messages get read. That single fact is why broadcast messaging is the most requested marketing feature in chat commerce. But WhatsApp is not email — it has strict rules, and businesses that treat it like a spam channel lose their number. This guide covers doing it properly.
Broadcasts vs the 24-hour window
WhatsApp separates conversations into two kinds:
- Service conversations — the customer messaged you first; you can reply freely for 24 hours.
- Business-initiated conversations — you message first (or outside the window). These require pre-approved message templates.
A broadcast is by definition business-initiated, so every broadcast is built on a template: a message with placeholders (like the customer's name or an order number) that Meta reviews and approves before you can send it. Approval usually takes minutes to hours, and clearly promotional templates are held to a higher standard than utility ones.
Opt-in is not optional
You need the customer's permission to message them on WhatsApp. In practice, opt-in happens naturally: a customer who messages your business, places an order, or ticks a box on your website has opted in — provided you told them what they would receive. Two rules keep you safe:
- Only broadcast to people who have interacted with you and would recognise your name.
- Honour "stop" instantly. Every recipient who asks to stop must never be messaged again — good platforms handle the suppression list automatically.
WhatsApp enforces this with quality ratings: too many blocks or reports and your sending limits shrink, then sending stops. The system is genuinely self-correcting — send things people want, or lose the channel.
What to send (and what not to)
Broadcasts that perform are useful first, promotional second:
- Order and delivery updates (utility, always welcome).
- Appointment reminders and follow-ups.
- Back-in-stock or new-menu announcements to customers who asked.
- A genuinely good offer, occasionally, to a segmented audience.
Broadcasts that get you blocked: daily promotions, messages to purchased lists, and anything you would be annoyed to receive from a shop yourself.
Segmentation: the CRM connection
Blast-to-everyone is where broadcast programs die. Because every chat in Sakhi.Chat feeds a built-in CRM — contacts with tags, order history and lead scores — broadcasts can target segments instead: "customers who ordered in the last 90 days", "leads tagged wholesale", "everyone who asked about the new location". Smaller, sharper audiences mean higher read rates and a healthier quality rating.
Drip sequences: broadcasts with a brain
A sequence is a scheduled series of messages triggered by an event — a new lead, a first order, an abandoned enquiry. A simple, effective example for a new lead:
- Immediately: welcome message with the one question that qualifies them.
- Day 2: a helpful answer to the most common objection.
- Day 5: social proof or an example of your work.
- Day 9: a clear, single call to action.
Each step respects the template rules automatically, and any customer reply drops them out of the sequence and into a real conversation — with AI answering instantly and your team on handover.
Frequently asked questions
How many people can I broadcast to? New WhatsApp Business Accounts start with a daily business-initiated conversation cap that grows with good sending behaviour.
Do broadcasts cost money? Meta charges per conversation by category and country; your platform shows the cost before you send.
Can customers reply to a broadcast? Yes — and that reply opens a free 24-hour service window, which is exactly what you want.
Build the list from real conversations, send things worth reading, and let the AI handle the replies: start free or explore pricing.