Meta is introducing a new approach to template engagement by incorporating read rates as a pivotal metric in our quality rating system. Alongside traditional metrics like blocks and reports, read rates will now play a significant role in determining the quality of marketing message templates.
This means that marketing message campaigns with low read rates may be temporarily paused, allowing businesses to refine and iterate on their templates for optimal engagement before scaling up their volume.
These changes will commence on April 1, 2024, and will be rolled out globally.
Improving your message read rates?
To minimize the chance of messages not being delivered and to boost engagement, businesses should consider the following strategies:
Tailor Messages: Customize your marketing messages for different user segments to make them more relevant.
Monitor Timing: Avoid sending marketing messages during peak periods when users may receive multiple messages from other businesses.
Manage Frequency: Track how many marketing messages you’re sending to the same users on the same day to avoid breaching the limit and overwhelming the users.
Cooldown Periods: If a user hasn’t engaged in a while, give them a break from marketing messages.
Offer Opt-In/Opt-Out Options: Always provide users the option to opt-out of marketing messages to maintain trust.
By following these best practices, businesses can maintain healthy engagement levels and ensure their marketing messages are well-received by users.
FAQs Enhancing Template Engagement: Please read this for more detailed information below -
Q: Will these changes be launched globally?
A: Yes, it will roll out globally on April 1, 2024.
Q: What are the new changes to the message quality rating system?
A: We have updated our system to include read rates as a key factor in determining the quality of marketing message templates. This is in addition to traditional metrics like blocks and reports. We may temporarily pause marketing message campaigns with low read rates, giving businesses time to iterate on the templates with the lowest engagement before scaling volume.
Q: Why are read rates being included in quality assessment?
A: Read rates are a crucial measure of user engagement and interest. They provide insight into the relevance and value of messages to people. Curbing low-quality messaging is expected to improve engagement metrics overall for the platform, such as read rates, and ultimately better return on investment for businesses.
Q: How does template pausing work today?
A: If a message template reaches the lowest quality rating (a status of Active - Low quality), it will automatically be paused for a period of time to protect the quality rating of phone numbers that have used the template. Pausing durations are as follows:
1st Instance: Paused for 3 hours
2nd Instance: Paused for 6 hours
3rd Instance: Disabled
While templates will unpause on their own after satisfying the pause duration, you may also unpause a template immediately by using WhatsApp Manager (unpause button) or by using the API (unpause endpoint). See the Message Template Guidelines developer documentation for more details.
Q: What are the charges for the Blocked Messages
A: No, businesses will not be charged for messages that are blocked due to these limits.
Q: What is the threshold for read rates that could lead to a template being paused?
A: We do not provide a specific threshold as it may vary over time depending on overall user engagement on the platform. However, most businesses with strong customer engagement maintain read rates of 65-80%.
Q: How can we track our message read rates?
A: Businesses can monitor message read rates in real-time via a dedicated dashboard with message template metrics in WhatsApp Manager.
From Overview in WhatsApp Manager, hover over the Account tools suitcase icon in the left sidebar.
Select Message templates. The metrics are displayed in the table.
Select any message template, then click the template Insights tab to see additional metrics, including “Messages Read”.
You also receive a read event webhook for each message (if the user has turned the “read receipts” setting on) via the messages webhook.
Q: How are we accommodating the timing of messages?
For example, people may not check messages during work hours, which could result in low read rates.
A: Our system accounts for variations in user availability by analyzing read rate trends over an appropriate period, rather than solely relying on immediate response times. This ensures a fair and realistic assessment of message engagement.
Q: Will we receive any warnings when our templates are at risk of being paused from low read rates?
A: We will continue to provide notifications about changes in template quality, just as we do currently.
These notifications will be sent via webhooks and through the WA Manager when the status of a template changes from green (good quality) to yellow (medium quality/warning), or from yellow to red (low quality/template paused).
Notifications about paused templates will:
Be surfaced in the Business Manager Notifications Center
Appear in the banner in WhatsApp Manager
Be sent as an email to all admins set in the Business Manager
Be sent as a webhook notification
Q: What information is available in the quality change webhook?
A: The values below will be available in the webhook, which are all self-explanatory.
“previous_quality_score”
“new_quality_score”
“message_template_id”
“message_template_name”
“Message_template_language”
Q: What information will be included in the error codes and how can I ensure my business receives them?
A: Ensure you are on the latest versions of the API to receive error codes for paused templates as below:
Error codes on the On-Premises API
Paused templates:
Error code: 2061
Message: Template status is PAUSED so cannot be sent.
Disabled templates:
Error code: 2062
Message: Template status is DISABLED so cannot be sent
Error codes on the Cloud API: Contact [email protected] for more information if you are not receiving the below error codes.
Paused templates:
Message: Template is temporarily unavailable to use because it was paused due to low quality.
Disabled templates:
Message: Template is permanently disabled due to consistent low quality and multiple pauses. It is no longer available to use.
While WhatsApp's recent policy changes regarding marketing messages may seem daunting at first, they actually present a unique opportunity for businesses to evolve and enhance their engagement strategies. It is important to build an engagement channel that not only delivers relevant messages but also adds genuine value to your audience's individual needs and preferences where you can trust Exotel.
There are a few more updates to the Template policies from Meta. Feel free to check them and read more about them:
New Marketing Message Limits Policy Change
Template Re-categorization
With Exotel’s solutions, you can effectively manage these updates and continue to build meaningful connections with your audience.