Send bulk WhatsApp messages: How to scale outreach compliantly 

Imagine throwing a party and handing invitations to random strangers on the street – most ignore you, some complain. Compliant messaging is like inviting only interested connections, giving them details and an easy way to RSVP. Everyone feels respected, and the party is a success.  

What you’ll get:

What is WhatsApp bulk messaging for businesses

What can you send at scale? 

• Marketing: promotions, offers, invites to engage 
• Utility: citizen updates, ID/passport expiry reminders 

Grow your reachable audience first!

• Use Click to WhatsApp ads, QR codes, and wa.me links to drive consented opt-ins and start user-initiated chats.

What makes the Business Platform the best path? 

• Verified branded sender and enterprise-grade security with end-to-end encryption 
• Rich experiences with media, buttons, catalogs, payments, and WhatsApp Flows for self-service journeys 
• Seamless integrations with CRM, eCommerce, marketing tools, and advanced analytics to measure delivery, engagement, and conversion  
• Scales reliably for high volumes across markets with global support 

Policy essentials for large-scale messaging

To send bulk WhatsApp messages compliantly, use the WhatsApp Business Platform with opt-in, pre-approved templates, and responses inside the 24-hour customer service window. 

• Opt-in and consent: Obtain customer permission before any business-initiated send. Record the consent source in your CRM/CDP and provide an easy way to opt out to protect brand reputation and reduce complaints. 
• Templates vs free-form: Use pre-approved templates with personalization and media for proactive messages. Choose the correct category: marketing for promotions and offers, utility for transactional updates, and authentication for OTPs and verification.  
• 24-hour customer service window: When a user starts the chat, you can respond with free-form messages for 24 hours. After that window, a new template is required to re-engage. 
• Prohibited methods: Avoid consumer-app broadcasts, auto-senders, and scraped lists. These approaches violate WhatsApp policy and risk blocks or bans. This point is not included in the provided sources, but reflects WhatsApp’s published rules. 
• Compliance guardrails with Infobip: Operate as a verified business sender with end-to-end encryption, and use platform controls and analytics to maintain compliance and trust at scale. 

Compliance checklist for every campaign 

• Confirm consent: Opt-in captured, timestamped, and stored in your CRM/CDP. 
• Select the right template: Category mapped to intent, variables and media validated, and template approved before send. 
• Include opt-out: Provide a simple way to stop messages. 
• Respect timing: Apply quiet hours and local regulations for each market. 
• Target smartly: Segment audiences, suppress low-engagers, and cap frequency. 
• Orchestrate and monitor: Use customer engagement solution for scheduling and governance, then track delivery, reads, and responses in real time. 
• Reply handling: Route inbound messages to agents in Cloud contact center or automate with chatbots in chatbot building platform and WhatsApp Flows. 
• Post-send review: Analyze engagement and conversion, update segments and templates, and prepare the next iteration. 

App vs platform for sending WhatsApp bulk messages 

The WhatsApp Business App suits small teams sending manual updates to limited audiences. For compliant, large-scale messaging, use the WhatsApp Business Platform. It enables automation, segmentation, orchestration, analytics, and multi-agent support with verified branded profiles and enterprise-grade security. For businesses looking to expand reach beyond WhatsApp, Infobip also supports bulk SMS campaigns.   

When to move from app to platform? 

• You need to send at scale across markets with consistent delivery and controls. 
• You require integrations with CRM, eCommerce, and marketing tools to drive personalization and attribution. 
• You want automated journeys, chatbots, and agent handoff to manage replies at volume. 
• You need advanced analytics for delivery, engagement, and conversion, plus omnichannel failover where appropriate.  

How to create and approve templates for bulk campaigns 

Use approved templates to start business-initiated conversations at scale.  Illustration Suggestion: A chart to follow these steps.  

1. Map intent to category: Choose marketing for promotions and offers, utility for transactional updates, and authentication for OTPs and verification. Business-initiated messages require templates and prior opt-in. 
2. Write concise copy: Lead with value in the first line, keep it short, and personalize with variables for name, order ID, date, or amount.  
3. Add media and components: Use headers (image, video, document), body text with variables, and interactive buttons like quick replies or URL CTAs to tailor the message and drive action. You can also build richer flows and payments for end-to-end journeys once the conversation starts. 
4. Include clear CTAs: Make the next step obvious. Use buttons like Shop now, Track order, View invoice, or Verify. 
5. Add opt-out language: Offer a simple opt-out, for example “Reply STOP to opt out.”  
6. Adapt messages by region: Create locale-specific variants to match language and offers. Keep variable formats consistent across versions. 
7. Validate placeholders: Ensure variable types and fallbacks are correct, links work, and buttons point to the right destinations. 
8. Submit for approval: Send your templates through the Infobip interface for review against WhatsApp and Meta guidelines. Templates must be approved before use in business-initiated conversations. 
9. QA before send: Preview with sample data and media across devices and languages. Check length, line breaks, and button rendering. 

Example templates to include 

Marketing promo 

• Body: Hi {{1}}, our {{2}} sale is live. Get {{3}} off today. Tap below to shop. 
• Buttons: Shop now (URL {{4}}), View catalog 
• Notes: Include brand name in the header image or first line. Add “Reply STOP to opt out.” 

Utility order update 

• Body: Your order {{1}} has shipped. Track it here: {{2}}. Expected delivery: {{3}}. 
• Buttons: Track order, Contact support 
• Notes: Keep it factual and timely. Use variables for order ID, tracking link, and date. 

Authentication OTP 

• Body: Your verification code is {{1}}. Do not share it with anyone. 
• Buttons: Verify now 
• Notes: Short, secure wording. No promotional content. 

Execute and monitor WhatsApp bulk messages with Infobip 

1. Run large-scale sends in customer engagement solution

Build segments from consented audiences, schedule by market, set frequency caps and throttling, and A/B test templates to improve engagement. Orchestrate journeys that branch on user behavior and add omnichannel failover to SMS or RCS to maximize reach when needed. 

2. Automate self-service with chatbot building platform and WhatsApp Flows

Deploy chatbots to handle FAQs, bookings, orders, and payments directly in chat. Use Flows for guided, app-like experiences that collect inputs, validate data, and complete tasks end to end without leaving WhatsApp. 

3. Route replies to cloud contact center 

Use a multi-agent inbox with skills-based routing and SLAs to handle responses at volume. Blend automation and human support with seamless handoff so customers get fast, accurate answers in one thread. 

4. Measure everything and optimize 

Track delivery, seen, clicks, and conversions in real time. Combine messaging and advertising insights for Click to WhatsApp campaigns to attribute outcomes and improve targeting. Sync events to your CRM and CDP to enrich profiles, drive personalization, and close the loop on ROI. 

2025 pricing model and budgeting 

WhatsApp Business pricing has moved to per-message rates by category and country, billed on delivery. The change came into place July 1, 2025. Plan your budget for scale by categorizing each send and estimating message volume by market and expected delivery rates. 

How pricing works in 2025 

• Per-message billing: Costs vary by country and by message category. Charges apply on delivery. 
• To check rates, visit the WhatsApp Business Platform pricing page for current country and category rates. 

Build a cost estimate 

• Audience and consent: Start with opted-in reach per market. 
• Category mix: Forecast the share of messages that are marketing vs utility vs authentication. 
• Expected delivery: Apply typical delivery rates by market and segment quality. 
• Price per message: Multiply delivery volume by the local rate for each category. 
• Reply volume: Plan agent and bot handling for the 24-hour window to avoid template re-engagement where not needed. 
• Testing and throttling: Allocate budget for A/B tests and staggered rollout to manage cost exposure while you optimize. 

Cost-control tactics for sending bulk messages 

• Use Click to WhatsApp ads to kick off conversations you can continue for 72 hours at no charge, then guide users into utility journeys and self-service to complete tasks in one thread. 
• Keep utility tasks inside the 24-hour service window when the customer is active to reduce the need for new template sends. Note that utility messages are free of charge for 24 hours after the user initiates the chat. 
• Suppress low-engagers and cap frequency to protect deliverability and reduce wasted spend. 
• Group users by interest and activity so the most engaged get marketing messages first. 
• Optimize templates: A/B test opening lines, media, and buttons to lift CTR and conversion, which improves performance and reduces the number of follow-up sends. 
• Reduce routing hops and avoid unnecessary failovers. Use omnichannel only when it boosts reach or conversion. 
• Stage sends by market to control reply load, monitor performance, and pause or switch variants in real time. 

KPIs to track and optimize after each send 

Measure every campaign to understand reach, engagement, cost, and outcomes. Use Infobip analytics to track delivery, seen, clicks, and conversions in real time, then feed results back into your templates, targeting, and timing for the next send. 

Core delivery and engagement 

• Delivery rate: Confirm routing quality and number validity by market. 
• Read rate: Gauge content relevance and send time. 
• Click and reply rate: Measure intent and clarity of your call to action. Infobip tracks delivery, seen, click, and conversion metrics in real time. 

Customer experience and risk 

• Opt-out rate: Keep below your internal threshold. Review copy, frequency, and targeting if it rises. 
• Complaint signals: Monitor negative feedback and suppression triggers to protect sender trust. 
• Time to first response: Measure how fast agents or bots reply to inbound messages to maintain momentum. 

Revenue and efficiency 

• Conversion rate: Track purchases, bookings, sign-ups, or task completion from WhatsApp journeys. Infobip ties messaging to outcomes with advanced analytics. 
• Cost per conversion: Combine per-message cost with ad spend where relevant. Optimize toward segments and templates with the best ROI. 
• Chat resolution rate: For service use cases, track resolved-in-chat to reduce re-engagement costs. 

Channel health and scale 

• Quality signal and messaging capacity: Watch deliverability, engagement, and negative feedback to maintain healthy scale. Improve template relevance and targeting if you see deterioration. 
• Entry point performance: For Click to WhatsApp ads, review ad-to-chat rate and downstream conversions using combined ads and messaging reporting in one place. 

Post-campaign review checklist 

• Diagnose by segment and market: Identify where delivery or engagement diverged. 
• Iterate templates: Test new openers, media, and buttons on the next wave. 
• Adjust frequency and quiet hours: Reduce fatigue and improve reads. 
• Update audiences: Suppress low-engagers, expand high-intent lookalikes. 
• Close the loop: Sync events to your CRM and CDP to enrich profiles and power better personalization next time. 

FAQs about WhatsApp bulk messaging