Until your business is fully verified by Facebook, you have access to a limited WhatsApp account which allows you to:

• Send a maximum of 10 templates messages a day, to 2 contacts per day
  
  
• Send unlimited messages to a maximum of 10 contacts per day
  
  

Contacting a customer using template messages

When initiating a conversation with a customer, WhatsApp requires you to use a pre-approved Message Template—previously referred to as a Highly Structured Message or HSM. You can submit Message Templates via the WhatsApp Template Manager on the MessageBird Dashboard. You also have the option to pick from our pre-defined templates approved by Facebook. Learn more about Message Templates in our help center guide. 

Replying to incoming customer messages

Two-way messaging is possible with WhatsApp, just keep in mind that this is only supported if the customer initiates a conversation with your business, or once the customer has replied to your template message. During this stage, a 24-hour support window will open during which you are able to message with your customer. The 24-hour window is reset every time you receive a new reply from the customer. If the 24-hour support window expires, you can restart the conversation by sending a new template message to your customer.

Remember that once your Facebook Business profile has been successfully verified, you’ll get full WhatsApp functionality and all limitations are lifted. Learn how to verify your Facebook Business Account in our step by step guide.