How to work with WhatsApp Business API templates (WhatsApp Dialog360)

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How to work with WhatsApp Business API templates?
How to work with WhatsApp Business API templates (WhatsApp Dialog360)

How to Create an HSM Template and Send It via Chat2Desk

Stage 1. Creating a template in your 360dialog account

Creating a textual HSM template

Creating a media HSM template

Stage 2. Sending a template from Chat2Desk

Template examples

Old layout

Stage 1. Creating a template in your 360dialog account

Open the WhatsApp Accounts tab. You will see all your accounts.
Select the desired one and click on Manage templates. You will enter the section with all your templates.

Click on + Add template. The new template creation window will open.

Creating a textual HSM template

Enter the template name in the Name field. You can only use the Latin characters. If necessary, underscores should be used as separators.
Select a category.

Utility;
Marketing;
Authentication.

Select a language.
Leave the template type as it is — Standard (text only).
Enter the message text in the Body section. The maximum length is 1,024 characters. The braces here indicate places for variables. The variables are words or numbers that change in every new message and shall be entered manually. They include the names of customers and operators, the numbers of orders, the time of day, etc. In short, they are any changeable parts.

For example, Hello, {{1}}. It’s {{2}} from the Sales Department.

You will need to enter variable values later, in Chat2Desk.

Click on Preview and submit. The preview window will open.

Enter variable examples in the Example values fields, and you will see them in the Preview on the right. Then click on Submit. You will thus confirm the template, and it will appear in your account above other templates.

Then the template will be automatically submitted to Facebook* for verification. As soon as it is confirmed, you will be able to send it to customers in Chat2Desk. We explain how to do it below.

You can forcibly verify your template. Click on the Synchronize with Facebook* button to do it.

Creating a media HSM template

Specify the template name using the Latin alphabet and underscores.
Select a category.
Select a language.
Select Template style > Media & Interactive.
Fill in the Header, Body, Footer, and Buttons blocks.
Click on Preview and submit.

Header is the template header. Here you can paste a greeting, an image, a video, or a document. You can also specify a variable, for example, Hello, {{1}}.

Select the type of content — Text, Image, Document, or Video. You will attach the files later, in step 5.

Body is the main text with variables.

For example,

Hello, {{1}}.

My name is {{2}}. I’m from the Sales Department. How can I help you?

Footer is a text that encourages the reader to perform an action in the buttons.

For example, Select one of three options.

Buttons are buttons of two types. The template can have up to 10 buttons of different types.

Call-to-action buttons. Here you can specify a link to a website, a YouTube video, or any other landing, and enter a phone number.
An instant answer — specify answer options so that a customer can respond to the chat in one click.

Click on Preview and submit. The preview window will open.

If you have an attachment, you have to specify a direct link to the file as URL, for example, https://somesite.com/some_place/some_file.png. If you want to add a document, use PDF files because templates do not support DOC.
360dialog attaches the link instead of downloading the file, therefore it shall be always accessible.
Uploading files from cloud services, such as Google Drive, iCloud, etc., is not supported.

Stage 2. Sending a template from Chat2Desk

Open a chat with a customer and enter template lines from your 360dialog account manually.

The template consists of several lines:

@HSM@	This mark informs the service that you are sending exactly an HSM template.
template_name\|language	Specify here the template name identical to the one in 360dialog. Use lowercase letters and underscores. Specify the language in en format. You can find the correct abbreviation for each language in the list of languages in the template builder.
template variables	Each variable of the template is specified in a new line, according to the sequence that is specified in the template.

You do not need to specify buttons in the layout. They are already entered and built into the template. If the template has an attachment, attach it to the message

After you send your template, the text you entered in your 360dialog account will be pulled up to the message. You will see the message with the layout. But the customer will receive an ordinary sentence.

Textual HSM template without variables

Textual HSM template with variables

Media HSM template

What you need to enter

@HSM@
first_template|en

@HSM@
first_template|en
John
Mark

@HSM@
second_template|en
John
Mark

What the customer receives

Hello. It’s the Sales Department.

Hello, John. It’s Mark from the Sales Department.

Hello, John.

*image*

My name is Mark. I’m from the Sales Department. How can I help you?

Call me back
Text me
I don’t need anything

Save each HSM template in Chat2Desk templates for convenience. Specify exact words in place of variables. For example:

@HSM@
greeting|en
customer name
operator name

Thus, you will not have to create this template over and over again.

The sum for HSM templates is debited from your deposit. If you want to know your balance, open Settings > Accounts, select the channel with WhatsApp Business API, and click on the pencil icon.

Template examples

Template without variables

Template editor

Template preview

Sending a template from Chat2Desk

WhatsApp message

Template with variable

Template editor

Template preview

Sending a template from Chat2Desk

WhatsApp message

Template with buttons

Template editor

Template preview

Sending a template from Chat2Desk

WhatsApp message

You do not need to specify buttons separately in the markup. Buttons with a variable are an exception.

Template with variables in several blocks

Template editor

Template preview

Sending a template from Chat2Desk

Variables should be specified in the order in which they are in the template preview. Variables in Header are specified first, variables in Body are specified after them and Buttons variables are specified last.

WhatsApp message

The user will have this page open if they click on the Open Link button

Template with media

Template editor

Template preview

For an attachment, you must specify a URL where it is located and can be opened.

Sending a template from Chat2Desk

When sending a template, you do not need to specify its URL. To send a template you need to attach an attachment to the message. This is done in the chat window using the paperclip icon.

WhatsApp message

Old layout

The following describes the layout that was used previously. Templates in this format will continue to work. However, they will not support variables in the header and button.

@HSM@	This mark informs the service that you are sending exactly an HSM template.
template_name\|language	Specify here the template name identical to the one in 360dialog. Use lowercase letters and underscores. Specify the language in en format. You can find the correct abbreviation for each language in the list of languages in the template builder.
header\|attachment type	Specify the media template attachment type here. Video, photo, document, or text. This line is required only for a media template
body\|data format	This line is responsible for the main text of the template, which is specified in the 360dialog. Here you must specify the type of data format, only text is possible. After the data format type, you must specify the variables, with a vertical line \|.
footer\|content type	This line is responsible for the text in front of the buttons. You can specify only text as content type. If you don't have a media-template and no buttons, you don't have to write this line