With the WhatsApp Business solution, there are two ways to chat with your customer. Once a customer opts-in to receiving messages from your business, you can initiate a conversation by sending notifications via so-called Messages Templates, or the customer can initiate a conversation with your business. Whenever your customer contacts or replies to you, a customer care window is opened. This customer care window creates more opportunities for you to benefit from the WhatsApp Business solution.
What is a Customer Care Window?
The Customer Care Window is a 24-hour time frame in which you can communicate with customers in a rich conversation using so-called Session Messages, reacting to them in a real-time and interactive chat with rich media capabilities. This means your message is not limited to the pre-approved Message Templates, though Message Templates are possible within a customer care window as well. Moreover, chatting with your customer in this 24-hour customer care window will not be charged the WhatsApp fee.
The customer care window ends 24 hours after the last message is sent by the end-user. After 24 hours, you will only be able to send a notification via Message Templates. Each time the customer sends you a message, whether this is the conversation initiating message or another reply in the conversation, the 24-hour customer care window will restart. So, from the last message your customer has sent you, you have 24 hours to send custom messages, free of charge.
Keep the WhatsApp conversation going
To continue the conversation after the Customer Care Window ends, you can send one single Message Template. However, this is only allowed if you have an active opt-in from the customer. Message Templates give you the opportunity to send a notification to your customer if you need more than 24 hours to solve the customer’s problem. For example:
“We have a new update regarding your ticket {ticket_ID}. Please respond if you want to continue support.” If your customer then sends a reply to your message, a new customer care window will open, and you will regain the possibility to send session messages.
The purpose of a customer care window and the limitation in messaging possibilities outside that time frame is to ensure the quality of WhatsApp as a customer care channel for customers to engage with their business. By making smart use of Message Templates and the Customer Care Window, you can use WhatsApp as an easy and user-friendly channel for customer care.
Want to start using the WhatsApp Business API to improve your customer care? Visit our WhatsApp product page.