Summary
Campaigns allow you to send messages to multiple contacts at once. To ensure successful delivery, always add country codes to the contacts before sending. This guide walks you through creating and sending your first campaign, including selecting contacts, applying filters, and scheduling messages.
Note: Broadcasts are now Campaigns – same powerful features, updated name!
Instructions
Prefer a visual walkthrough? Watch our video guide on how to send a campaign in Wati:
Follow these steps to send a campaign in Wati:
Step 1. Start a new campaign
Go to Campaigns → click on Create New Campaign.
Enter a name for your campaign.
Pick a campaign type - Single send or Drip campaign.
Select the message template you want to send.
Note: You can also configure how replies are handled while creating your campaign. To enable reply automation, add Quick Reply buttons to your campaign template.
Step 2. Define your audience (select your contacts)
Choose the contacts you want to include in the campaign.
You can select your audience in one of the following ways:
Import a new contact list if you want to send the campaign to contacts that are not already in your Wati workspace.
Select All Contacts to send the campaign to your entire contact list.
Use Filters to target contacts based on specific criteria.
If you're on the Pro or Business plan, you can use pre-built segments or create and select your own custom segments for more targeted campaigns.
To send the campaign to a specific group using filters follow these steps:
Click on Add another filter +
Filter contacts using Contact Attributes.
Select the filtered contacts.
Step 3. Schedule or send the campaign
Choose whether to send the campaign immediately or schedule it for later.
If scheduling:
Select the date and time for the campaign.
If you've scheduled a campaign and no longer want to send it, you can cancel it before it is sent.
To cancel a scheduled campaign:
Go to Campaigns > Scheduled Campaigns.
Find the campaign you want to cancel.
Click the Delete icon to cancel the scheduled campaign.
The campaign will no longer be sent once it is canceled.
Cancel scheduled campaigns using the Wati API
You can now cancel campaigns that are scheduled for future delivery using the Wati API. Previously, scheduled campaigns could only be canceled from the Wati user interface.
The API-based campaign cancellation feature is available on Pro, Business, and Enterprise plans.
What can you do?
Use the Wati API to cancel a campaign that is scheduled for future delivery.
This is useful when you need to automatically cancel scheduled campaigns as part of an automated workflow or an integration with an external system.
Lastly, you can improve campaign delivery by using Wati features such as Auto Retry, SMS fallback, and RCS campaigns. These features help increase the chances of your messages reaching customers when WhatsApp delivery is unsuccessful.
You can also use the Auto Retry API to programmatically retry failed campaign messages. To learn more, refer to our developer documentation.
Note: New users must complete a 15-day waiting period before they can use the campaign retry option when sending a new campaign.
After filling in all the details, click on Publish and that's it!
Tip: You can enable ROI tracking option for Shopify campaigns to uncover user engagement, track conversion and optimize your campaigns
Monitor campaign performance
Track your campaign status and performance in the Campaign Overview section.
Use filters to check delivery status and other key metrics.
By following these steps, you can efficiently send a campaign to your contacts while ensuring messages reach the right audience.
How to enable auto-retry for a New Campaign
Follow the same steps as mentioned before to create a new campaign. After filling in the details, follow these next steps to enable auto retry for your campaigns.
On the Create New Campaign page, locate the Auto-retry campaigns option.
Toggle it on to enable automatic retries.
Select an end date - retries will continue until this date, after which they will stop automatically.
Important
The auto-retry feature for campaigns is available on Wati’s Growth, Pro, and Business plans.
The auto-retry feature works only for campaigns using marketing templates and only when the initial send attempt fails due to Meta's limit on messages per user.
How to enable RCS or SMS fallback for a WhatsApp campaign
Learn how to turn on RCS or SMS fallback for your WhatsApp campaign so your message still reaches the customer even if WhatsApp delivery fails.
Follow the same steps as mentioned before to create a new campaign. After filling in the details, enable the toggle for Enable Fallback.
Select Send via RCS.
Select the relevant RCS template you need for this campaign.
If you don't have a similar template, please create a new template then proceed with the campaign creation.
To enable SMS as fallback:
Turn on the Enable Fallback option.
Select Send via SMS.
Select the relevant SMS template you need for this campaign.
If you don't have a similar template, please create a new template then proceed with the campaign creation.
Important
To enable and use SMS fallback, you need the Twilio integration which is available on Wati's Business plan.
RCS is currently in beta and available only to select Business plan customers. If you’d like to enable it, please make sure you’re on the Business plan and reach out to our support team.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Creating and Sending Campaigns
1. How do I create a campaign in Wati?
Go to Campaigns → Create New Campaign, enter a campaign name, select a campaign type such as Single send or Drip campaign, and choose the message template you want to send.
2. How can I select contacts for a campaign?
You can select campaign contacts by importing a new contact list, selecting All Contacts, or using Filters to target contacts based on specific criteria. Pro and Business plan users can also use pre-built segments or create and select custom segments.
3. How do I target contacts using filters?
Click Add another filter +, filter contacts using Contact Attributes, and select the filtered contacts for the campaign.
4. Can I schedule a campaign for later?
Yes. When creating a campaign, you can choose to send it immediately or schedule it for a future date and time.
Canceling Scheduled Campaigns
5. How do I cancel a scheduled campaign from Wati?
Go to Campaigns → Scheduled Campaigns, find the campaign you want to cancel, and click the Delete icon. The campaign will no longer be sent after it is canceled.
6. Can I cancel a scheduled campaign using the Wati API?
Yes. The Wati API can be used to cancel campaigns that are scheduled for future delivery. This can be used in automated workflows or integrations with external systems.
7. Which plans support canceling scheduled campaigns through the Wati API?
The API-based campaign cancellation feature is available on Pro, Business, and Enterprise plans.
Auto-Retry and Fallback
8. Which Wati plans support automatic campaign retries?
The campaign auto-retry feature is available on Growth, Pro, and Business plans.
9. When does campaign auto-retry work?
Auto-retry works only for campaigns that use marketing templates and only when the initial send attempt fails because of Meta's limit on messages per user. To enable auto-retry, turn on Auto-retry campaigns on the Create New Campaign page and select an end date. Retries continue until the selected date.
10. Can I use RCS or SMS as a fallback when WhatsApp delivery fails?
Yes. You can enable Fallback for a WhatsApp campaign and select either RCS or SMS as the fallback channel. For RCS, select the relevant RCS template. For SMS, select the relevant SMS template.
SMS fallback requires the Twilio integration, which is available on Wati's Business plan. RCS is currently in beta and is available only to select Business plan customers.