Summary
This guide explains how to configure what happens when a customer replies to your campaign in Wati. You’ll learn how to map quick replies to specific actions like sending messages or triggering automation rules, ensuring every response is handled automatically and efficiently.
Instructions
When you send a campaign, customers may respond in different ways - by clicking a quick reply button or typing a message. Wati allows you to define exactly what should happen next.
How to set up reply handling for your campaign
After selecting your audience, you’ll see a new section:
What should happen when someone replies?
This section lets you configure how Wati should respond to incoming replies.
It supports:
Quick reply buttons (from templates)
How to configure quick reply actions
If your selected template includes quick reply buttons, Wati will automatically detect them.
How it works
Each quick reply is displayed as a separate row
Example: Replied with: Surprise your petFor each row, you’ll see:
A toggle to enable or disable the reply handling
A Choose a reply button to assign an action
Assign an action to a quick reply
Click Choose a reply
Select an action from the dropdown:
Existing automation rules
Send message actions
Chatbot flows
If needed, click Create new action to set up a new response
Notes
You can select both enabled (ON) and disabled (OFF) rules
If a rule is OFF, you’ll see a tooltip prompting you to turn it ON before use
What happens if there are no quick replies?
If your template does not include quick reply buttons:
A note will appear under the section to inform you
Track replies in campaign analytics
After your campaign is sent, you can monitor how customers interact:
Each reply is tracked in campaign analytics
Replies are linked to the action (reply material) that handled them
This helps you:
Understand which responses perform best
Optimize your campaigns over time
With reply actions configured, your campaigns become fully interactive - automatically guiding customers based on how they respond.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Reply handling overview
1. What is reply handling in Wati campaigns?
Reply handling in Wati campaigns allows you to define what should happen when a customer responds to a campaign, including mapping quick reply button clicks or free text responses to actions like sending messages or triggering automation.
2. What types of customer replies can be handled in a campaign?
Wati supports handling replies from quick reply buttons in templates and free text responses from customers.
3. Where can you configure reply handling in a campaign?
Reply handling can be configured in the section called "What should happen when someone replies?" after selecting the campaign audience.
Quick reply actions
4. How does Wati detect quick reply buttons in a template?
Wati automatically detects quick reply buttons if they are included in the selected template and displays each reply as a separate row for configuration.
5. How do you assign an action to a quick reply?
To assign an action, click "Choose a reply" for a specific quick reply and select an action such as an existing automation rule, a send message action, or a chatbot flow, or create a new action.
6. What controls are available for managing quick reply actions?
Each quick reply includes a toggle to enable or disable reply handling and an option to assign an action using the "Choose a reply" button.
7. What happens if a selected rule is turned off?
If a selected rule is turned off, a tooltip appears prompting you to turn the rule on before it can be used.
Fallback and analytics
8. What happens if the template does not include quick reply buttons?
If the template does not include quick reply buttons, a note appears in the reply handling section.
9. How can you track customer replies after sending a campaign?
Customer replies are tracked in campaign analytics, where each reply is linked to the action that handled it, allowing you to analyze performance and optimize campaigns.