Send Broadcast/Template Message
Overview
Once you've created a broadcast message and Meta has approved it, you can send it to your participants. This page covers the full sending process — uploading contacts, mapping variables, linking to a study, previewing messages, and monitoring deliverability.
Before You Send
Before you can send a broadcast, you need four things:
A created broadcast message — Designed and submitted through the Broadcast Messages tab. See Broadcast Messages for how to create one.
Meta approval — The template must be approved by Meta before it can be sent. You can see the approval status in the Broadcast Messages tab.
A published study — If the broadcast includes a campaign button that starts a study, that study must be published to WhatsApp.
A participant list — Either a CSV/Excel file or manually entered contact numbers.
Note: CSV/Excel must have phone number in the first column and the title must be phoneNumber. And cell phone numbers must have the country code in the beginning of the number.
How to Send
Two Access Points
You can send a broadcast from two places in the platform:
From the study — Navigate to the Share tab inside the study and click the send button.
From the Broadcasts tab — Click Actions → Send in the sidebar.
Both routes lead to the same sending workflow.
Step-by-Step Sending Process
Step 1: Upload Participants
Choose how to provide your participant contact details:
Upload a CSV or Excel file — Include phone numbers (with country codes) and any additional fields you want to use as message variables (e.g., name, topic, company, product).
Enter manually — Type in individual contact numbers directly.
Your CSV should include a phone number column (required, with country codes) and any optional columns for name, topic, or other fields you want to use as variable placeholders.
Step 2: Select the Broadcast Template
Choose the approved broadcast template you want to send. The template preview shows the message structure including header, body, placeholders, and buttons.
Step 3: Map Variables to CSV Columns
If your broadcast template includes placeholder variables (e.g., {{1}}, {{2}}), you need to map each variable to a column from your uploaded CSV.
For example, Variable 1 (placeholder for participant name) maps to the Name column, and Variable 2 (placeholder for research topic) maps to the Topic column.
The platform shows you which variables need mapping and which CSV columns are available. Each message sent will dynamically insert the correct value for each participant.
Tip: Double-check your CSV column names before uploading. The mapping interface displays your column headers exactly as they appear in the file — clear, descriptive headers make mapping faster and reduce errors.
Step 4: Connect to a Study
If the broadcast includes a campaign button (e.g., "Start Survey"), you need to connect the template to the specific study you want participants to enter. Select the study from the dropdown — this ensures that when a participant taps the start button, they are directed into the correct survey, AI interview, or diary study.
Step 5: Name the Send
Give this send a name (e.g., "Wave 1 — Banking study invites" or "Reminder batch 2"). This label helps you track and distinguish between multiple sends of the same template to different participant groups.
Step 6: Preview and Send
Before sending, the platform displays a preview of each individual message that will be sent. This shows the actual personalised message each participant will receive, variable values populated from your CSV data, the header image or text, and the button text.
Read through the previews carefully to verify that names and variables are correctly populated, the message reads naturally with the inserted data, and no placeholder text remains unpopulated.
When you're satisfied, click Send.
Delivery & Batching
How Messages Are Sent
Messages are sent in batches of 25. Small sends (under 25 participants) deliver almost immediately. Larger sends (hundreds or thousands of participants) roll out over a period of minutes. You do not need to manage batching manually — the platform handles it automatically.
Sending Limits
Your WhatsApp number has a daily sending limit based on your Meta Business Manager verification status:
Unverified: 250 messages/day
Verified (Level 1): 1,000 messages/day
Verified (Level 2): 10,000 messages/day
Verified (Level 3): 100,000 messages/day
If your send exceeds your daily limit, messages will queue and continue sending the following day.
Plan ahead: If you're launching a large study, ensure your number's sending limit can handle the volume. Start warming up your number well before launch day.
Automated Reminders
Reminder broadcasts can be configured to send automatically based on participant behaviour:
Time-based — Send a reminder X hours or days after the initial invitation.
Condition-based — Send only to participants who haven't completed the study.
Frequency — Daily, weekly, or custom intervals.
Scheduled — Pre-configured to run automatically for the duration of the study.
Effective Reminder Content
Reminders work best when they include urgency ("Survey closes Friday" or "Last chance to participate"), incentive reinforcement ("Complete to enter the R3,000 prize draw"), brevity (one short message, not a paragraph), and a clear call to action (a single button to resume the study).
Note: Reminder messages cannot use CSV variable placeholders because they fire automatically and cannot dynamically pull individual participant data at send time.
Monitoring Deliverability
After sending, you can track the performance of each broadcast in the Broadcasts tab. Refresh the page to see updated stats. Each send displays delivered, read, click/start, opt-out, and failed counts.
Failure Reasons
When a message fails to deliver, the platform displays the reason. Common failure causes include:
Invalid number — The phone number doesn't exist or is incorrectly formatted. Check number formatting, particularly missing country codes or extra spaces.
No WhatsApp account — The number is valid but doesn't have WhatsApp installed.
Number blocked your account — The participant has previously blocked your WhatsApp number.
Rate limit exceeded — You've exceeded your daily sending limit.
Template paused — Meta has paused your template due to quality issues.
Tip: If you see a high failure rate, check your CSV for formatting issues — particularly missing country codes or extra spaces in phone numbers.
Stats in the Study View
Broadcast delivery stats also appear inside the study itself, displayed as a visual graph showing delivered, read, clicked, opted-out, and failed counts across all sends associated with that study. This gives you a consolidated view of participant engagement without needing to check each broadcast individually.
For detailed stats analysis, benchmarks, and optimisation strategies, see Broadcast Statistics.
Sending Multiple Batches
You can send the same broadcast template multiple times to different participant groups. Common scenarios include:
Wave-based recruitment — Send to 500 participants on Monday, another 500 on Wednesday based on response rates from the first wave.
Segment-based sends — Different CSV files for different participant groups (e.g., customers vs. non-customers).
Reminder sends — Resend to participants who received the invitation but haven't started the study.
Geographic batching — Send at different times for different timezones.
Each send is tracked separately in the Broadcasts tab with its own name, stats, and delivery metrics.
Sending Best Practices
Before Sending
Verify your CSV — Check phone number formatting, country codes, and that variable columns contain the correct data.
Preview every message — Read through the personalised previews before hitting send, especially for the first batch.
Test first — Send to yourself or a small internal group using the test link before sending to real participants.
Check your sending limit — Ensure your daily limit can handle the volume you're about to send.
Timing Your Sends
Mid-week mornings tend to yield the highest engagement for professional audiences.
Weekday evenings work better for consumer audiences.
Avoid early mornings, late nights, Mondays, and Fridays for initial invitations.
Stagger large sends — if you're sending to thousands, spread across 2–3 days to monitor response rates and adjust messaging if needed.
Protecting Your Number Reputation
Don't spam — Only message participants who have a reason to hear from you.
Honour opt-outs immediately — This is both a Meta requirement and good practice.
Warm up new numbers gradually — Start with small batches and scale up as your sending limit increases.
Monitor block rates — If participants are blocking your number, revisit your message content and frequency.
After Sending
Monitor deliverability — Check the Broadcasts tab shortly after sending to catch any delivery failures early.
Track click-through rates — Low start rates relative to delivered rates may indicate your message needs to be more compelling.
Follow up — Plan reminder broadcasts for participants who received but didn't start the study.
Watch opt-out rates — High opt-outs signal your message may be poorly targeted or too frequent.
Known Limitations
Batches of 25 — Messages are sent in groups of 25, so large sends take time to fully deliver. This is automatic and cannot be adjusted.
Failed messages are not retried — If a message fails (invalid number, no WhatsApp account), it will not be automatically resent. Review failures and correct the data before resending manually.
Variable mapping is per-send — If you send the same template to a new CSV, you'll need to remap variables each time.
Sending limits are daily — They reset every 24 hours. If you hit your limit, remaining messages queue for the next day.
Stats may take a moment to update — Refresh the Broadcasts tab after a few minutes to see the latest delivery metrics.
Steps to send Template message
Step 1: Create a CSV of contact numbers
Prepare a CSV file with contact details and other relevant information such as names, research objectives, and specific questions.
Additional columns can be added to personalise the message you send; however, these must map to the Template message you create. I.e. if the template message has a placeholder for name, you should add a name column that you can map to when you send the CSV (explained below).
Requirements:
Cell A1 must contain heading 'phoneNumber' for the template to send
Cell numbers must have the country code in beginning and no spaces
Use the provided 'example csv' in the upload CSV in 'Send' screen for correct formatting
Step 2: Upload CSV in platform
Go to the 'Share' tab in the campaign and press 'Send'
Upload the CSV you just created
Step 3: Send Template message to contacts
Configure Campaign Details:
Choose the Campaign you are inviting participants to complete. When the 'Start' button (see example below) is clicked by the participant, they will be routed to the campaign you have specified.
Specify the approved template message you wish to use.
Configure any placeholders in the Template message you chose with the fields in the CSV you uploaded. See how 'Name' has been mapped to {{1}} and we can map 'Topic' to {{2}} which is shown in the message on the right above.
Press ‘Launch campaign 🚀’!
Best Practices
Test the Distribution: Before a wide-scale dispatch, test the link and template messages with a small group to ensure everything functions as intended.
Follow Up: After sending out invitations, consider sending follow-up messages or reminders to ensure a higher response rate.
Privacy and Compliance: Always ensure that your communications comply with data protection regulations and respect participant privacy.
This is how the message will look to the participants you have sent it to.
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