How to extend WhatsApp conversations

You will learn how to set up and manage the WhatsApp templates your team can use to continue customer conversations past the standard 24-hour limit.

Before you begin

Before you begin, you’ll need to set up WhatsApp in Klaviyo. This involves connecting your WhatsApp Business account to Klaviyo, getting a phone number, and verifying your account.

These instructions are for customers who have already set up the Helpdesk or Klaviyo + Gorgias integration.

Set up extending conversations

When a customer sends an inbound WhatsApp message, it opens a 24-hour service window. This window allows your brand to respond without needing the response pre-approved in WhatsApp. Every time the customer responds, this window refreshes and you again have 24 hours to respond.

Once 24 hours have passed since the customer’s last message, the service window closes. Your support agent can send a pre-approved follow-up template to ask the customer to respond, even if the customer does not have WhatsApp marketing consent. The customer must reply to open a new 24-hour service window. Sending the template alone does not reopen it.

Customers who have explicitly opted out of WhatsApp conversations cannot receive a follow-up template.

For your support agent to be able to follow up, you’ll first need to enable a setting in Klaviyo:

1. In Klaviyo, click your organization name in the lower left.
2. Select Settings > WhatsApp > Sender preferences.
3. Under Follow up to extend conversation, check the box to Send a follow-up template to customers after 24 hours.
   

4. Select a template from the dropdown that you want to use for this message. Learn about creating WhatsApp templates through Klaviyo.
5. Click Save.

Send the follow-up template

Saving this setting makes the selected template available to your support agents. To send it after the service window closes:

• In Helpdesk, open the customer’s WhatsApp ticket and click Send template. You can send a follow-up template in the ticket once every 24 hours.
• In Gorgias, open the customer’s ticket and click WhatsApp Follow Up in the Klaviyo channel side panel.

Wait for the customer to reply before sending a free-form response. Their reply opens a new 24-hour service window.

Additional resources