Many businesses that want to communicate with potential customers on WhatsApp make the mistake of not understanding the concept of “conversation” and the time frame associated with it, which can lead to penalties from WhatsApp for sending spam or unsolicited messages. In this article, I will explain the concept of “conversation” within WhatsApp Business and the time frame for this type of conversation.
Conversation
According to Wikipedia, a conversation is a dialogue (whether oral, written, or through sign language) between two or more people who take turns expressing their ideas or points of view without prior planning. In a conversation, participants do not speak simultaneously; each takes their turn to speak and express their ideas.
As we can see, the message is quite clear, but I want to highlight two key points that will help us understand their implications for WhatsApp Business messages: turns and time frames.
Turn-Taking
The first point we must consider is turn-taking: for a conversation to be considered such, each person must have their own turn to participate and express their ideas. If there are two people (A and B) and person A says something or expresses an idea, then the other person (B) will have their turn to respond or express their point of view, and so on. This allows the conversation to continue until both participants end it or one decides not to continue participating.
While the concept of “turns” is easy to understand, many businesses fail when communicating on WhatsApp Business. They don’t grasp the concept of “turns” at both the business and WhatsApp levels. For example, if a potential customer asks a business a question, the business will respond, and then it will be the potential customer’s turn. In this way, the conversation (and the sales process) will continue naturally. However, if the potential customer decides not to continue participating and the business insists on sending more messages (without waiting for a response), the communication breaks down, and the situation can become annoying or negative, potentially leading to a spam complaint.
As we saw in our previous article, a business should only “respond” to questions from its potential customers (except in special cases, such as Meta ads for leads). In this case, the interested person or potential customer should initiate the conversation (first turn), while the business “responds” to the potential customer’s question (second turn). If the message exchange continues, the company can proceed with its sales process (taking turns), but if communication is interrupted, it can no longer continue the sales process, as the user has decided not to continue the conversation. However, the big question is: How do you know if a user has decided not to continue the conversation? The answer, in this case, would be if any of these situations occur:
– The user explicitly states it: for example, the user says they are not interested in the product or service, says goodbye, or simply says “no” or “no thanks.”
– The user does not reply to the last message and decides not to participate in their turn.
Meaning of not replying to a message
If someone does not reply or does not take their turn in the conversation, it is generally because they are no longer interested. However, in some cases, this delay may be due to other reasons, such as:
– The person is busy doing other things.
– The person forgot to reply.
-The person was distracted by something else.
Timing
The second point to consider here is timing, whether for a conversation or for each turn, as this gives us an idea of when a conversation is “alive” or simply “dead.” For example, in a face-to-face conversation or a phone call, if the turns or response times exceed 30 seconds, the conversation may be compromised or end. For WhatsApp text messages, these times can extend to several hours and would only be considered compromised or ended if they exceed a day.
WhatsApp Business Rules
WhatsApp Business provides an indirect “official” parameter for determining when a conversation is considered finished: 24 hours. This parameter appears in its commerce policy (in the WhatsApp Business Platform section), specifically mentioning its API or paid template product (which are designed to resume conversations with contacts). In this case, the rule states the following:
You can reply to a user message without using a Message Template as long as it’s within 24 hours of the user’s last message. User-initiated conversations are opened once the first business reply message is delivered. Outside of the 24-hour customer service window, you can only send messages using approved Message Templates.
Based on this parameter, for WhatsApp Business, the maximum time between messages (between two users) should be 24 hours. Here are some examples:
Example of a conversation “within” the 24-hour range
Maria (Thursday at 4:50 pm): Hi, do you have this t-shirt in size M and in red?
Business (Thursday at 5:30 pm): Yes, we have that t-shirt in size M and in red. We ship nationwide.
Maria (Thursday at 5:40 PM): What is the shipping cost?
Business (Thursday at 5:55 PM): The shipping cost is $5.
Example of a conversation outside the 24-hour window
Below is an example of a conversation outside the 24-hour window on WhatsApp Business:
Maria (Thursday at 4:50 PM): Hi, do you have this t-shirt in size M and in red?
Business (Thursday at 5:30 PM): Yes, we have that t-shirt in size M and in red. We ship nationwide.
Maria (Friday at 7:40 PM): What is the shipping cost?
Business (Friday at 7:55 PM): The shipping cost is $5.
It is important to note that WhatsApp’s 24-hour window is a reference point; it applies only to the use of their paid template product.
Example of a conversation in a bar
To understand the concept of time and turns, we’ll use the example of a man (Juan) who goes to a bar and meets a woman (Laura).
Example 1: Flowing conversation
Juan: Hi, how are you? My name is Juan.
Laura: Hi, my name is Laura.
Juan: Do you come to this bar often? What is your profession?
Laura: First time here. I’m an architect. And you?
Juan: I work in real estate. I’ve been to this bar a couple of times before. I like that song that’s playing. What kind of music do you like?
Laura: That’s nice. I suppose you must know the place well, haha. I don’t really like that song; I prefer romantic songs. By the way, how old are you?
Juan: I’m 28. I also like romantic songs, but I prefer alternative rock, haha. Are you alone or did you come with someone?
Laura: First time I’ve ever heard the words “alternative rock,” haha. I came with my best friend; we’re celebrating her birthday.
In this example, the conversation continues normally and is likely to remain positive. However, we see another situation where communication breaks down, and things get complicated:
Example 2: Conversation that doesn’t flow
Juan: Hi, how are you? My name is Juan.
Laura: Hi, my name is Laura.
Juan: Do you come to this bar often? What is your profession?
Laura: First time here. I’m an architect.
Juan: I work in real estate. I’ve been to this bar a couple of times before. I like that song that’s playing. What kind of music is your favorite?
Laura: Doesn’t respond.
As we can see, the fact that Laura spoke or exchanged messages doesn’t mean the communication will continue or be positive. In this case, Laura decided not to continue the conversation. However, it depends on how Juan proceeds, whether he gets into trouble at the bar or not.
Positive outcome: Juan ignores her and goes to talk to someone else
In this case, Juan understands the hint (Laura no longer wants to talk) and simply leaves and starts talking to someone else at the bar. In this case, there are no negative repercussions for Juan.
Negative outcome: Juan persists (despite being ignored)
Juan: I don’t think you heard me. I asked you, what kind of music is your favorite?
Laura: No answer.
Juan: I’m 28 years old. I also like romantic songs, but I prefer alternative rock, haha. Are you alone or did you come with someone?
Laura: No answer.
In this case, the situation becomes complicated for Juan, since Laura could tell someone else (or the bar’s security staff) that she’s being bothered (potentially with negative consequences for Juan). In this instance, Juan didn’t understand the subtle hint: Laura no longer wants to talk.
Impact on WhatsApp Business
In the case of WhatsApp Business, if someone starts receiving messages from a company in this way, they will most likely report the business for spam, and that WhatsApp Business account will receive a penalty, especially if several people complain about the same issue.
Advantages of Respecting Turns and Time Limits
If a business respects the timing and turn limits of a conversation, it can recover many of those conversations, since users can resume them when they are ready or wish to do so. Here are two examples:
Conversation “outside” the 24-hour window, “respecting” the established schedules and shifts:
Pedro (Thursday at 4:50 pm): Hi, do you have this t-shirt in size M and in red?
Business (Thursday at 5:30 pm): Yes, we have that t-shirt in size M and in red. We ship nationwide.
Pedro (Saturday at 2:40 pm): Sorry, I was busy yesterday. What is the shipping cost?
Business (Saturday at 2:55 pm): The shipping cost is $5.
In this case, Pedro took two days to respond, but since the business didn’t pressure him, Pedro wrote again and continued the conversation.
Out-of-hours conversation, disregarding established time limits and order of business
Pedro (Thursday at 4:50 PM): Hi, do you have this t-shirt in size M and in red?
Business (Thursday at 5:30 PM): Yes, we have that t-shirt in size M and in red. We ship nationwide.
Pedro does not respond.
Business (Thursday at 6:30 PM): Shipping is $5.
Pedro does not respond.
Business (Thursday at 6:30 PM): Juan?
Pedro does not respond.
Business (Friday at 9:00 AM): Hi Juan, do you have any questions?
Pedro reports the company for spam.
In this case, the company didn’t respect the established timeframes and sent persistent messages, which annoyed Pedro. As a result, Juan decided to block the company and report it as spam (even though he had initiated the conversation).
What are your thoughts on this? What do you consider to be the appropriate length of a conversation on WhatsApp Business?
If you need help with WhatsApp Business guidelines, you can contact me by visiting the following link.
Image by Lukas Blazek via Unsplash.com under a Creative Commons license.