How to Maximize WhatsApp Delivery: A Practical Guide

Moema Vianna

Product Marketing Manager, 360Dialog

May 7, 2025

With about 2 billion monthly active users worldwide, WhatsApp has become one of the most powerful marketing channels available today. It doesn’t just reach more users—it drives meaningful engagement and measurable business outcomes.

But to unlock this potential, you need to focus on deliverability—ensuring your messages not only get sent, but also reach users in a relevant and engaging way.

Let’s break down how to improve your WhatsApp delivery rates and make every message count.

Understanding WhatsApp Controls

Meta’s system is designed to protect user experience. That means your WhatsApp deliverability depends on how users respond to your messages.

Here are the key controls that influence your message deliverability:

1. User Controls

WhatsApp users can block or report your business at any time.
High complaint rates will impact your quality score and message throughput.

2. Per-User Marketing Message Limits

This limits how many marketing messages a user can receive per day across businesses.
Your message might be deprioritized if the user has already received others that day.

3. Template Pacing

New templates are first sent to a small user sample.
Based on early engagement and feedback, Meta either expands or pauses the campaign.

4. Quality Ratings & Template Status

Templates receive a quality score: High (Green), Medium (Yellow), or Low (Red).
If feedback is negative, templates may be paused (3–6 hours) or disabled.

"Deliverability on WhatsApp isn't just about sending more messages—it's about sending the right messages. Brands that prioritize relevance, timing, and personalization will consistently outperform, while those who neglect the customer experience risk being left behind." ‍

Most Common WhatsApp Errors—and How to Handle Them

Knowing how to interpret and act on WhatsApp delivery errors is essential to make sure your campaigns reach the audience. Here are a few common mistakes and how to fix them:

Engagement-Related

Spam rate limit hit: You’ve reached your message volume limit.

Action: Wait before retrying. Gradually increase intervals between sends.

Per-user marketing message limits: The message is blocked to avoid overwhelming the user.

Action: Avoid retrying immediately. Check your quality rating.

Quality-related

Template Pacing: Template paused due to low quality.

Action: Improve content and maybe enrich with media. Then resubmit.

Delivery Failures

User not valid: Number is not a valid WhatsApp user.

Action: Verify number formatting and that the user has WhatsApp.

Message undeliverable: The user may have blocked your business.

Action: Contact the user via another method and confirm opt-in.

Session timeout: 24-hour reply window expired.

Action: Use a business-initiated template to restart the conversation.

How to Maintain High Message Quality

Think of your WhatsApp campaigns like a relationship: trust is earned, and one wrong move can get you ghosted. Avoid being flagged by following these smart practices:

Track performance regularly. Use the 30-day quality chart in WhatsApp Business Manager.
Don’t launch everything at once. Start with a single use case, scale gradually, and monitor results over 7–10 days.
Review customer satisfaction metrics. A drop in CSAT may be tied to your messaging.
Audit your chatbot flow. Are users getting what they need? If not, improve the experience before scaling.
Watch your send volume. A sudden spike can trigger quality warnings.
Fix what gets flagged. If you receive a warning, reassess your template, targeting, and opt-in flow.

WhatsApp Template Best Practices

To drive results with WhatsApp, your message structure and tone are everything. Here’s how to create templates that engage and convert:

Keep it simple and clear

Front-load value: Use the first 5 lines to convey the core message. Avoid long blocks of text. Use short sections and clear formatting. See the example:

✅ Good: “Last chance: 20% off your next order. Tap below to shop now.”
🚫 Bad: “Hi [Name], we hope you're well. We wanted to let you know about a limited-time offer…”

Mind your media

Images, carousels, videos, coupon codes—test them, but don’t rely on visuals alone. Your message should still make sense even if the media doesn't load.

Use the right format

Try different formats (text-only, carousels, videos, coupons) and track what works.

Don’t overdo it

Limit emojis (especially more than 3 in a row). Avoid multiple CTAs or too many offers in one message.

Choose the correct template category

Mislabeling templates can lead to rejections. If using the API, add allow_category_change=true so Meta can auto-correct if needed.

Final Tip: Stay Ahead

To keep your campaigns running smoothly, always stay up to date with the latest changes by following Meta’s official documentation and trusted providers like 360Dialog and ZEPIC.

"The future of customer communication is moving toward privacy-first, personalized interactions at scale. WhatsApp offers brands a rare opportunity to meet these rising expectations while delivering measurable performance."
— Gerrit Rode, Co-CEO & Founder, 360Dialog

Maximizing WhatsApp delivery isn’t just about sending messages—it’s about building relevant, respectful, and well-timed conversations.

When you stay within Meta’s guidelines, watch performance closely, and design thoughtful, high-quality templates, you can unlock WhatsApp’s full potential as a marketing channel.

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Desperate times call for desperate Google/Chat GPT searches, right? "Best Shopify apps for sales." "How to increase online sales fast." "AI tools for ecommerce growth."

Been there. Done that. Installed way too many apps. 
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But here's what nobody tells you while you're doom-scrolling through Shopify app reviews at 2 AM—that magical online sales-boosting app you're searching for? It doesn't exist. Because if it did, Jeff Bezos would've bought (or built!) it yesterday, and we (fellow eCommerce store owners) would all be retired in Bali by now. 
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Growing a Shopify store and increasing online sales isn’t easy—we get it. While everyone’s out chasing the next “revolutionary” tool/trend (looking at you, DeepSeek), the real revenue drivers are probably hiding in plain sight—right there inside your customer data.
After working with Shopify stores like yours (shoutout to Cybele, who recovered almost 25% of their abandoned carts with WhatsApp automation), we’ve cracked the code on what actually moves the needle. 
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Ready to stop app-hopping and start actually growing your sales by using what you already have? Here are four fixes that will get you there!

Fix #1: Convert abandoned carts instantly (Like, actually instantly)

The Painful Truth: You're probably losing about 70% of your potential sales to cart abandonment. That's not just a statistic—it's real money walking out of your digital door. And looking for yet another Shopify app for abandoned cart recovery isn't going to fix it if you're not getting the fundamentals right.

The Quick Fix: Everyone knows you need multi-channel recovery that hits the sweet spot between "Hey, did you forget something?" and "PLEASE COME BACK!" But here's the reality—most recovery apps are a one-trick pony. They either do email OR WhatsApp, not both. And don't even get us started on personalizing offers based on cart value—that usually means toggling between three different dashboards while praying your apps talk to each other.

Enter ZEPIC: This is where we come in. With ZEPIC's automated Flows, you can:
Launch WhatsApp recovery messages (with 95% open rates!)
Set up perfectly timed email sequences (or vice versa)
Create personalized recovery offers not just on cart value but based on your customer’s behavior/preferences
Track and optimize everything from one dashboard

Fix #2: Reactivate past customers today

Offering light at the end of the tunnel is Google’s Privacy Sandbox which seeks to ‘create a thriving web ecosystem that is respectful of users and private by default’. Like the name suggests, your Chrome browser will take the role of a ‘privacy sandbox’ that holds all your data (visits, interests, actions etc) disclosing these to other websites and platforms only with your explicit permission. If not yet, we recommend testing your websites, audience relevance and advertising attribution with Chrome’s trial of the Privacy Sandbox.