WhatsApp Campaign
The WhatsApp Campaign feature enables campaign managers to run WhatsApp campaigns for up to 5 lakh contacts, with support for personalized messages, rich media, campaign-level reports, inbox view, scheduling, and more.
Key Benefits
- Self-Service Dashboard: Sign up through the self-serve dashboard, create and manage templates, and launch campaigns within minutes.
- Campaign Scheduling: Schedule campaigns to run immediately or at a future date and time.
- Campaign-Level Reports: Download campaign reports after completion to review performance.
- Live Dashboard & Message Details: Each campaign includes a standalone view showing:
- Campaign summary
- Real-time message statistics
- Message-level details (outbox view)
Accessing the WhatsApp Campaigns Dashboard
- From the left-hand panel, click Tools → Campaigns.
- In the Campaigns view, select WhatsApp Campaign (next to SMS Campaign).
Prerequisites
- Sign Up — Register your WhatsApp number using Exotel’s WhatsApp Cloud API.
- Verify Business Manager — Verify your Facebook Business Manager account to enable unlimited messaging.
- Create Template — Create and approve message templates from the self-serve WhatsApp dashboard.
Create a WhatsApp Campaign
Go to Tools → Campaigns → WhatsApp Campaigns, then click Create WhatsApp Campaign.
The campaign creation process has four steps.
Step 1: Campaign Details
Enter the following details:
- Campaign Name — Provide a unique campaign name.
- WABA ID — Select your WABA ID from the dropdown (auto-generated after signup).
- WhatsApp Business Number — Choose the sender number linked to the selected WABA ID.
- Audience File — Upload your CSV audience file.
Choose Content Type and Audience
Select your audience list type:
- Static List — For templates without media or variables.
- Dynamic List — For templates with variables or media.
You can choose a pre-existing list from the dropdown or create a new list during campaign setup.
Only .csv files (up to 70 MB) are supported.
- The first column must contain phone numbers (10 digits for India; country code optional for India, mandatory for international).
- You can add up to 5 additional columns for variables (for dynamic lists only).
- Use Dynamic List if your template includes media or variables; otherwise, use Static List.
Step 2: Select a Template
All approved templates mapped to the selected WABA ID appear in this step.
You can:
- Filter templates by Status or Language.
- Search templates by Name.
- Preview templates before selection.
If the template you need isn’t visible, check the Template Management page or create a new one.
Step 3: Configure Template Variables
If the selected template includes variables, map them to the CSV column headers.
- Select column names from the dropdown for each variable.
- For media headers (images, videos, documents), provide a public URL.
- Preview your message after replacing variables to confirm accuracy.
Step 4: Schedule Your Campaign
Choose how and when the campaign should run:
- Now — Starts 5 minutes after creation.
- Later — Schedule for a specific date and time.
- Repeat — Repeat the campaign for up to 30 days.
For daily repeats, specify the end date. For weekly repeats, select the days of the week and the end date.
Click Create Campaign to confirm.
View Campaign Details
Once a campaign is created, it appears in the WhatsApp Campaigns list.
Each row displays:
- Campaign Name
- Schedule Time
- Status
- Performance Summary
- Created By and Created Date
You can use the action menu beside each campaign for the following options:
Action | Description |
|---|---|
Pause | Stop sending messages for scheduled or in-progress campaigns. |
Resume | Continue sending to pending numbers (only for paused campaigns). |
Complete | Mark campaign as completed; remaining numbers are set as failed_expired. |
Archive | Move completed or scheduled campaigns to archived view. |
Download | Download completed campaign reports (attach sample report). |
Filters, Search, and Sorting
- Filter campaigns by status.
- Search by campaign name (minimum three characters).
- Sort by campaign name or schedule time.
Performance Overview
Displays campaign performance across three key statuses:
- Completed
- Failed
- Scheduled
Hovering over counts provides details:
- Failed expands into Failed, Failed No Attempt, Failed No Balance, Invalid.
- Scheduled expands into Submitted and Scheduled messages.
WhatsApp Campaign Summary and Statistics
Clicking a campaign opens the Campaign Summary and Stats page.
Campaign Details
Displays key information about your campaign, including:
- Audience lists used
- Associated WABA ID
- Sender WhatsApp number
- Template name and category
- Campaign start and end times
- Message content summary
Campaign Stats
Displays real-time message statistics. Click the refresh icon to update data (up to 5-minute delay).
Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
Scheduled | Numbers queued for sending. |
Submitted | Messages submitted to Meta. |
Sent | Messages sent from Meta. |
Delivered | Message delivered to user. |
Read | Message read by user. |
Failed | Delivery failed. |
Failed – No Attempt | Campaign ended before all messages were sent or duration expired. |
Failed – No Balance | Insufficient Exotel balance. |
Invalid | Invalid phone number format or non-existent number. |
View Message Details
This section lists every message sent in the campaign. Each record includes:
- Number
- Name (if saved in contacts)
- Detailed Status
- Sent Time
- Delivered Time
The action menu shows:
- Message SID
- Read Time