Approved Template

An approved template (a message template, in Meta's terms) is a preformatted message that the WhatsApp Business API requires to be reviewed and authorized before a business can send it. Unlike the free-form text of an open conversation, it has a fixed structure with variables in curly braces, such as `{{name}}` or `{{date}}`, and a declared category (utility, marketing or authentication). It is the only format you can send when the customer has not written in the last 24 hours.

The counterpart of the template is the session message: the free-form text a business can send within the 24-hour window after the customer's last message, with no prior approval. While that window is open, the conversation flows freely; once it closes, the approved template is the only key for knocking on the door again. That is why every proactive notification, a due-date reminder, an order confirmation, an appointment reminder, relies on a template.

It is the mechanism behind the automatic notices sent by an agent such as Sellium: without an approved template, that message simply does not exist in the API. This entry defines the concept; designing and correctly categorizing each template is part of running the channel well.

How approval works

To use a template, the business loads it into its WhatsApp Business account, declares its category and submits it for Meta's review. The review is mostly automated and usually takes anywhere from a few minutes to 24 hours. Clear templates, with the category declared correctly and no disguised promotional content, are approved quickly. If Meta rejects one, you can fix it and resubmit it for review with no limit on attempts.

One point that is often overlooked: an approved template does not stay approved forever. Meta monitors how each template behaves in production, and if it piles up spam reports or blocks, Meta can pause it or lower its quality. Approval is a conditional permission, not a blank check.

The three template categories

Every template must be declared in one of three categories, and that classification defines its rules and its cost:

• Utility: messages tied to a transaction or an existing account, such as order confirmations, shipping notices or due-date reminders. These carry the least friction.
• Marketing: promotions, offers, news and customer reactivation. They require prior opt-in and are the most sensitive to the number's quality.
• Authentication: one-time passcodes (OTP) to verify identity or log in.

Declaring a template in the wrong category, for example labeling as utility something that is really marketing, leads Meta to recategorize or reject it.

Approved template vs session message

This is the most important distinction in the channel. The session message is free-form text that the business sends within the 24-hour window: it needs no approval and accepts any content, and it is billed as a service message (the first 1,000 per number per month are free, then they are paid at the country's utility rate). The approved template is the opposite: a fixed format, prior approval, and it is the only thing available when that window is closed. Both combine in a real conversation: a template reopens the contact, the customer replies, the window opens and the chat continues with free-form text until the issue is resolved.

HSM: the old name for the same thing

You will often find the acronym HSM (Highly Structured Message) in documentation and in vendors' conversations. HSM and approved template are exactly the same thing: HSM was the name used in WhatsApp's original documentation, and Meta calls them message templates. Many teams still use the old acronym, but they mean the same object.

Why it matters to a company in LATAM

The template defines what you can say and when, and also what it costs. Under Meta's per-message pricing, utility templates sent within an open service window are billed as well, at the utility rate, and outside the window every template is charged according to its category and the recipient's country. Designing the template well, choosing the right category and respecting opt-in is not a formality: it is what keeps the channel alive over time and keeps the number's quality healthy.

In practice

Consider an electrical supplies distributor in Córdoba. Its sales reps used to remind customers of account due dates by phone, and half the customers did not pick up. With the new setup, an approved utility template ("Hi {{name}}, your invoice {{number}} is due on {{date}}. Would you like the payment link?") goes out automatically three days before the due date. If the customer replies, the 24-hour window opens and the conversation continues with free-form text until the payment is closed. That same message, sent by hand and without a template, simply could not exist in the API.

Common mistakes

• Declaring a template as utility when it is really marketing: Meta recategorizes or rejects it.
• Writing generic templates such as "we have news for you": they generate blocks and damage the number's quality.
• Not offering a clear way off the list (opt-out), which multiplies spam reports.
• Believing approval is permanent: negative feedback can pause a template that was already approved.

Sending marketing without prior opt-in is the most expensive mistake of all: blocks and reports go up, the number's quality rating falls and Meta can restrict your sending. Documented opt-in is the foundation that keeps the channel working.