Broadcasts: Send Messages at Scale
Broadcasts let you send messages to large groups of contacts across multiple channels — WhatsApp, Instagram, and your website chat widget. Whether you're running a promotional campaign, sending order updates, or triggering automated follow-ups, Broadcasts give you the tools to reach your audience efficiently.
What You Can Do with Broadcasts
Scheduled Broadcasts
Pick a date and time, and your message goes out automatically. Perfect for planned campaigns, announcements, or time-sensitive offers.
Triggered Broadcasts
Set your broadcast to fire automatically when a specific event happens — like a visitor sending a message, submitting a form, abandoning their cart, or placing an order. You can even add a delay (e.g., "send 30 minutes after cart abandonment").
Behavioral Broadcasts
Similar to triggered broadcasts but designed for more complex behavioral patterns. Set up sequences that respond to how visitors interact with your business.
Accessing Broadcasts
- Open your Workspace
- Go to Marketing in the sidebar
- Click Broadcasts
Creating a Broadcast
- Click Create at the top of the Broadcasts page
- Fill in the broadcast details:
Broadcast Details
- Name — A descriptive name to identify this campaign (e.g., "Welcome Series - Day 1")
- Type — Choose how this broadcast triggers:
- Scheduled — Sent at a specific date and time
- Triggered — Sent when a specific event occurs
- Behavioral — Sent based on visitor behavior patterns
Scheduling
- For Scheduled broadcasts: Pick the date and time you want the message to go out
- For Triggered/Behavioral broadcasts: Choose the trigger event:
- After visitor sends a message
- After form submission
- After cart abandonment
- After order placement
- Set a delay in minutes if you want to wait before sending
Channels
Select which channels this broadcast will use:
- WhatsApp — Supports templates, flows, and plain text
- Instagram — Text messages
- Website — Text messages via chat widget
Message Content
For WhatsApp, you have three content options:
- Use Template — Pick an approved WhatsApp marketing template
- Use Flow — Trigger a FormBuilder flow (interactive WhatsApp flow)
- Plain Text — Send a simple text message
For Instagram and Website, compose your message text directly.
Advanced Settings
- Active — Toggle the broadcast on or off without deleting it
- Throttle Rate — Control how many messages send per minute (default: 50) to avoid rate limits
Managing Broadcasts
The Broadcast Table
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | The broadcast's name |
| Type | Scheduled, Triggered, or Behavioral |
| Channels | Which channels this broadcast uses |
| Scheduled | When it's set to go out |
| Cancelled | Whether the broadcast was cancelled |
| Active | Whether it's currently enabled |
| Sent | Whether it has been sent |
Testing a Broadcast
Before sending to your full audience, you can test your broadcast:
- Click Test Send on any broadcast row
- Enter up to 5 phone numbers (comma-separated)
- The test messages will be sent immediately so you can verify everything looks right
Cancelling a Scheduled Broadcast
If you need to stop a scheduled broadcast before it goes out:
- Click Cancel on the broadcast row
- Confirm in the modal dialog
- The broadcast will be marked as cancelled and won't be sent
Note: Once a broadcast has been sent, it cannot be cancelled.
Filtering
Filter broadcasts by:
- Type — Show only Scheduled, Triggered, or Behavioral broadcasts
- Active — Show only active or inactive broadcasts
- Cancelled — Show only cancelled or non-cancelled broadcasts
Best Practices
- Always test first — Use the Test Send feature before going live, especially for WhatsApp templates
- Set reasonable throttle rates — If sending to thousands of contacts, keep the throttle rate moderate to avoid hitting API rate limits
- Use templates for WhatsApp — WhatsApp requires approved templates for outbound business messages. Plain text may not be delivered to users who haven't messaged you first
- Name your broadcasts clearly — You'll thank yourself later when managing multiple campaigns
- Time your scheduled broadcasts wisely — Consider your audience's timezone and typical active hours
Related
- WhatsApp Templates — Create reusable WhatsApp message templates
- Contact Groups — Organize your audience into segments
- Visitors — Manage your contact pipeline
- Scheduled Messages — Another way to schedule outreach
Keywords
broadcasts, mass messaging, campaign management, scheduled messages, triggered messages, WhatsApp broadcasts, Instagram broadcasts, behavioral messaging, marketing campaigns