Create, test and manage WhatsApp templates in Flowella

The Templates page with a status filter and template cards showing each template's category and status, including Draft, Pending, Approved, Rejected and Paused by WhatsApp

A WhatsApp template is a message format that Meta reviews and approves before you can send it. You need an approved template to message a contact outside the 24-hour window, Meta’s customer service window. This page shows how to build, publish, test and manage templates in Flowella. For terms such as WABA, see the glossary. Before you start: connect a WhatsApp number to Flowella. See Before you start.

Looking for the rules on categories, header formats, button types or statuses? See Template reference.

How a template moves from draft to approved

This diagram shows the statuses a template moves through, from a draft in Flowella to an approved template, and what happens when WhatsApp pauses or disables it.

Draft: saved in Flowella only. Meta hasn’t seen it yet.
Pending: Meta is reviewing it. Meta says a decision can take up to 24 hours. See Meta’s template review guidance.
Approved: ready to send from Flowella, HubSpot workflows and the API.
Rejected, Paused and Disabled: can’t be sent. Template statuses explains what to do in each case.

Create a template

Choose a starting point

On the Templates page, click New template. The Create a template screen offers three starting points:

Build your own: write the message yourself. Click Standard message for a template with an optional header, body, footer and buttons, or Carousel for a row of scrollable media cards. See Build a carousel template.
Meta Library: start from Meta’s catalogue of pre-vetted utility templates.
Flowella Templates: start from a Flowella starter, such as a welcome message or a template with a Flow button.

Carousel stays unavailable until you connect a WhatsApp number, because Flowella uploads each card’s image or video through your number. Hover over the option to see why it is turned off.

Start from the Meta Library

Click Browse library on the Meta Library card.

Type in Search Meta library… to find a template by name.
The list shows templates in the language that matches your organisation’s Content & export language (Settings → Organization). Turn on All languages to see every language.
Click Open as draft to copy a template into a new draft and open it in the editor.
To copy several templates at once, tick their checkboxes and click Create drafts (N). Flowella creates the drafts and returns you to the templates list.

Nothing goes to Meta until you publish. You can rename the draft, change the text, add buttons or change the category first.

Start from a Flowella starter

Click View starters on the Flowella Templates card, then click Use this starter on a starter. The editor opens with the starter’s content filled in. Click Save draft to keep it, then personalise it and publish.

Fill in the editor

The editor has three tabs: Editor, Send and Statistics. The preview next to the editor shows how the message will look in WhatsApp.

The template editor with name, language, category, header and body fields on the left and a live WhatsApp preview on the right

Name the template and pick a category

Under Basic Information, enter the Template name, then choose the Language and the Category: Marketing, Utility or Authentication. Names can contain lowercase letters, numbers and underscores only, for example order_confirmation. Flowella shows the final name under Will be saved as.Click Save draft. After that, Flowella saves your changes automatically.

Add a header (optional)

Under Header (optional), choose a Header type:

Header type	What you add	Limit
Text	A short line of text, with up to one variable	60 characters
Image	A JPEG or PNG file	5 MB
Video	An MP4 file	16 MB
Document	A PDF file, plus the Document filename the recipient sees	100 MB
Location	A map pin. You set the coordinates each time you send.	Utility and Marketing templates only

For a media header, drag the file onto the upload area or click Upload a file. Flowella uploads it to Meta as the template’s sample. Document and Location aren’t available for Authentication templates. See Media headers.

Write the message body

Type the message in the body editor, up to 1,024 characters. Use the toolbar to add bold, italic, strikethrough or monospace text, or an emoji.To personalise the message, click + Variable. Flowella inserts a numbered variable such as {{1}}. Give each variable a Fallback value in the Body variables panel. Meta reviews the fallback values as samples, and Flowella sends them when a contact’s value is empty. See Template variables.

Add a footer (optional)

Under Footer (optional), add a short line of up to 60 characters, such as an opt-out reminder. A footer can’t contain variables.On a paid plan, a new template starts with the footer Reply STOP to opt out., which you can change. During the free trial, the footer is fixed to Reply STOP to opt out. Powered by Flowella.io.

Add buttons (optional)

Under Buttons (optional), click Add Button. Choose the Button type, then enter the Button text, up to 25 characters.

Button type	What it does	Most per template
Quick Reply	Sends a preset reply back to you	10
URL	Opens a web page. The address must start with `https://` and can end with one variable.	2
Phone	Calls a phone number in international format	1
Flow	Opens one of your published WhatsApp Flows	1
Copy coupon code	Copies a code of up to 20 letters and numbers. Marketing templates only.	1

A template can have up to 10 buttons in total. If a URL ends with a variable, for example https://example.com/orders/{{1}}, give it a Fallback value. Flowella sets the text of a coupon button for you.Meta requires all Quick Reply buttons to sit together, so Flowella moves them below your other buttons. If they get separated, click Fix grouping.A tap on a Quick Reply button sends its text as the customer’s message, so a button labelled exactly Stop or Cancel opts the contact out. See How keyword opt-outs work.

Check the preview and publish

Flowella saves your draft about a second after you stop typing. The bar at the bottom of the editor shows Saving…, All changes saved or Unsaved changes. If a save fails, it shows Could not save changes. and a Retry save button.When the draft is saved and complete, click Publish Template. Check the category in the dialog, then click Publish Template again to submit the template to Meta.

If Publish Template is unavailable, a list under Complete these requirements before publishing: tells you what is missing, for example Add message body text. or Upload header media before publishing.

Wait for Meta’s review

After you publish, the template’s status is Pending while Meta reviews it. Meta says a decision can take up to 24 hours. When Meta decides, everyone in your organisation gets an in-app notification: Message template approved or Message template rejected. A rejection notification includes Meta’s reason. Flowella also emails these notifications, unless you turned email off in Notification preferences. If Meta rejects the template, open it, fix the problem and click Save Template. This sends your changes to Meta for another review. For common rejection reasons and fixes, see Template rejected. If Meta refuses the template as soon as you publish it, the editor shows the reason and the template doesn’t go into review. See Template errors when you publish.

Build a carousel template

A carousel template sends one message bubble followed by a row of cards that the recipient scrolls sideways. Each card has its own image or video, optional text and buttons. Use a carousel to show several products, offers or options in one marketing message. Prerequisites: a connected WhatsApp number, and an image or video file for every card.

Open the carousel editor

Click New template, then click Carousel on the Build your own card. The editor opens with a Carousel · N cards badge next to the page title.

Write the message body

Enter the body text that appears in the message bubble above the cards. The category is locked to Marketing. Carousels have no header, no footer and no message-level buttons. Buttons sit on each card instead.

Set the card structure

Under Card structure, choose the Media type for all cards: Image or Video. Every card uses the same media type. Turn on Card body if you want text on each card. When you turn it on, every card needs body text, up to 160 characters per card.

Add card buttons

Under Card buttons, add up to 2 buttons. Each button is a Quick reply, Link or Phone number. Every card gets the same button types in the same order. You set each button’s label, link or phone number on the card itself, so each card can point somewhere different.

Fill in each card

A new carousel starts with 2 cards. Click Add card to add more, up to 10 cards. On each card, upload the image or video, write the card text, and set the button labels and values.

Check the preview and publish

The preview shows the cards as a sideways strip, the way WhatsApp displays them. Click Publish Template to submit the carousel to Meta.

Manage cards

Reorder: drag a card by its handle. To use the keyboard, focus the drag handle and press the up or down arrow key. You can also use Move up and Move down.
Duplicate: copies a card’s text, buttons and variable samples, but not its media. Upload a new image or video on the copy.
Delete: removes a card. A carousel needs at least 2 cards.

If you change the number of cards on a template you already submitted, Flowella warns you that the template goes back to WhatsApp for review. Click Change card count to continue or Cancel to keep the current cards.

Card media

Media type	Formats	Maximum size
Image	JPEG or PNG	5 MB
Video	MP4	16 MB

Flowella checks each file before it uploads. If a file has the wrong type or is too large, the card shows the error straight away, for example This image is over 5 MB. JPEG and PNG card images must be 5 MB or smaller. If an upload fails, click Retry on that card. WhatsApp crops card images to a wide shape. If you upload a portrait image, Flowella warns that the top and bottom may be cut off. Use landscape images, or keep the important content in the middle.

Rules Flowella checks before you submit

Flowella checks the carousel against WhatsApp’s rules and highlights the card that needs fixing. For example, if a card has no media, Flowella highlights that card and shows Card 3: has no image. Every card needs its own uploaded image before you can submit.

The carousel has 2 to 10 cards.
Every card has uploaded media of the same type.
Either every card has body text or none do. Card body text is 160 characters or fewer, and every variable has a sample.
Every card has the same number of buttons, with the same types in the same order. Labels can differ.
A link button can contain one variable, at the end of the URL, with a sample value.

You choose between a standard message and a carousel when you create the template. You can’t turn a carousel into a standard template, or a standard template into a carousel. To switch, create a new template.

For the full list of WhatsApp’s carousel rules, see Carousel templates.

Send a carousel

You can send an approved carousel from a test send, a bulk send, the inbox, the Flowella API and HubSpot.

Card media: if you don’t provide media for a card, Flowella sends that card’s approved sample image or video. Test sends, bulk sends, inbox sends and HubSpot sends always use the approved sample media.
Per-card values: through the API, pass one carouselCards entry per card, in card order. Each entry can set the card’s media (mediaUrl or mediaId), card body variables (bodyParameters) and button values (buttonParameters).
Same cards for every recipient: one send request uses the same card media and card values for every recipient. Message body variables can still differ per recipient.

curl -X POST "https://api.flowella.io/v1/templates/send" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer flo_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "templateId": "clxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
    "whatsappChannelId": "clxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
    "recipients": [{ "phone": "+15551234567", "bodyParameters": ["Ada"] }],
    "carouselCards": [
      {
        "mediaUrl": "https://cdn.example.com/card-1.jpg",
        "buttonParameters": [{ "index": 1, "text": "summer" }]
      },
      { "mediaUrl": "https://cdn.example.com/card-2.jpg" }
    ]
  }'

In this example, card 1 uses a custom image and fills the variable at the end of its second button’s link with summer. Card 2 uses a custom image. Button index is zero-based.

Test a template

Send a template to your own WhatsApp number to check how it looks before you use it with contacts. Test sends work only for Approved templates.

Open the Send tab

On the Templates page, open the template’s actions menu and click Send. Or open the template and select the Send tab.

Enter your number

Under Test Template, choose the Country and enter your WhatsApp Number.

Check the variables

The fields under Template Variables start with the template’s sample values. Replace them with realistic values.

Coupon code buttons: type the code you want to send. The sample code isn’t sent.
Location latitude and Location longitude: required for a location header. Place name (optional) and Address (optional) can stay empty.
Header media URL: shown only when a media header has no sample file. Paste a public https:// link to the file.

Send the test

Click Send Test. Flowella shows the status of the test message, from sent to delivered and read.

Check it on your phone

Open the message and check the header media, formatting and buttons. If you can, check it on both iOS and Android.

If the template isn’t approved, Send Test is unavailable and a hint explains why, for example Template is pending and cannot be sent. If WhatsApp refuses the values you sent, see Template errors when you send. Test sends also appear in the Send log on the Statistics tab.

Bulk send

To send an approved template to a list of contacts, use the Bulk send card on the template’s Send tab. You can add numbers by hand or import a CSV or Excel file, then schedule the job and watch its progress. For the steps, file format and limits, see Send a WhatsApp template to many contacts.

Manage templates in the catalogue

The Templates page shows your templates in Grid view or List view. Use the status filter to show one status, or click Fallbacks not reviewed to find templates whose fallback values need checking. The search box finds templates by name, content or creator. Every template has an actions menu, the three-dot button, in both views.

Action	When you can use it
Edit	Always. Opens the editor.
Send	Approved templates. Opens the Send tab. Otherwise the hint reads Template must be approved before sending.
Statistics	Approved templates, and Rejected, Paused or Disabled templates that have been sent before. Not available for Draft or Pending templates.
Clone	Always. Copies the template into a new draft.
Copy template ID	Templates submitted to Meta. Copies Meta’s template ID.
Submit for approval	Draft templates. Opens the Publish Template dialog.
Delete	All templates except system re-engagement templates. Asks you to confirm.

Send and Statistics open the matching tab of the template, so you can share the link with a teammate.

Copy the template ID

After you submit a template, Meta gives it a template ID. You need it for API sends, or to find the template in Meta Business Manager. You can copy it from two places:

Catalogue: open the actions menu and click Copy template ID.
Editor: the information card at the top of the editor shows a Template ID row, next to Last updated and Updated by, with a copy button.

Both show Template ID copied when it works. A draft that you haven’t submitted has no template ID, so the action is unavailable for drafts.

Clone a template

Clone creates a new draft from any template, in the same language. The copy has the original name plus _copy, for example order_update_copy. Flowella copies the header file and the Document filename too. If it can’t copy the media, the editor shows Header media did not copy with this clone. Re-upload the file before publishing. Use Clone to change an approved template and keep the original live while Meta reviews the new version. You can also clone from the editor with the Clone button.

Delete a template

Click Delete in the actions menu or in the editor, then confirm. You can’t undo this. System re-engagement templates can’t be deleted.

Delivery-health pills on the templates list

A delivery-health pill flags a template that WhatsApp has stopped sending or rated poorly, so you can spot it without opening the editor.

Pill	When it appears	What to do
Paused by WhatsApp	WhatsApp paused the template.	If an Unpause button appears, review the content, then click it. Otherwise wait for WhatsApp to restore the template.
Quality pause 1/3 or Quality pause 2/3	WhatsApp paused the template because of low quality.	Wait for the pause to end. Don’t edit or resubmit the template while it is paused.
Disabled by WhatsApp	WhatsApp disabled the template.	Edit and resubmit, or appeal, in WhatsApp Manager.
Quality: Red	WhatsApp rated the template’s quality Red.	Review recent sends and customer feedback in Meta Business Manager.

The paused and disabled pills replace the status badge. Quality: Red appears next to it. Hover over a pill for details, such as when a quality pause should end. A Quality: Yellow badge appears when quality is Yellow. Other badges you may see:

Not on Meta yet: a draft that you haven’t published.
Fallbacks not reviewed: confirm the template’s fallback values before you rely on them. See Template variables.
System re-engagement: a template that Flowella manages for Smart replies. See System re-engagement templates.

Pacing pauses and quality pauses

WhatsApp pauses templates for two reasons, and you recover from each one differently:

Pacing pause: WhatsApp held the template after early negative feedback on a marketing send. Flowella shows an Unpause button next to the pill. Review the content before you click it. Flowella never unpauses a template automatically.
Quality pause: the template reached a Red quality rating. Meta pauses it for 3 hours the first time and 6 hours the second time, and disables it the third time. There is no Unpause button. Wait for the pause to end. If you edit and resubmit the template while it is paused, it goes back into review and the outage lasts longer. See Meta’s template pausing page.

You can’t unpause a disabled template from Flowella. Edit and resubmit it, or appeal, in WhatsApp Manager. When WhatsApp pauses or disables a template, or its quality drops, everyone in your organisation gets an in-app notification and an email. You can’t turn these notifications off. See Notification events. Bulk send jobs that are queued when a template is paused or disabled wait until Meta restores the template. See Paused or disabled templates.

Meta status history

For templates on Meta, the Statistics tab has a Status history section below the send log. It lists Meta’s approval, pause, disable and quality changes for the template, with the date and time of each one. Use it to find out when a template changed status, for example while you investigate a delivery-health pill.

System re-engagement templates

Flowella creates three templates for Smart replies, with names that start with flowella_reopen_. They are the Service, Update and Offer smart reply templates. The inbox uses the Service template for Reply and Re-engage when the 24-hour window is closed. See Where Smart replies are used. In the catalogue, these templates carry a System re-engagement badge. You can’t delete them: Delete is unavailable in the actions menu and in the editor. To stop using one, turn off Enabled for it under Settings → WhatsApp (Meta) → Smart replies. See Smart replies.

Editor behaviour

Drafts save automatically about a second after you stop typing. Publish Template waits until the latest save finishes.
Templates on Meta don’t auto-save. After you publish, the editor shows Save Template, which sends your changes to Meta.
Approved templates have an edit limit. The publish dialog explains: “After WhatsApp approves this template, you can edit it once in any 24-hour period (up to 10 times in 30 days). Further edits may be sent back for review.”
New Quick Reply buttons start empty. Enter the button text before you save or publish, or you see Enter button text before saving or publishing.
The category list explains each category and warns that Meta may change the category during review if the content doesn’t match.
Paused templates show a warning in the editor, because editing and resubmitting sends the template back to review.

Troubleshooting

Publish Template is unavailable

Wait for All changes saved, then check the list under Complete these requirements before publishing:. Also check the buttons: every button needs text, URLs must start with https://, and Quick Reply buttons must sit together.

Send Test is unavailable

Test sends work only for Approved templates. If the template is approved, fill in every field under Template Variables and enter your number. If you see Connect Meta and add a WhatsApp channel first., connect a WhatsApp number.

Delete is unavailable

The template is a system re-engagement template. Turn it off under Settings → WhatsApp (Meta) → Smart replies instead.

Meta rejected the template

Read the reason in the Message template rejected notification, fix the template and click Save Template. See Template rejected.

Template reference

Categories, statuses, headers, buttons and limits.

Template variables

Variables, samples, fallback values and HubSpot mapping.

Media headers

The image, video and PDF files you can use in a header.

Bulk send

Send a template to many contacts from a CSV or Excel file.

Template rejected

Common Meta rejection reasons and how to fix them.

Pricing and categories

How a template’s category drives Meta’s per-message price.

Workflow actions

Send your approved templates from a HubSpot workflow.

​How a template moves from draft to approved

​Create a template

​Choose a starting point

​Start from the Meta Library

​Start from a Flowella starter

​Fill in the editor

​Wait for Meta’s review

​Build a carousel template

​Manage cards

​Card media

​Rules Flowella checks before you submit

​Send a carousel

​Test a template

​Bulk send

​Manage templates in the catalogue

​Actions menu

​Copy the template ID

​Clone a template

​Delete a template

​Delivery-health pills on the templates list

​Pacing pauses and quality pauses

​Meta status history

​System re-engagement templates

​Editor behaviour

​Troubleshooting

​Related

Template reference

Template variables

Media headers

Bulk send

Template rejected

Pricing and categories

Workflow actions

How a template moves from draft to approved

Create a template

Choose a starting point

Start from the Meta Library

Start from a Flowella starter

Fill in the editor

Wait for Meta’s review

Build a carousel template

Manage cards

Card media

Rules Flowella checks before you submit

Send a carousel

Test a template

Bulk send

Manage templates in the catalogue

Actions menu

Copy the template ID

Clone a template

Delete a template

Delivery-health pills on the templates list

Pacing pauses and quality pauses

Meta status history

System re-engagement templates

Editor behaviour

Troubleshooting

Related