Palby AI Agent
Updated 6 min read

How to use WhatsApp templates for ecommerce without paying marketing rates for order updates

Seventeen order, payment and delivery messages to copy, plus five Business API versions with the category Meta gives each, so a shipping update isn't billed as marketing.

By Leo Tan, founder of Palby AI Agent

Messages for every order, from the first question to the return

Change the words until they sound like your shop, then save each one as a quick reply. Square brackets are the parts you fill in.

1. Answering a stock question

Hi [name], yes, the [item] in [size / colour] is in stock. It's [price]. Shall I put one aside for you?

2. When it's out of stock

Hi [name], sorry, the [item] in [size / colour] is sold out. We have it in [other size / colour], or I can tell you when it's back. Which would you prefer?

3. Taking the order

Thanks [name]. To confirm: [quantity] x [item], [size / colour], [price] in total. Is that right? Please send your delivery address and I'll share the payment details.

4. Payment details

Here's how to pay, [name]: [payment method and details]. Please send a screenshot once it's done and include your name or order number in the reference.

5. Payment received

Hi [name], we've received your payment of [amount] for order [number]. We'll pack it on [day] and send you the tracking link once it ships.

6. Payment not received yet

Hi [name], we haven't seen the payment for order [number] come in yet. Could you check the reference, or send me the screenshot? I'm holding your items until [day].

7. Order shipped

Hi [name], your order [number] is on its way with [courier]. You can track it here: [link]. It should reach you by [day].

8. Out for delivery

Hi [name], your parcel is out for delivery today. If no one's home, [courier] will [what they do]. Reply here if you need to change anything.

9. A delay

Hi [name], your order [number] is running late. [Reason in one line.] The new delivery date is [date]. Sorry for the wait, and I'll message you again once it ships.

10. Ready for collection

Hi [name], your order [number] is ready to collect at [place] from [day]. We're open [hours]. Just show this message or your order number.

11. After delivery

Hi [name], our courier shows your order [number] as delivered. Did everything arrive in good condition?

12. Something arrived damaged

Sorry about that, [name]. Could you send a photo of the item and the box? Once I see it, I'll arrange a replacement or a refund, whichever you prefer.

13. How to return an item

Hi [name], you can return the [item] within [days] days of delivery, unused and with the tags on. Send it to [address] or drop it at [place], then message me the tracking number.

14. Refund processed

Hi [name], we've refunded [amount] for order [number] to your [payment method]. It can take [days] working days to show. Message me here if it hasn't arrived by [date].

15. Exchange on the way

Hi [name], your exchange for the [item] in [size / colour] has been sent. Tracking: [link]. You don't need to do anything else.

16. Back in stock, for someone who asked

Hi [name], you asked us to tell you when the [item] in [size / colour] came back, and it's in stock again today. Want me to put one aside?

17. Asking for a review

Hi [name], hope you're enjoying the [item]. If you have a minute, a review would help our small shop a lot: [link]. Thank you.

Messages 1 to 15 answer a customer about an order they asked about or placed. Messages 16 and 17 are you writing first, so send them only to customers who asked for them or opted in.

Business API versions, with the category Meta gives each

If your shop sends order updates through the Business API, Meta has to approve each template first. These five follow Meta's rules: numbered variables in double curly brackets, in order, never at the very start or end. The category in brackets is the one Meta's categorisation guide gives that kind of message.

Order confirmed (utility)

Thanks {{1}}, your order {{2}} is confirmed. We'll send you the tracking link once it ships on {{3}}.

Shipped with tracking (utility)

Hi {{1}}, your order {{2}} is on its way. Track it here: {{3}}. It should arrive by {{4}}.

Delivery delayed (utility)

Hi {{1}}, your order {{2}} is delayed. The new delivery date is {{3}}, and we'll message you when it ships.

Refund processed (utility)

Hi {{1}}, we've processed your refund of {{2}} for order {{3}}. It may take {{4}} working days to reach your account.

Cart reminder (Meta counts this as marketing)

Hi {{1}}, you left {{2}} in your cart at {{3}}. Reply here if you'd like us to hold them for you, or reply STOP to stop these messages.

Meta's categorisation guide lists an abandoned cart reminder as marketing, and says back-in-stock and saved-search alerts are marketing "even if requested by users". A utility template also can't promote anything. Add "use code SAVE10 next time" to a shipping update, and Meta counts the whole thing as marketing.

That matters for the bill. As of November 2026, Meta charges SGD 0.0937 for a marketing message to a Singapore number and SGD 0.0205 for a utility one.

What makes an order message work

Customers message a shop for one reason: they want to know where their money or their parcel is. A good update answers that before they ask.

  • Put the order number in every message, so nobody has to scroll back.
  • Give a day, not "soon", because "by Thursday" ends the chat and "shortly" only starts another one.
  • Send the delay message before the original date passes, not after the customer chases.
  • Ask for a photo of damage before you promise anything, then give them the choice of a refund or a replacement.
  • Never ask for a full card number or bank details in a chat. WhatsApp's Business Messaging Policy says not to ask for full payment card or financial account numbers.

One order, start to finish

Made-up example: a small batik shop sells shirts through Instagram, with orders finished on WhatsApp.

A customer asks if a shirt comes in size M. Message 1 answers, then message 3 confirms the order and asks for the address.

Message 4 sends the payment details. The screenshot comes in, and message 5 goes out the next day.

The courier can't make its slot, so the customer gets message 9 with the new date before she has to ask.

When the parcel arrives, message 11 checks it's fine. A week later message 17 asks for a review.

That's six messages and one review, with no "any update?" chat at all.

Before you send one that sells

WhatsApp's Business Messaging Policy says you may only message people who gave you their number and opted in, and that you must stop when anyone asks. People can block or report a shop that messages them out of the blue, and the policy says WhatsApp may limit a business's messages on that feedback.

Singapore's Do Not Call rules add a step for promotions. Before a message that promotes something reaches a Singapore number, you need either a recent check against the Do Not Call Register or the person's clear consent on record. An order update the customer is waiting for isn't a promotion. The WhatsApp Business guide sets out both sets of rules.

When the order chats pile up

During a sale, the same three questions arrive fifty times: is it in stock, did my payment go through, where's my parcel? Templates make each reply faster, but one person still has to send all fifty.

Palby AI Agent, which we make, puts every chat from your shop's WhatsApp number in one team inbox, so you can assign chats in turn or to whoever has the fewest open. Its AI agent reads the payment screenshots and photos customers send, and answers from what you've taught it. It links the number you already use as a device through Green API rather than the Business API, so it doesn't send Meta's templates.

30 minutes. You choose the day and the time.

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Questions about WhatsApp templates for ecommerce

Tell them where the parcel is before they ask.

Save the payment, shipped and delayed messages first. Those three stop most of the "any update?" chats.

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30 minutes. You choose the day and the time.