Sixteen messages for the moments you type most
Replace the words in [brackets], check each message with your firm's compliance team, and then save the ones you'll use as quick replies.
1. A referral's first message
Hi [name], this is [your name]. [Referrer] gave me your number and said you might be open to a chat about [their topic, e.g. planning for your kids' education], with no pressure at all. Would a 20-minute coffee next week work, or is a call easier?
2. Replying to an enquiry from your website or a form
Hi [name], this is [your name]. Thanks for leaving your details about [topic]. I'd rather understand your situation before suggesting anything. Would a 20-minute call on [day] or [day] suit you?
3. Confirming a meeting
Hi [name], confirming our meeting on [day, date] at [time], at [place or link]. It'll take about [45 minutes], and it helps if you bring [what to bring]. See you then.
4. The day before
Hi [name], a quick reminder that we're meeting tomorrow at [time], [place or link]. If something's come up, just reply here and we'll find another time.
5. When they didn't show up
Hi [name], I was at [place] at [time] and I think we missed each other. No worries, these things happen. Would [day] or [day] suit you better?
6. After a first meeting
Hi [name], thanks for your time today. As we discussed, the next step is [next step], and I'll [what you'll do] by [date]. If anything comes up before then, message me here.
7. When they've gone quiet
Hi [name], I don't want to keep chasing you if the timing isn't right. Should I check back in [month], or would you rather close this off for now? Either way is fine with me.
8. Picking up after a few months
Hi [name], it's [your name]. We spoke in [month] about [topic]. A lot can change in a few months, so I wanted to check in. Is it still something you'd like to look at?
9. Documents you still need
Hi [name], to finish the paperwork for [what you're setting up], I still need [document]. You can send a clear photo of it here, or bring it to our next meeting on [date].
10. Welcoming a new client
Hi [name], thank you for trusting me with [what you set up together]. Your documents should reach you by [date], and I'm happy to go through them with you. Save this number, and message me here whenever something changes.
11. Before a policy anniversary
Hi [name], a heads-up that your [policy name] anniversary is on [date]. If anything in your life has changed, or you'd like to go through it together, message me here.
12. The yearly review
Hi [name], it's been a year since we last went through your plans. A lot can change in a year: work, family, a new home. Would 30 minutes on [day] or [day] work for a catch-up?
13. Checking in after a claim
Hi [name], I wanted to see how you're doing after [what happened]. On the claim, [where it stands]. The next step is [next step], and I'll update you by [date]. Message me here if you need anything.
14. Asking for a referral
Hi [name], glad we got [what you did together] sorted. If you know someone who's been meaning to [sort out the same thing], I'd be happy to have a no-pressure chat with them. Would you be comfortable introducing us?
15. Birthday
Happy birthday, [name]! Hope you get a proper break today. [One personal line, e.g. Enjoy the dinner with the kids.]
16. Asking for a Google review
Hi [name], thanks again for [what you did together]. If you were happy with how it went, would you mind leaving a short Google review? It helps other people find me. Here's the link: [link]. No worries at all if not.
Business API versions, with the category Meta gives each
If your firm sends reminders through the Business API, Meta approves each template before it can go out. These four 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.
Meeting confirmed (utility)
Hi {{1}}, your meeting with {{2}} is confirmed for {{3}} at {{4}}. Reply here if you need to change the time.
Meeting reminder (utility)
Hi {{1}}, a reminder that you're meeting {{2}} tomorrow at {{3}}. Reply here if something has come up.
Documents needed (utility)
Hi {{1}}, to complete your paperwork with {{2}}, we still need {{3}}. You can send a photo of it in this chat.
Yearly review invitation (marketing)
Hi {{1}}, it's been a year since your last review with {{2}}. Would you like to book a catch-up? Reply YES and we'll suggest times, or reply STOP to stop these messages.
Meta's categorisation guide lists a birthday greeting as a marketing template, and treats any message that invites someone to buy, renew or upgrade as marketing too. A meeting the client booked, or a document they still owe, is utility. Meta charges more for each marketing message than for a utility one, as the WhatsApp API pricing guide shows.
What not to send in a chat
Your firm's rules come first. These are the lines that most often trip advisors up on WhatsApp:
- Don't say what a plan will pay out or earn, and leave out any word that promises a result. Talk about figures in a meeting, with the documents in front of you.
- Don't tell anyone a plan is right for them in a message. That comes after a proper fact-find, so offer the meeting instead.
- Don't invent deadlines like "this week only".
- After a death or a serious illness, send message 13 or nothing, with no referral asks and no reviews.
- Don't add clients to a group without asking them first.
- Don't ask for a full NRIC or bank account number in the chat. WhatsApp's Business Messaging Policy says not to ask for personal ID card numbers or financial account numbers.
Three rules that keep a message from sounding salesy
A client reads a message in two seconds. Each one gets a single job.
- Make one ask per message, and make it easy to answer.
- Use their name, plus one detail from the last time you spoke, so it can't be mistaken for a mass message.
- Give them a way to say no that doesn't feel awkward, like message 7.
Two messages, filled in
Made-up example: Daniel, an advisor, sends message 1 to a referral: "Hi Wei Ling, this is Daniel. Grace Tan gave me your number and said you might be open to a chat about planning for your kids' education, with no pressure at all. Would a 20-minute coffee next week work, or is a call easier?"
Wei Ling books a coffee.
Another client, Mr Rahman, has gone quiet after two follow-ups, so Daniel sends message 7: "Hi Mr Rahman, I don't want to keep chasing you if the timing isn't right. Should I check back in January, or would you rather close this off for now? Either way is fine with me."
Mr Rahman replies "January is better", which puts a date in the diary instead of a fourth follow-up.
Before you message someone first
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 number 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 anything that promotes a service. Before a message like that reaches a Singapore number, you need either a recent check against the Do Not Call Register or the person's clear consent on record. A reply to someone who asked you a question isn't a promotion. The WhatsApp Business guide sets out both sets of rules.
Keep every client chat in one place
If you work in a team, the chats you send from your own phone are invisible to everyone else. When you're on leave, nobody can see who's waiting for documents or who asked to talk in January.
Palby AI Agent, which we make, puts the chats from your WhatsApp number into a team inbox, where they can be assigned by hand, in turn, or to whoever has the fewest open. Its AI agent checks in once with a client who goes quiet, and never chases someone who never wrote back. It links your own number as a device through Green API rather than the Business API, so it doesn't send Meta's templates.
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Questions about WhatsApp messages for financial advisors
Many firms allow it, with rules on which number you use, what you can say and how chats are kept. Ask your compliance team for yours before you save these messages.
Make one ask per message and give them an easy way to say no. Message 7 is the one to send after two follow-ups with no reply.
Assume it was a mix-up and say so. Then offer two new times, the same day, which is what message 5 does.
Keep them for a meeting. Leave out anything about what a plan pays out, and don't tell anyone a plan suits them in a chat, because that needs a proper fact-find first.
Yes. Meta's categorisation guide lists a birthday greeting under marketing, so it's charged at the marketing rate and needs the client's opt-in.
Send them one at a time, with the client's name in each. The same words sent to 200 people read like a broadcast, and clients who didn't expect it can block or report your number.