WhatsApp marketing in India works in five steps: collect opt-ins, get approved message templates, bring people into chats with Click-to-WhatsApp or Status ads, reply within minutes, and send broadcasts that stay inside Meta's limits. Each delivered marketing message costs ₹0.8631 on Meta's India rate card before GST (Meta pricing, checked 28 Oct 2026). This guide covers each step and links to a detailed guide for every one.
Most Indian customers already message businesses on WhatsApp: to ask a price, check if you're open, or confirm an order. WhatsApp marketing means running that on purpose. You decide how people start chats, how fast they get a reply, what you send afterwards and how you measure it.
This hub is for any business that sells on WhatsApp, from a single salon in Pune to a jeweller with five branches or a manufacturer handling dealer enquiries. Each section gives you the rules and the decision, then points to a full guide.
What WhatsApp marketing covers
Think of it as five jobs, in this order:
- Permission. Get an opt-in that names your business, and keep proof of it.
- Messages Meta will approve. Templates for offers, reminders and updates, filed in the right category.
- Getting chats started. Click-to-WhatsApp ads, Status ads, a WhatsApp button on your website and Google profile, and QR codes at the counter.
- Replying fast. Answering in minutes, during business hours and after.
- Following up and broadcasting. Order updates, reminders, festival offers and re-engagement, sent within Meta's limits.
Skip the first two and the rest backfires. A broadcast to people who never opted in gets blocked and reported, which lowers your quality rating and makes every later send harder.
Step 1: Choose the WhatsApp Business app or the API
There are two ways to run WhatsApp for business:
- The WhatsApp Business app is free and works from a phone. It suits an owner or a small team replying by hand.
- The WhatsApp Business Platform (the API) is paid per message and runs through software: a shared inbox, automatic replies, CRM records and large sends to opted-in contacts.
Most businesses start on the app. They move to the API when chats no longer fit in one person's day, or when leads arrive from ads and forms that need an instant reply. Our WhatsApp Business app vs API comparison covers cost, devices and automation, and how to run both on one number.
Broadcasting is where the two differ most. The app has broadcast lists with a contact cap and a saved-number rule. The API has messaging tiers. The WhatsApp broadcast limit guide explains all three ways to broadcast.
If you're going with the API, you'll need software to run it. Our comparison of WhatsApp marketing software in India lists published INR prices and per-message markups.
Step 2: Opt-in comes first
WhatsApp's policy allows you to contact people only when they have given you their number and you have their opt-in permission. You must also honour every request to stop (WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy, checked 28 Oct 2026).
Meta's opt-in guidance adds detail (Meta, getting opt-in, checked 28 Oct 2026):
- The opt-in must say the person is agreeing to messages from your business, and name the business.
- It can be collected on your website, by SMS, through a phone IVR or in person on paper.
- Explain what they'll get. Separate opt-ins for order updates and for offers lower the chance that people block you.
- Give clear opt-out instructions and act on them.
Where an opt-in comes from in practice:
- A checkbox on your website or checkout form.
- A sign-up slip or tablet at the billing counter.
- A customer who messages you first and agrees when you ask whether they'd like offers.
Don't use bought lists, numbers copied from WhatsApp groups, or old Excel sheets of customers who never said yes. India's data protection law adds its own duties on top of Meta's rules. Both are covered in WhatsApp marketing compliance in India.
Step 3: Templates that get approved
On the API, any message you start outside a 24-hour customer service window must use an approved template. Meta sorts each template into a category, and the category sets the price (Meta, templates overview, checked 28 Oct 2026):
- Marketing: offers, launches, festival greetings, re-engagement. Meta also treats templates with mixed or unclear content as marketing.
- Utility: updates about something the customer did or asked for, such as an order confirmation, delivery slot or appointment reminder. No promotional content.
- Authentication: one-time passcodes.
Meta can move a utility template that is really promotional into marketing, which raises its price (Meta, template categorization, checked 28 Oct 2026). Meta also rates each template's quality from customer feedback and read rates. A low-rated template can be paused, and after repeated pauses it is disabled.
For copy you can adapt, with notes on why each one passes review, see our WhatsApp broadcast template examples.
Step 4: Start chats with Click-to-WhatsApp and Status ads
Ads are the fastest way to get new people into your WhatsApp inbox.
Click-to-WhatsApp ads
These are Facebook and Instagram ads whose button opens a chat with you. Meta's Marketing API lists Engagement, Leads, Sales and Traffic as the objectives, and you need a Facebook Page with your WhatsApp number linked (Meta, Click-to-WhatsApp ads, checked 28 Oct 2026). You can set a welcome message and ice-breaker questions so the first message already tells you what the person wants.
The main cost advantage is the free entry point window. Reply within the customer service window to a chat started from the ad on Android or iOS, and Meta doesn't charge for marketing, utility, authentication or service messages for up to 7 days (Meta pricing, checked 28 Oct 2026). Setup, targeting and the first five minutes of the chat are in Click-to-WhatsApp ads: a step-by-step guide.
WhatsApp Status ads
Status ads appear between Status updates in WhatsApp's Updates tab. Per Meta's documentation (checked 28 Oct 2026):
- They run only when Instagram Stories is also selected. Standalone Status campaigns aren't supported.
- Creative is vertical, at a 9:16 ratio. Single image, single video and carousel are supported.
- Healthcare, pharma and special ad categories don't get delivery there (Meta, ads in WhatsApp Status).
So clinics and pharmacies should skip them. A boutique with good vertical video may want to test them. See WhatsApp Status ads: who should test them.
Step 5: Reply in minutes
A chat from an ad is a warm lead for a short time. The research on lead response time is old and partly vendor-funded, but it points one way: replies in minutes beat replies in hours. Our speed-to-lead research roundup separates the real studies from the vendor claims.
In practice:
- Set a target: under 5 minutes for ad leads during business hours.
- Cover the evenings. Indian customers often message after 9 pm. Use software that answers from your price list and FAQ, then hands over to a person.
- Keep bots narrow. WhatsApp's terms have barred general-purpose AI chatbots for all users since 15 January 2026. Bots that handle business tasks, such as answering product questions, bookings and order updates, are still allowed (respond.io, checked 28 Oct 2026).
- Ask one question at a time: budget, area, date, product.
Step 6: Broadcasts and follow-ups within Meta's limits
Messaging limits
On the API, your messaging limit is the number of unique people you can message outside a customer service window in a moving 24 hours. It's shared by every number in your business portfolio. New portfolios start at 250. The steps above that are 2,000, 10,000, 100,000 and unlimited (Meta, messaging limits, checked 28 Oct 2026).
- To reach 2,000, complete business verification, or deliver 2,000 template messages outside service windows within 30 days using high-quality templates.
- After that, Meta raises the limit one step when your messages are high quality and you used at least half your limit in the last 7 days.
Per-user marketing limits
WhatsApp may cap how many marketing templates one person receives from all businesses, based on how often they read them. A blocked delivery returns error 131049. Meta advises waiting at least 24 hours before retrying (Meta, per-user limits, checked 28 Oct 2026). In festival weeks, when every brand messages the same people, expect more of these failures.
A sending rhythm that protects your number
- Segment by what people bought or asked about. Don't send every offer to your whole list.
- Send a small batch to engaged customers first, then check replies and blocks before sending the rest.
- Send one reminder at most, and only to people who didn't reply.
- Use utility templates for order and booking updates only, never with an offer attached.
What WhatsApp marketing costs in India
Meta charges per delivered message, by category and the recipient's country code. On the INR rate card effective 1 October 2026, India rates before GST are ₹0.8631 for marketing and ₹0.115 for utility, authentication and service (Meta pricing, checked 28 Oct 2026). Add 18% GST and any provider fee.
Illustrative example: a sweet shop in Surat sends a Diwali offer to 1,200 opted-in customers. That's 1,200 × ₹0.8631, about ₹1,036 before GST and provider fees. The replies cost nothing up to 1,000 a month on that number.
Two dates matter. Eligible Indian businesses must move every WhatsApp account to INR billing by 31 December 2026, and Meta says it will stop delivering messages from non-INR accounts from 1 January 2027. The full breakdown, with GST and provider markups, is in WhatsApp Business API pricing in India. For your own numbers, use the WhatsApp API pricing calculator.
Festivals and the wedding season
In India, demand follows the festival calendar. Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday 8 November (Drik Panchang, checked 28 Oct 2026), and wedding dates follow from late November to February.
- For the WhatsApp side of any festival campaign (lists, templates, limits, follow-ups), use the festival WhatsApp campaign checklist.
- For ads and WhatsApp together from Diwali through February, use the Diwali to wedding season marketing playbook.
A 30-day starter plan
Illustrative example for a business starting from zero.
| Week | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Choose app or API. Add an opt-in checkbox to your website and a sign-up slip at the counter. Put a WhatsApp link on your Google Business Profile. |
| 2 | Write three templates: an offer (marketing), a reminder (marketing) and an order or booking update (utility). Submit them for review. |
| 3 | Run a small Click-to-WhatsApp campaign with a lifetime budget and an end date. Reply to every chat within minutes. |
| 4 | Send your first segmented broadcast to opted-in customers. Measure replies, orders, blocks and cost per order. |
Related guides
Everything in our WhatsApp marketing series:
- WhatsApp Business API pricing in India: Meta's rates, GST, free tiers and the INR deadline.
- Click-to-WhatsApp ads: setup and the first five minutes.
- WhatsApp Status ads and who should use them.
- WhatsApp opt-in rules and DPDP basics.
- Speed to lead: what the research says.
- WhatsApp broadcast limits, tiers and cost.
- WhatsApp Business app or API: which one you need.
- Best WhatsApp marketing software in India, priced.
- Festival WhatsApp campaign: a 12-step checklist.
- WhatsApp template examples that get approved.
- Diwali and wedding season playbook for Meta ads and WhatsApp.
How BeeCMO fits
Messenger Bee connects your own number to the official WhatsApp Cloud API. Enquiries from WhatsApp, Click-to-WhatsApp ads, lead forms and your website land in one inbox. The AI can answer from facts you approved, and it starts on drafts you send with one tap. Templates go only to contacts with a recorded opt-in, STOP is honoured right away, and every broadcast shows a recipient count and an approximate cost and waits for your approval on WhatsApp. Meta bills message fees to your own account. Forager Bee builds Click-to-WhatsApp and Status campaigns paused, for you to approve. See Messenger Bee.
Frequently asked questions
Is WhatsApp marketing legal in India?
Yes, if you message people who gave you their number and opted in to hear from your business, and you stop when they ask. WhatsApp's policy requires both. India's DPDP law adds duties on how you collect and handle contact data.
How much does WhatsApp marketing cost in India?
On the API, Meta charges ₹0.8631 per delivered marketing message to an Indian number, before 18% GST and any provider fee. Replies are free up to 1,000 a month per number, and messages inside a Click-to-WhatsApp free entry point window cost nothing for up to 7 days.
Can I do WhatsApp marketing with the free WhatsApp Business app?
For a small customer base, yes. The app has broadcast lists, but only people who saved your number receive them. For larger sends, instant replies to ad leads and a shared team inbox, you need the API.
How many people can I message on WhatsApp in a day?
On the API, a new business portfolio can message 250 unique people outside a customer service window in 24 hours. Business verification or 2,000 delivered messages in 30 days raises that to 2,000, and it can grow from there to unlimited.
What is the best way to get leads on WhatsApp?
For most local businesses, Click-to-WhatsApp ads plus a fast reply. The ad brings people straight into a chat, and replying in time opens a free messaging window of up to 7 days.
Sources
All checked 28 October 2026.
- Meta, WhatsApp Business Platform pricing (per-message billing, free service tier, free entry point window, INR billing deadline): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/pricing
- WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy (opt-in, opt-out): https://whatsappbusiness.com/policy/
- Meta, getting opt-in for WhatsApp: https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/getting-opt-in
- Meta, WhatsApp templates overview (categories, review time, quality): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/templates/overview
- Meta, template categorization (utility vs marketing, recategorization): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/templates/template-categorization
- Meta, Click-to-WhatsApp ads (objectives, linked Page, welcome message): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/ads-commerce/marketing-api/ad-creative/messaging-ads/click-to-whatsapp
- Meta, ads in WhatsApp Status (pairing with Instagram Stories, 9:16 creative, excluded verticals): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/ads-commerce/marketing-api/ads-in-whatsapp-status
- Meta, messaging limits (tiers, scaling): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/messaging-limits
- Meta, per-user marketing template limits (error 131049): https://developers.facebook.com/documentation/business-messaging/whatsapp/templates/marketing-templates/per-user-limits
- respond.io, WhatsApp general-purpose chatbot ban (dates, allowed uses): https://respond.io/blog/whatsapp-general-purpose-chatbots-ban
- Drik Panchang, Diwali 2026 puja calendar (New Delhi): https://www.drikpanchang.com/diwali/diwali-puja-calendar.html?year=2026