Schedule WhatsApp Messages
How to schedule WhatsApp messages?
This article describes how to schedule WhatsApp messages, so that they are sent at specific dates/times, and how to stop the scheduling of WhatsApp messages.
Step 1: Create Name and Phone columns
Create Name and Phone columns containing information about the customers.
Create a column called Scheduled, and then enter the dates/times to schedule when WhatsApp messages are sent.
NOTE:
The time zone for the scheduling process is based on the time zone set in Google Sheets through File > Settings > General > Time Zone.
Dates can be interpreted differently based on your region. For example, 01/09/2023 means January 9, 2023 in the USA, and it means 1 September 2023 in the UK. To avoid this ambigiuty, and to make sure the values are not misinterpreted as text, implement the following:
First, enter the dates/times in a numerical format, for example 02/03/2023 7:15 pm.
Second, highlight the Scheduled column, click on Format > Number > Custom date and time (see screenshot below), then change the dates/times format so that the name of the month is shown. In this example the date/time changes to February 3, 2023 7:15 pm.
Step 2: Start Walution add-on
Click on Extensions > Walution > Start to configure scheduling for the Appointments tab.
A new column called Message Status is automatically created in the Appointments tab.
Step 3: Type and personalize WhatsApp message
From the WhatsApp Number drop-down menu, select the Phone column that contains the numbers of the customers.
Type and personalize a Whatsapp message using the Add Personalized Field drop-down menu.
Click on Auto Send to open the Options to Send Messages Automatically dialog box.
Step 4: Select Scheduled column
From the Scheduled drop-down menu, select the Scheduled column, then click on Save & Close.
Click on Save in the Sheet dialog box, so that the scheduling process starts.
NOTE:
The scheduling process is activated every hour and not every minute. Hence, WhatsApp messages are sent within an hour of the scheduled time. The Message Status logs the time/s the WhatsApp messages are sent.
Rows with an invalid date or an empty value in the Scheduled column are skipped. However, the rows can be sent normally if you click on Send Messages in the Sheet dialog box.
If rows with valid dates/times are added, modified, or deleted in a Google sheet, the schedule process automatically detects this, so there is no need to redo the schedule proccess.
Stop scheduling of WhatsApp messages
Step 1: Start Walution add-on
Click on Extensions > Walution > Start to configure scheduling for the Appointments tab.
Step 2: Click Auto Send
Click on Auto Send to open the Options to Send Messages Automatically dialog box.
Step 3: Select (N/A)
From the Scheduled drop-down, select (N/A), then click on Save & Close.
Click on Save in the Sheet dialog box, so that the scheduling process stops.
