Hibot WhatsApp Business API – Complete Guide to Utility Templates

Bot Automation
Apr 7
4 min read

Utility templates are one of the most important message types in Hibot’s WhatsApp Business API. They help businesses send essential updates to customers, such as order confirmations, appointment reminders, delivery updates, invoices, payment confirmations, and support notifications.

Unlike marketing templates, utility templates are designed to deliver information that customers expect after taking an action.

What Are Utility Templates?

Utility templates are pre-approved WhatsApp message templates used to send transactional or service-related information.

Common examples include:

Order confirmation
Shipping update
Appointment reminder
Payment receipt
Booking confirmation
OTP follow-up
Customer support updates

These messages are usually triggered after a customer interacts with your business.

For example:

A customer places an order
A booking is confirmed
A shipment is dispatched
A payment is received

Hibot can instantly send the relevant WhatsApp template automatically.

Important Rule: No Marketing Content Allowed

Utility templates must only contain useful service-related information.

If your template contains promotional or sales-focused text, WhatsApp will automatically convert it into a Marketing template.

Examples of content that may turn your utility template into a marketing template:

“Buy now and get 20% off”
“Limited-time offer”
“Check out our latest products”

Allowed utility message example:

Your order #45821 has been shipped and will arrive tomorrow.

Not allowed as utility:

Your order has been shipped. Also enjoy 30% OFF on your next purchase.

Components Supported in Utility Templates

Hibot utility templates support the following components:

1 Header (optional)
1 Body (required)
1 Footer (optional)
Up to 10 Buttons (optional)

Supported Header Types

You can use these header formats:

Text
Image
Video
Document
Location

Supported Button Types

You can add up to 10 buttons inside a utility template.

Supported button types include:

URL Button
Phone Number Button
Quick Reply Button
Copy Code Button
Call Request Button

These buttons help customers take action directly from WhatsApp.

Examples:

Track Order
Call Support
Cancel Booking
Download Invoice
Copy OTP

How to Create a Utility Template in Hibot

To create a utility template, use the WhatsApp Business API endpoint:

POST /<WHATSAPP_BUSINESS_ACCOUNT_ID>/message_templates

Your request must include:

Template name
Template language
Category set to utility
Template components

Example basic structure:

{
  "name": "order_confirmation",
  "language": "en_US",
  "category": "utility",
  "parameter_format": "named",
  "components": [
    {
      "type": "body",
      "text": "Your order {{order_id}} has been confirmed."
    }
  ]
}

Required Fields for Utility Templates

Template Name

The template name:

Must be unique
Can only contain lowercase letters, numbers, and underscores
Maximum 512 characters

Example:

order_confirmation
appointment_reminder
payment_success

Language Code

You must define the language of the template.

Examples:

en_US
hi_IN
ar_SA

Using Parameters in Utility Templates

Utility templates support dynamic parameters.

This allows you to personalize messages with:

Customer name
Order ID
Date
Time
Amount
Tracking number

Example body:

Hello {{customer_name}}, your order {{order_id}} will be delivered on {{delivery_date}}.

When using parameters, you must also provide sample values.

Example:

"example": {
  "body_text_named_params": [
    {
      "param_name": "customer_name",
      "example": "Rahul"
    },
    {
      "param_name": "order_id",
      "example": "45821"
    },
    {
      "param_name": "delivery_date",
      "example": "15 November 2025"
    }
  ]
}

Example: Reservation Confirmation Template

Below is a complete example of a utility template in Hibot.

{
  "name": "reservation_confirmation",
  "language": "en_US",
  "category": "utility",
  "parameter_format": "named",
  "components": [
    {
      "type": "header",
      "format": "image",
      "example": {
        "header_handle": ["4::example_media_handle"]
      }
    },
    {
      "type": "body",
      "text": "Your reservation for {{number_of_guests}} guests on {{date}} at {{time}} is confirmed.",
      "example": {
        "body_text_named_params": [
          {
            "param_name": "number_of_guests",
            "example": "4"
          },
          {
            "param_name": "date",
            "example": "August 30, 2025"
          },
          {
            "param_name": "time",
            "example": "7:30 PM"
          }
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "type": "footer",
      "text": "Thank you for choosing us"
    },
    {
      "type": "buttons",
      "buttons": [
        {
          "type": "url",
          "text": "View Booking",
          "url": "https://yourwebsite.com/booking"
        },
        {
          "type": "phone_number",
          "text": "Call Support",
          "phone_number": "+919999999999"
        },
        {
          "type": "quick_reply",
          "text": "Cancel Booking"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Template Status After Creation

When you submit a utility template, WhatsApp reviews it automatically.

Typical response:

{
  "id": "546151681022936",
  "status": "PENDING",
  "category": "UTILITY"
}

Possible statuses:

PENDING
APPROVED
REJECTED

You can only send a template after it has been approved.

How to Send a Utility Template

Once your template is approved, you can send it using:

POST /<WHATSAPP_BUSINESS_PHONE_NUMBER_ID>/messages

Example request:

{
  "messaging_product": "whatsapp",
  "recipient_type": "individual",
  "to": "919876543210",
  "type": "template",
  "template": {
    "name": "reservation_confirmation",
    "language": {
      "code": "en_US"
    },
    "components": [
      {
        "type": "body",
        "parameters": [
          {
            "type": "text",
            "parameter_name": "number_of_guests",
            "text": "4"
          },
          {
            "type": "text",
            "parameter_name": "date",
            "text": "August 30, 2025"
          },
          {
            "type": "text",
            "parameter_name": "time",
            "text": "7:30 PM"
          }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
}

Successful Response Example

{
  "messaging_product": "whatsapp",
  "contacts": [
    {
      "input": "919876543210",
      "wa_id": "919876543210"
    }
  ],
  "messages": [
    {
      "id": "wamid.HBgL...",
      "message_status": "accepted"
    }
  ]
}

If the status is accepted, the template has been successfully queued for delivery.

Best Practices for Hibot Utility Templates

To improve approval and delivery rates, follow these best practices:

Keep the message short and clear
Only include necessary transactional information
Avoid discounts, offers, or promotional wording
Use meaningful button labels
Test parameters before sending live messages
Add only relevant media in the header

Good Example:

Your payment of ₹1,299 has been received successfully.

Bad Example:

Your payment was successful. Buy again and get 20% OFF today.

Common Use Cases for Utility Templates

Businesses use Hibot utility templates for:

Ecommerce order confirmations
Delivery tracking updates
Hospital appointment reminders
Travel booking confirmations
Event registration updates
Payment notifications
Support ticket updates
Subscription renewals

Final Thoughts

Utility templates are essential for businesses that want to provide fast, reliable, and automated customer communication through WhatsApp.

With Hibot’s WhatsApp Business API, you can:

Automatically notify customers
Personalize every message
Improve customer experience
Reduce manual work
Increase trust and engagement

Start building utility templates in Hibot today and deliver important updates instantly on WhatsApp.