WhatsApp guide
WhatsApp Business auto reply: the complete guide with ready-made messages
The WhatsApp Business app includes free auto reply tools that make a great start. This guide shows how to turn them on step by step, gives you greeting and away messages you can copy, and explains when you’ll outgrow them and an AI agent makes sense.
Updated
How to set up a WhatsApp Business greeting message
The greeting message goes out automatically when a customer messages you for the first time, or after 14 days without any messages between you. Menu names can differ slightly between Android, iPhone and app versions.
Open Tools
In the WhatsApp Business app, open Tools and choose Greeting message.
Turn it on
Switch on Send greeting message.
Write the greeting
Tap the message to edit it. Keep it short: your business name, what the customer can do, and when you’ll reply. There are ready examples below.
Choose recipients
Under Recipients choose Everyone, Everyone not in address book, or Everyone except people you select. Then save.
Away message: an auto reply outside business hours
An away message reassures customers that their message arrived and tells them when you’ll be back. Useful at night, on holidays and during busy seasons.
Open Away message
From Tools choose Away message and switch on Send away message.
Write the text
Say when you’ll be back, and add a useful link (ordering, prices, branch location) if you have one.
Set the schedule
Under Schedule choose Always send, Custom schedule for a period you set, or Outside of business hours. The last option only appears once you’ve set business hours in your business profile.
Choose recipients and save
The same options as the greeting: Everyone, Everyone not in address book, or Everyone except people you select.
Quick replies: shortcuts for common questions
Quick replies aren’t fully automatic, but they save you typing the same answer again and again.
Add a quick reply
From Tools choose Quick replies, tap the add (+) button and write the message.
Set the shortcut
Every shortcut starts with “/” and can be up to 25 characters, like /hours or /delivery. You can store up to 50 quick replies.
Use it in a chat
In any chat, type “/” to see your quick replies, pick one and it drops into the message box. Edit it if needed and send.
WhatsApp greeting and away message examples to copy
Copy and change the names and times to fit your business:
- General greeting: “Hi, and welcome to [Business name]! How can we help? Send your question and we’ll reply as soon as we can. We’re open 9 am to 10 pm.”
- Store greeting: “Welcome to [Store name]! Browse our products in the catalog, and if you have a question about an order, send the order number and we’ll get back to you.”
- Clinic greeting: “Welcome to [Clinic name]. To book, send your name, the service you need and a time that suits you, and our receptionist will be in touch.”
- Bilingual greeting: “Welcome to [Name]! هلا فيك. Write in English or Arabic and we’ll reply soon.”
- Evening away message: “Thanks, we got your message! We’re closed for today and back tomorrow at 9 am. We’ll reply as soon as we’re in.”
- Holiday away message: “Eid Mubarak! We’re on holiday until [date]. You can still order on our website: [link].”
- Delivery quick reply (/delivery): “We deliver across the country, and delivery takes [number] business days. Shall I send you the order link?”
The limits of WhatsApp Business built-in auto replies
The app’s tools are great for getting started, but they have clear limits once messages pile up:
| Built-in app auto reply | AI agent | |
|---|---|---|
| What it sends | One fixed text per situation | A written answer to the customer’s actual question |
| When it replies | First message or after 14 days, and outside hours | Every message, any time |
| Understands the question | No, it doesn’t read the message | Yes, in any wording or dialect |
| Repeat questions | A person replies by hand (or with quick replies) | Answers from your files and website |
| Voice notes and images | No | Depends on the platform (Gental understands voice notes and reads images and files) |
| Handover to a person | Every chat is already with a person | Hands over only the chats that need one |
When to move from auto replies to an AI agent
If you answer the same questions every day (prices, delivery, hours, bookings), or messages pile up overnight and you lose customers before you reply, it’s time for an AI agent. In Gental you connect WhatsApp with an official number through your Twilio, Interakt or 360dialog account, or link your everyday number by QR (an unofficial connection; Meta may restrict numbers that break its policies). The agent answers from your knowledge and hands chats that need a person to your team.
FAQ
Common questions
How do I turn on auto reply in WhatsApp Business?
In the app, open Tools, choose Greeting message or Away message, switch sending on, write your text, choose recipients and save.
Why doesn’t every customer get my greeting message?
It only goes out when someone messages you for the first time or after 14 days of inactivity. If the customer messaged you in the last 14 days, they won’t get it.
Why can’t I see “Outside of business hours” for my away message?
Set your business hours in your business profile first; the option then appears in the away message schedule.
Does WhatsApp Business reply to customers with AI?
The familiar app tools (greeting, away and quick replies) are fixed texts. Meta has started offering a business AI inside the app, so check whether it appears for you. For answers from your own documents in Arabic, with handover to your team, you can use a platform like Gental.
How do I make a link that opens a WhatsApp chat with me?
Use wa.me/ followed by your full number in international format, without leading zeros, +, brackets or dashes, like wa.me/9665XXXXXXXX, and add ?text= for a pre-filled message. Or use our free WhatsApp link generator.
Can I use auto replies and a Gental agent together?
Gental replies to every message itself, so you usually won’t need a greeting message. If you link your everyday number, test your settings first so customers don’t get two replies.
Keep reading
- WhatsApp AI agentAutomated WhatsApp replies from your knowledge, with handover to your team.
- WhatsApp Linked NumberLink a regular WhatsApp number by QR to answer chats and catch requests in groups.
- Human handoff and inboxThe agent hands over to your team, and your team replies from a shared inbox on the same channel.
- Build a WhatsApp AI botThe ways to build a WhatsApp AI bot compared, with practical steps and pitfalls to avoid.
- WhatsApp link generatorMake a wa.me click-to-chat link, with an optional prefilled message.
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