Lead intent quick-reply buttons via WhatsApp API

The scenario sends the lead a personalised WhatsApp template asking them to clarify their purpose.

Use case overview

The scenario sends the lead a personalised WhatsApp template asking them to clarify their purpose. The message includes their name and the product or topic of interest. Three quick-reply buttons let them choose personal use, business use, or browsing only; taps arrive via webhook for CRM routing.

Template example

Hello, {{1}}! To find the best option for "{{2}}", please clarify: what goal are you considering this solution for? Choose a suitable option below.

For myself

{{1}}
lead or customer name
{{2}}
product, service, or topic of interest
“For myself”
button — fixed in the Meta template

WhatsApp Business API for client needs clarification

When to use it

Reach for this scenario when a lead shows interest but their purpose is still unclear — personal use, a business purchase, or early browsing — and there is no open WhatsApp conversation to ask in plain text. It fits inbound teams that assign reps by intent, product-led funnels that segment buyers early, and agencies that map quick-reply taps to CRM routing rules.

Right track before the first call

CRM flags an incomplete need profile after capture; the template sends the lead name and product topic as two body variables plus three quick-reply options, so sales knows personal vs business vs browsing before assigning a rep.

Structured intent without email back-and-forth

Three quick-reply buttons replace free-text replies — the lead picks «For myself», «For business», or «Just browsing» in one tap instead of an email thread.

Automatic CRM routing from the tap

The button choice arrives via webhook and maps to CRM routing rules or lead fields, so the lead moves to the matched sales track or nurture path without manual sorting.

First touch when there is no open chat

An approved template with two body variables goes out when capture left no session — only body variables are sent via the API while quick-reply labels stay fixed in the Meta template.

Workflow

Capture event
CRM flags a lead whose need profile is incomplete after capture.
phone: "+…"
Phone and product context
Lead phone and product context are resolved from the payload.
phone: "+…"
Build & send
A personalised template is sent with two body variables and three quick-reply buttons.
POST /sendTemplate
Status tracked
The lead taps «For myself», «For business», or «Just browsing» — the event arrives via webhook.
status: "read"
Delivered
CRM routes the lead to the matching sales track or nurture path.
delivered

Technical implementation

Prerequisites

1MSG API Key · How to get API Key
WhatsApp Business account · How to Connect WABA
WhatsApp Template · How to Approve WABA Template
Customer opt-in · How to Manage Customers Consent
Webhook endpoint · How to Set Up Webhooks

Code examples

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

# === Configuration (replace "___" placeholders) ===

API_BASE_URL="https://api.1msg.io"        # production 1MSG API base URL
CHANNEL_ID="___"                           # channel ID from 1MSG dashboard
API_TOKEN="___"                            # channel JWT token (Bearer)

TEMPLATE_NAME="___"                        # approved template name
TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE="___"                   # template namespace (required — send fails without it)
TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE="___"                    # template language code, e.g. "en"



# === Test data ===
TEST_PHONE="___"                 # client phone in international format
TEST_CUSTOMERNAME="___"         # {{1}} customer name
TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME="___"         # {{2}} product or service name

PHONE_NORM="$(printf '%s' "$TEST_PHONE" | tr -cd '0-9')"

for pair in "CHANNEL_ID=$CHANNEL_ID" "API_TOKEN=$API_TOKEN" \
            "TEMPLATE_NAME=$TEMPLATE_NAME" "TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE=$TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE" \
            "TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE=$TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE" "TEST_PHONE=$TEST_PHONE" \
            "TEST_CUSTOMERNAME=$TEST_CUSTOMERNAME" \
            "TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME=$TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME"; do
    val="${pair#*=}"
    if [ -z "$val" ] || [ "$val" = "___" ]; then
        echo "Missing configuration value: ${pair%%=*}" >&2
        exit 1
    fi
done

if [ -z "$PHONE_NORM" ]; then
    echo "Error: phone number has no digits after normalization" >&2
    exit 1
fi

URL="${API_BASE_URL%/}/${CHANNEL_ID}/sendTemplate"

# params carries body ONLY. Button text is fixed in the Meta template — no button param.

# {{1}} customer name → ${TEST_CUSTOMERNAME}
# {{2}} product or service name → ${TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME}
read -r -d '' PAYLOAD <<JSON || true
{
  "phone": "${PHONE_NORM}",
  "template": "${TEMPLATE_NAME}",
  "namespace": "${TEMPLATE_NAMESPACE}",
  "language": { "policy": "deterministic", "code": "${TEMPLATE_LANGUAGE}" },
  "params": [
    {
      "type": "body",
      "parameters": [
        { "type": "text", "text": "${TEST_CUSTOMERNAME}" },
        { "type": "text", "text": "${TEST_PRODUCTORSERVICENAME}" }
      ]
    }

  ]
}
JSON

RESPONSE="$(curl -s -w '\n%{http_code}' -X POST "$URL" \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer ${API_TOKEN}" \
    -d "$PAYLOAD")"

HTTP_CODE="$(printf '%s' "$RESPONSE" | tail -n1)"
BODY="$(printf '%s' "$RESPONSE" | sed '$d')"

case "$BODY" in
    *'"sent":true'*) ok=1 ;;
    *) ok=0 ;;
esac

if [ "$HTTP_CODE" -ge 200 ] && [ "$HTTP_CODE" -lt 300 ] && [ "$ok" -eq 1 ]; then
    echo "Message sent to client."
    echo "API response: $BODY"
else
    echo "Send failed. HTTP status: $HTTP_CODE" >&2
    echo "$BODY" >&2
    exit 1
fi

Response and delivery status

HTTP 2xx and JSON "sent": true mean 1MSG accepted the message for sending — not that it already reached the customer's phone. Save the id field (looks like wamid.…) to correlate delivery callbacks.

200 OKResponse

{
  "sent": true,
  "message": "Sent to [email protected]",
  "description": "Message has been sent to the provider",
  "id": "wamid.HBgLMzgwNjM5..."
}

sent
Accepted for sending — not yet on the customer's phone
id
Store it; delivery callbacks and hookInfo are keyed on this

Delivery statuses and webhooks →

Common errors

Status	API response	Cause	Fix
200	Message was not sent: template is not defined	namespace, template or language is missing from the request body.	Send all three. Take namespace and the exact template name from GET /templates; language is an object: {"policy": "deterministic", "code": "en"}.
200	template name (…) does not exist in <language>	The template is approved in a different language than the one requested.	Use the exact language code the template was approved in (for example es_MX is not the same as es). Check it in GET /templates.
200	Message was not sent: provide chatId, phone, bsuid, or username	No recipient the channel could resolve.	Pass exactly one recipient: phone (country code plus number, digits only), chatId (for example [email protected]) or bsuid.