By the IGNIPOST Chat team
Salma sells skincare from a small shop in Casablanca. Over two years she has collected 2,300 customer numbers from cash on delivery orders, all saved in one phone. Every Eid she sends the same promo to everyone, late at night. A few people order, most never answer, and some block her. She does not have a WhatsApp marketing strategy. She has a contact list and a habit.
This guide turns that habit into a plan you can run in a few hours a week: who to message, what to send, how often, and how to keep your number safe.
Why WhatsApp deserves its own plan
From Morocco and Senegal to the Gulf and much of Europe, WhatsApp is where customers already talk to family. A message there feels personal. That cuts both ways: a useful message gets read within minutes, and an unwanted one gets reported. Reports are what get numbers restricted.
So a WhatsApp plan is about relevance, not reach. You send fewer messages than by email, to people who expect them, and treat every reply as a sales conversation. A shop with 500 engaged contacts usually sells more than one with 5,000 cold numbers.
Step 1: Build a list of people who asked to hear from you
Start with people who already bought from you or wrote to you. Add new contacts only through a clear opt-in:
- A checkbox at checkout: "Send me order updates and offers on WhatsApp."
- A "Chat with us" button on your product pages and your Instagram bio.
- A QR code on the delivery bag or the invoice.
- A keyword in your ads, such as "Send OFFER to get the price list."
Never buy number lists or copy them from groups: those people report you, and in most markets messaging them breaks the law. In the EU and the UK, GDPR and UK GDPR require a lawful basis, usually consent, for marketing messages. In Morocco, law 09-08 and the CNDP require prior consent for direct marketing by electronic message. Keep a note of when and how each contact opted in. Our guide on how to grow a WhatsApp contact list with opt-in covers forms, wording and records in detail.
Step 2: Split your contacts into groups that make sense
One big list forces one generic message. A few small groups let you write something that fits. For most shops, four to six groups are enough:
| Group | Who is in it | What they want |
|---|---|---|
| Recent buyers | Ordered in the last 90 days | Tips, refills, matching products |
| Loyal customers | 3 or more orders | Early access, a small thank-you |
| Quiet customers | No order in 6 months | A reason to come back |
| Leads | Asked for a price but never ordered | An answer to the doubt that stopped them |
| Language groups | French, Arabic, Darija or English speakers | Messages in their own language |
Language matters more than most owners expect. A customer in Fès who wrote to you in Darija will read a Darija message faster than a formal French one. Tag the language when the contact first writes, then build groups from those tags.
Step 3: Choose three message types and a calendar
Pick three message types and plan them a month ahead.
Service messages
Order confirmations, delivery updates and "how is the product?" check-ins. They build the trust that makes promotions work. If you sell with cash on delivery, the confirmation message alone can cut refused parcels. See our guide to WhatsApp order confirmation for cash on delivery.
Value messages
A usage tip, a short video, a size guide, a restock alert someone asked for. No discount needed.
Offer messages
New arrivals, a seasonal sale, a bundle. Keep these to two or three a month per contact. Send more than one a week and opt-outs start to climb.
A month for a shop with 800 contacts could be: a value message in week 1, new arrivals to recent buyers in week 2, a win-back offer to quiet customers in week 3, and a seasonal offer in week 4. Service messages go out daily as orders come in.
Step 4: Write messages people want to answer
A good WhatsApp message reads like it came from a person at your shop, because it did. Use the customer's name, give one reason you are writing, make one offer, and end with a question that is easy to answer.
Salam Khadija, c'est Salma de la boutique. La crème au karité que vous aviez prise en mars est de retour, en format 200 ml. Je vous en mets une de côté ? Livraison à Casablanca en 24 h, paiement à la livraison.
Compare that with "PROMO -30% ALL PRODUCTS TODAY ONLY!!!" The first gets replies. The second gets muted. Keep messages under about 60 words, use one or two emoji at most, and add an image only when it shows the product clearly. For ready-to-use examples in several languages, see our WhatsApp broadcast message templates that get replies.
Step 5: Send at a pace that protects your number
Most small businesses market from their normal WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business number, through tools that connect like WhatsApp Web. That is practical and cheap, but WhatsApp can restrict or ban numbers that send spam or messages people did not ask for. No tool can promise a number will never be banned. A few habits lower the risk:
- Message only opted-in contacts.
- Start small with a new number, around 20 to 50 messages a day to people who know you, and grow over several weeks.
- Leave a random delay between recipients, for example 20 to 60 seconds, instead of sending back to back.
- Vary the wording and personalise each message.
- Tell people how to stop, and honour it at once.
- Send during normal hours, and not during Friday prayers or iftar in Ramadan.
Our guide to WhatsApp bulk messaging without getting banned gives a full warm-up schedule. If you send very large volumes or need approved templates, compare the options in WhatsApp Business API vs WhatsApp Web tools.
Step 6: Be ready for the replies
A campaign to 500 warm contacts can bring dozens of replies in the first hour. Unanswered, each one is a lost sale. Plan the reply side before you send.
- Set keyword replies for the three questions you get most: price, delivery time and payment on delivery.
- Prepare a short message for when a person will be back, with real hours.
- Put one person on the inbox for the two hours after each send.
A simple keyword chatbot handles the repeat questions and passes the rest to your team. Our guide on how to build a WhatsApp chatbot for your business shows how to set one up.
Step 7: Measure what matters each month
Skip vanity numbers. Track four things per campaign:
- Reply rate: replies divided by messages delivered. Compare each campaign with your previous ones to the same group.
- Orders: how many replies became confirmed orders.
- Opt-outs: as a rule of thumb, if more than 1 to 2% of a group asks to stop, the message or the timing was wrong.
- Blocks and warnings: any sign of trouble with the number means you pause and slow down.
Each month, drop the message type that did worst and try one new idea. After three months you will know your own best day, hour and format.
IGNIPOST Chat covers these steps in one place. You connect your WhatsApp number by scanning a QR code, build contact groups from pasted numbers or a CSV file, save reusable templates, and run campaigns with a random delay between recipients, scheduling and opt-out keywords. A keyword chatbot and a shared team inbox handle the replies. Plans are on the pricing page. Whatever tool you use, the order stays the same: permission, relevance, pace.
Frequently asked questions
How often should a small business send WhatsApp marketing messages?
For most shops, two to four marketing messages a month per contact is enough, plus service messages such as order confirmations whenever they are needed. Watch your opt-out rate: if more than 1 or 2% of a group asks to stop after a campaign, send less often or make the content more useful. Loyal customers who reply often can receive a little more than quiet ones.
Can I use my personal WhatsApp number for marketing?
You can, but a separate WhatsApp Business number is better. It keeps customer chats apart from family, lets you add a business profile, a catalogue and opening hours, and limits the damage if the number is ever restricted. Announce the new number on your website, invoices and existing chats so customers save it and recognise your messages.
Is WhatsApp marketing legal in Morocco and the EU?
Yes, when people have agreed to receive your messages. In the EU and the UK, GDPR and UK GDPR require a lawful basis, usually consent, and an easy way to object. In Morocco, law 09-08, overseen by the CNDP, requires prior consent for direct marketing by electronic message. Keep a record of how each contact opted in and remove people who ask to stop.
Do I need the WhatsApp Business API for marketing?
Not to start. Many small shops run campaigns from a normal WhatsApp Business number with careful volumes. The official WhatsApp Business Platform suits larger volumes: messages outside the 24-hour customer service window must use templates approved by Meta, and Meta charges per delivered template message at rates that depend on the category and the country. Choose based on volume, budget and risk.
More in WhatsApp Marketing, or browse all guides.
