How to Send Bulk Messages on WhatsApp Without Getting Your Number Banned

Capturing attention in today’s social media-driven world is a tough nut to crack, especially when it comes to spreading the word about your brand or offering. To make matters more challenging, the cost of getting your message out there has skyrocketed. Take IPL for instance: during its first season, a 10-second TV ad cost anywhere between 1.80 and 1.90 lakhs. Today, the price tag for the same slot is a whopping 16 to 18 lakhs!

It’s clear, marketing has transformed into a very costly affair. You need to find ways to raise awareness about your brand without burning a hole in your pocket. One of those cost-effective ways is sending bulk messages on WhatsApp.

Choosing WhatsApp for marketing over traditional channels comes with several advantages:

• It’s cheaper than most other marketing channels
• It is much more effective than SMS and email marketing
• It increases the chances of engagement with leads and customers

Ready for a deep dive into bulk WhatsApp marketing? We have covered how to send bulk messages on both the WhatsApp Business app and Cloud API, and the corresponding best practices. There’s also a section containing five ready-to-use templates to help you get started.

What is bulk messaging on WhatsApp?

Bulk messaging on WhatsApp means sending the same message to many people at once — whether it’s a product update, festival offer or event reminder. Instead of typing out the same message to each person individually, bulk messaging helps you save time and reach more people faster.

But there’s a catch. WhatsApp is strict about how bulk messaging works. If you just copy-paste and forward the same message to 50 contacts, it’s not really bulk messaging. It’s also risky; you might get blocked or reported for spam.

That’s where WhatsApp Business tools come in. Using features like the broadcast list or WhatsApp Business API, businesses can send bulk messages while following WhatsApp’s rules. You can personalise messages, get delivery reports and even automate replies — all without spamming your customers.

In short, bulk messaging on WhatsApp is about reaching multiple customers with the same update or offer, but doing it in an organised, approved and customer-friendly way.

Tips: Do not use WhatsApp for blind promotions

WhatsApp doesn’t endorse blind promotions, so it’s important only to message people who want to hear from you. Randomly blasting out messages to your contacts will be considered spam, and WhatsApp has strict guidelines against unsolicited messaging.

If too many people block or report you, WhatsApp might limit how many messages you can send or stop you from sending any more messages.

Remember, people like choices. They’re happy to receive messages about things they’re interested in. But they wouldn’t want to see those messages in the first place if they no longer need what you’re selling. So, always give them the choice of opting out if they want to.

This way, your message list stays high-quality and engages people who want to hear from you.

Pro Tip: Avoid using any unauthorised WhatsApp bulk message sender services. Doing so will almost certainly lead to WhatsApp banning your number.

2. How to send bulk WhatsApp messages on WhatsApp (2 easy methods)

Now that you know what bulk messaging is, let’s talk about how to do it. Here are the three main ways businesses in India send bulk WhatsApp messages today:

Method 1: using WhatsApp broadcast message (for small groups)

If you have been using the regular WhatsApp app for business communication, it’s time you switched to the business version. To do that, please read our blog on how to change WhatsApp to a business account.

Here’s the step-by-step guide on how to send a broadcast message using the WhatsApp Business app:

1. Open WhatsApp Business, tap the three dots in the top right corner and select New broadcast.
2. In the ‘New Broadcast’ menu, search for or select the contacts you want to add to your broadcast list. You can add up to 256 contacts. Then tap the Green Tick icon to create your broadcast list.
3. Once you have selected the contacts you want to send your message to, you will be redirected to the chat section to compose your message.

Once you hit the send button, your message will be sent to all of the contacts in your broadcast list. They will receive the message as a normal WhatsApp message in their inbox, and will not be able to see who the other recipients are.

Your message gets delivered individually to each person in your broadcast list. It doesn’t show as a group chat, so everyone receives it as a personal message.

Is it the same for a WhatsApp Business account?

Yes, the broadcast list feature works almost exactly the same way on the WhatsApp Business app as it does on personal WhatsApp.

You open the app, create a new broadcast, select up to 256 contacts, write your message and send. It’s quick and simple.

The main difference is what else the business app offers:

• In personal WhatsApp, broadcasts are just one feature among normal chats and groups. There’s no way to label contacts or set up automated replies.
• In a WhatsApp Business account, you still get broadcast lists, but also:
• Labels to organise contacts as leads or customers
• Quick replies to speed up responses
• Product catalogue to share directly in chats
• Labels to organise contacts as leads or customers
• Quick replies to speed up responses
• Product catalogue to share directly in chats

So while the core broadcast feature stays the same, the extra business-friendly tools in WhatsApp Business account make things a little more structured and useful when managing customer chats.

Here are some tips to keep in mind when using the WhatsApp Broadcast feature:

• Use broadcasts sparingly: Sending too many broadcast messages can annoy your customers and make them less likely to engage with your messages
• Personalise your messages: Make your messages more relevant and meaningful to your audience by leveraging their first name and other personal details
• Use a call to action: Tell your customers what you want them to do, e.g., visit your website, call your business, etc.
• Track your results: Use WhatsApp’s built-in analytics to get an idea of the open and click-through rates of your messages by following these tips, you can use WhatsApp broadcasts to reach your customers and promote your business effectively.

Method 2: Using a WhatsApp API account:

WhatsApp API, developed by Meta, allows you to engage with customers on WhatsApp with features that are specifically designed for business communication, but one of its standout features is that it lets you send bulk messages officially. Set up the WhatsApp Business App to send WhatsApp bulk messages

There are two ways to get access to a WhatsApp Cloud API account (WACA):

1. Meta

Meta only provides you with the ability to send bulk messages and doesn’t include any interface or analytics. You will need a developer and resources to get yourself an interface. 

The ideal way is to get in touch with a tech partner like Telecrm.  You’ll get a user-friendly interface to use the bulk messaging feature, and detailed analytics to track delivery rates, messages seen or responses received; all in one place, along with your lead and customer information. 

But before you start sending messages to your target list, you will need access to the WhatsApp API. For that, you need: 

1. A phone number with which you can apply for WhatsApp API (A number which doesn’t have any active WhatsApp account)
2. You need a GSTIN number to verify that you are a GST-registered business operating in India
3. A business name
4. A verified Facebook Business Manager ID (You need to own a Facebook business Page to get this ID.)
5. A debit/credit card for payment

Once you are ready with the above details, you can sign up for the business account. 

As the WACA setup process is quite extensive, please watch the video below to get familiar with the rest of the setup process.

2. A tech partner like Telecrm

Once you have the WhatsApp Cloud API account set up and running, you can start sending bulk WhatsApp messages almost immediately:

1. Go to manage WhatsApp templates on Facebook, add a template and get it approved
2. Buy a licence and sign up for a Telecrm account
3. The next step is to link your WhatsApp API number with Telecrm and set up WACA
4. Now upload your leads from anywhere (MS Excel, Google Sheets, etc.)
5. Navigate to the “All Leads” menu item under “Filters” in Telecrm
6. Under ‘All leads’, select Bulk WACA Message
7. Select the templates you want to use, and from within Telecrm, send bulk messages on WhatsApp to leads of your choice

Refer to this Video to understand: How to send bulk WhatsApp messages (Embed this as well)

7 benefits of sending bulk WhatsApp messages using Telecrm

1. The easy-to-use interface of Telecrm (India’s best WhatsApp CRM) simplifies sending bulk WhatsApp messages
2. Get all the reports on a single dashboard
3. There is no need to maintain a separate list of customers on Excel, Sheets, etc.
4. Create workflows to remove the people who have unsubscribed from the list automatically
5. Integrate your WhatsApp marketing, sales and customer support communication seamlessly on a single platform
6. Send greetings and automated reply messages by setting up workflows inside Telecrm
7. Send OTP on WhatsApp for user or payment verification

4 things to keep in mind before you start using WhatsApp Cloud API for your bulk messaging campaigns

1. Business verification

Having a verified business account on Facebook is not necessary to use WhatsApp API for marketing, but without a verified business account, you get very low messaging limits. Therefore, it is recommended that you verify your business with Facebook.

2. Quality rating of your API number

A quality rating can affect your ability to send bulk messages on WhatsApp. If someone receives a message from you as part of your marketing campaign and reports the message, your quality rating will go down. Your account’s status could also be flagged by WhatsApp.

You cannot upgrade your API number’s messaging limit when your account is flagged. You must improve your account’s quality ratings within a week; otherwise, a lower messaging limit will be enforced.

3. How do we move up the different messaging tiers?

If you are stuck with a lower limit, you must be wondering how to escape this trap. You can only rely on consistency and quality if you wish to move up the messaging tier. There are four messaging tiers in the WhatsApp API. 

• Tier 1 will let you send messages to 1,000 people per day 
• Tier 2 allows you to send messages to 10,000 people per day 
• Tier 3 will enable you to send messages to 100,000 people per day
• Tier 4 will allow you to send messages to an unlimited number of people daily 

Every business account starts with a cap of 250 messages until its WhatsApp Business platform account is verified. Once the verification process is completed, it will move to Tier 1 and gradually make its way up to the higher tiers with time.

Every business aspires to reach Tier 4. However, it is challenging and truth be told, Tier 3 is sufficient to meet the majority of the business goals. 

To increase your limit, you should have an above-average quality score. If your current limit is one thousand messages per day (Tier 1), then you need to send at least 500 messages to unique (new) customers per week to go to the next tier, i.e., Tier 2.

When you have initiated unique conversations with more than 500 customers while maintaining your quality score, WhatsApp will automatically upgrade you to the next tier because you have been consistent in your messaging and engaging with people who are not marking your messages as spam.

4. The Cloud APIs bulk WhatsApp messaging charges

The first thing to remember is that WhatsApp API charges you per conversation. 

Meta has shifted its billing model from conversation-based to per-message pricing for template messages. This applies to all WhatsApp Business API accounts starting from July 1, 2025, in your account’s local time zone

What’s changed:

• Conversation-based pricing is gone: Previously, businesses were charged per conversation (24-hour window). Now, charges apply for each template message delivered.
• Charged only on delivery: Your account is billed only when a template message successfully reaches the recipient.
• Meta now provides pricing analytics: A new field lets you see per-message charges in your reporting dashboard.

Message categories (updated for July 1, 2025)

Meta now charges businesses on a per-template message basis rather than per conversation for most categories. The traditional 24-hour conversation window only applies to customer service messages initiated by users. Here’s how things work now:

1. Marketing messages (business-initiated)

These are promotional or awareness messages sent by businesses, things like festive offers, product launches, limited-time discounts or event invites.

Charge: ₹0.78 per delivered template message (India market average)

This charge applies per template message delivered, not per conversation window. There is no unlimited message exchange for marketing within a window anymore.

2. Utility messages (business-initiated)

These cover transaction-related notifications: order confirmations, shipping updates, payment alerts or post-purchase communication.

Charge: ₹0.11–₹0.14 per delivered utility template message

Important update:
When responding within the 24-hour customer service window, utility template messages sent after a user’s message are free of charge. But utility messages sent outside this window incur the above per-message charge.

3. Authentication messages (business-initiated)

Used for one-time passwords (OTPs), login verifications or account recovery requests.

Charge: ₹0.11–₹0.14 per delivered authentication template message

The same rule applies as for utility templates, only charged if sent outside the user-initiated window.

4. Service messages (user-initiated)

These include customer queries like product enquiries, support requests or account help.

Charge: ₹0.00 per message within the 24-hour service window

Important points to note:

There’s no charge for free-form messages or utility templates sent in response to a customer’s message within that 24-hour window.

• The window resets every time the customer sends a new message.
• If you respond after 24 hours, it’s billed as a service template message (previously UIC), but now counted under the per-message pricing model.

Bonus: free entry point window

If a customer initiates a chat by clicking on your WhatsApp ads through Facebook or Instagram, you get a 72-hour free entry point window:

• No charges for approved marketing, utility or service template messages sent during those 72 hours.
• You still pay Meta’s CPC for the ad click, but no messaging charges apply if you respond within 24 hours.

Also Read: Learn more about WhatsApp Business API pricing to understand how BSPs charge you for WhatsApp Business API.

Conclusion

With a bit of effort and smart strategising, you can use bulk WhatsApp messaging to boost your business, connect with customers and keep them engaged without breaking the bank.

Remember, it’s all about reaching the right people with messages they want to see. Stick to WhatsApp’s rules, choose your audience carefully and always give them the option to opt out.

Using the WhatsApp Business app or WhatsApp API can make this process smoother and more effective. Just be sure not to overwhelm your customers with too many messages and more importantly, keep your messages relevant and personal.

What are you waiting for? Go ahead, book a demo now and get Telecrm.