Understanding the Welcome series setup, triggers and logic
The Welcome Series is a foundational marketing automation designed to engage new subscribers at the most crucial point in their journey: the very beginning. As the first automated interaction, it serves as a digital handshake, setting the tone for all future communications. Its strategic purpose is to make a strong first impression, capitalize on initial interest to drive engagement, and convert that interest into a first purchase with a timely, value-driven offer, or at the very least capture the contact details to retarget with later offers.
1. Core Logic and Normal Behavior
To effectively build and manage a Welcome Series, it is essential to first understand its fundamental mechanics. This automation operates on a clear, sequential logic that guides a new subscriber from their initial sign-up to receiving a promotional offer. This section breaks down the specific triggers that initiate the automation and the standard step-by-step journey a new contact experiences.
1.1. Triggering the Welcome Series
The Welcome Series is initiated by a two-part trigger mechanism that combines a user action on your website with a subsequent interaction on WhatsApp. This ensures that only genuinely interested and engaged subscribers enter the flow.
The process begins when a new visitor to your website signs up through a dedicated Pop-up Form on your website.
The automation is technically triggered after the pop-up is completed, when the customer sends their first message on WhatsApp.
The website Pop-up Form is highly configurable to maximize sign-ups. Key settings include:
Appearance Trigger: You can control precisely when the pop-up appears to the visitor. Common options include appearing after a specific time delay (e.g., 5 seconds, up to 5 min), on exit intent (when the cursor moves to leave the page), or after the user scrolls past a certain percentage of the page (e.g., 50-75%).
1.2. The Standard Customer Journey
Once triggered, the Welcome Series guides the new subscriber through a carefully timed sequence of messages designed to build a relationship before making a sales offer.
Immediate Welcome: The first message is sent instantly after the customer's initial WhatsApp message. The primary goal of this message is to provide immediate confirmation of their successful registration and create a positive first impression. This initial message should not contain the discount code. It welcomes the user and builds anticipation for the upcoming offer. However, it can be edited to send a coupon code immediately.
Strategic Delay: After the initial welcome, the system intentionally waits for a set period, typically between 5 and 7 days, before sending the next message. This delay is a strategic best practice designed to build anticipation and measure the subscriber's genuine interest. This delay acts as a filter; subscribers who remain engaged through this period are more likely to be high-intent customers, making the subsequent discount offer more effective. But most importantly, the newly subscribed user through the welcome series would be targeted with a more personalized message from the Browse abandonment after 4 hours of initial sign-up.
Discount Code Delivery: The second message in the series delivers the exclusive discount code. Sent after the strategic delay, this message aims to incentivize the customer's first purchase by providing a clear, valuable offer only to customers who didn’t already convert after the first pop-up message or the subsequent Browse or cart abandonment messages, since the automations on your account track the customer journey.
While this standard flow covers the majority of scenarios, it is crucial to understand how the automation handles exceptions and unique customer interactions to ensure a consistently positive experience.
2. Scenarios and Edge Cases
A robust automation strategy anticipates and gracefully handles non-standard user behaviors and interactions. Understanding these edge cases is critical for ensuring a consistent and positive customer experience, preventing redundant or inappropriate messages, and maintaining the integrity of your overall marketing strategy.
2.1. Handling Existing vs. New Contacts
The Welcome Series automation can be configured to differentiate between brand-new subscribers and existing contacts ("old visitors") who may be re-engaging through the pop-up. The strategic recommendation is to customize the initial message flow for each group. Typically, the exclusive discount code is offered only to new visitors to maximize its power as an incentive for a first-time purchase, while existing contacts might receive a different welcome message.
2.2. Unsubscribe and Re-subscribe Behavior
The platform's opt-in and opt-out logic directly impacts automation eligibility:
Opt-out (Unsubscribe): When a user unsubscribes, they will immediately stop receiving all marketing messages from any automation, including the Welcome Series. Even if they are midway through the flow, they will be exited from it.
Opt-in (Re-subscribe): If a user who previously unsubscribed decides to re-subscribe and then triggers the welcome flow again (e.g., by filling out the pop-up form), they will be considered eligible to enter the automation once more.
2.3. Interaction with Other Active Automations
The platform operates on a priority system to manage multiple automations. Certain flows, like the Cart Abandonment series, are designated as higher priority because they target customers with a stronger intent to purchase.
If a user is actively in the Welcome Series (e.g., in the delay period) and triggers the Cart Abandonment flow by adding an item to their cart and leaving the site, the system will automatically exit them from the Welcome Series. This ensures the customer receives the more timely and relevant cart recovery message, preventing message overlap and prioritizing the higher-value action.
2.4. Understanding Exclusion Rules
The platform includes a feature called Smart Sending, which is designed to prevent overwhelming customers with too many messages in a short period. It typically works by excluding customers who have recently received another message or made a purchase from receiving new automated marketing messages.
However, there is a critical exception for the Welcome Series:
The Smart Sending feature is disabled and cannot be enabled for this specific automation.
The implication of this is significant: the Welcome Series is considered a foundational interaction and will trigger for every eligible new subscriber, regardless of any other messages they may have recently received or purchases they have made. This ensures every new subscriber has a consistent onboarding experience.
While our pop-up targets new visitors, an old customer browsing while logged out may still see it. However, once they subscribe, our system will recognize their phone number and send the appropriate message for existing customers.
When customers edit the pre-configured welcome message, the automation will trigger the first welcome message when a customer clicks the pop-up; however, if the customer deletes the pre-configured message and sends a different message, the first welcome message will not be sent, and the automation will not be triggered.
A clear understanding of how the automation should behave is the foundation for verifying its operation and effectively troubleshooting any potential issues that may arise.
3. Verification and Troubleshooting
Even a perfectly designed automation requires periodic checks to ensure it is running as expected. This section provides a practical, hands-on guide for users to independently verify message delivery to specific contacts and diagnose the root cause of any failures, ensuring the automation remains a smooth and effective part of the customer journey.
3.1. Step-by-Step Delivery Verification
To confirm that a Welcome Series message was successfully delivered to a specific contact, follow this simple verification process:
Navigate to the Contacts within the platform's main interface.
Use the search bar at the top of the screen to locate the specific customer. You can search by their name, phone number, or a recent Order ID. The best way is to search by phone number.
Click on the customer's profile to open their whole conversation thread.
Review the conversation timeline. The automated message from the Welcome Series should appear in the log with its content and a precise delivery timestamp.
3.2. Investigating Message Failures
When an automated message fails to send, the platform provides a clear visual indicator and a direct path to understanding the cause.
The primary indicator of a failed message is a red question mark that appears directly below the undelivered message in the customer's conversation timeline.
To diagnose the failure, follow these steps:
Click on the red question mark icon associated with the failed message.
A small pop-up window will appear, displaying a specific error code.
Copy this error code. This code is the key to understanding the problem, as it directly corresponds to the root cause of the delivery failure as registered by Meta's systems.
Moving beyond individual message verification to assess the automation's overall effectiveness requires analyzing its performance reports.
4. Reporting and Analytics
Measuring performance is fundamental to optimizing any marketing effort. The Welcome Series report provides the tools to measure the automation's return on investment (ROI), understand customer behavior during this critical onboarding phase, and make data-driven decisions to enhance its effectiveness over time.
4.1. Accessing the Welcome Series Report
You can access the dedicated performance dashboard for your Welcome Series with a few clicks. Navigate to the Automated Campaigns page from the main menu and select the Welcome Series automation. This will open its statistics dashboard, which contains key performance metrics and revenue data.
4.2. Interpreting Key Performance Metrics
The report dashboard provides a high-level overview of the automation's performance. Understanding these core metrics is essential for accurate analysis.
Metric | Definition |
Started | The total number of customers who triggered the automation by clicking the pop-up CTA and were not already unsubscribed. |
Exited | The number of customers who left the automation before completion. Common reasons include unsubscribing, triggering a higher-priority automation (like Cart Abandonment), or making a purchase that was not directly attributed to this campaign. |
Purchased | The number of customers who made a purchase that was directly attributed to this specific automation. |
Completed | The total number of customers who either reached the final step of the automation flow or made an attributed purchase before finishing the flow. |
Revenue | The total sales amount attributed to the automation. A purchase is attributed if it occurs within five days of the customer receiving the automation message and/or using the coupon code included in the automation. |
4.3. Download the Welcome series report
To analyze the welcome series performance in depth, the automation dashboard is not the perfect option. You need to download the report by following these steps:
Navigate to the automations icon from your BusinessChat account
Choose the welcome series automation
Click the Export report button
Choose the time filter to specify the report for the period you want, and click export
The report will be sent to your email. Download it to discover the details
The following table details each data field present in the welcome series automation report, providing a clear description, the expected data type, and a representative example.
Column Name | Description |
contact_address | The unique identifier for the contact being processed. Based on the format (e.g., 966...), this is the contact's international phone number. |
current_state | Indicates the terminal or current status of the automation run. A process instance begins in a transient 'Started' state and must terminate in either 'Completed' (successful execution) or 'Exited' (premature termination). |
started_at | The precise timestamp marking the moment the automation process was initiated for a specific customer. |
exited_at | The timestamp indicates when a process was terminated prematurely without completing. This field contains a value only when the current_state is 'Exited' and will always occur after the started_at timestamp for the same run_id. |
completed_at | The timestamp marks the successful conclusion of the automation process. This field contains a value only when the current_state is 'Completed' and will always occur after the started_at timestamp for the same run_id. |
converted_at | The timestamp capturing the moment a key success metric or "conversion" event occurred, such as a purchase. Observation of the data suggests that the conversion event is the final, or one of the final, steps that triggers the 'Completed' state. |
order_number | The unique identifier associated with a transaction or order generated by the automation. This field is expected to be populated only when a successful conversion occurs, corresponding to runs with a current_state of 'Completed' and a populated converted_at timestamp. |
order_amount | Represents the monetary value of the associated order. This field is populated only when a successful conversion occurs. |
currency | The standard three-letter currency code for the order_amount. This field is populated only when a successful conversion occurs. |
4.4. Decoding "Failed" Status Reasons
A "Failed" status in the campaign report indicates that a message was rejected by Meta's systems and was never delivered to the customer's device. Understanding the reasons for these failures is key to maintaining a healthy sending reputation and ensuring high deliverability.
Common reasons for message failure are identified by specific error codes:
Error 131026: The recipient is unable to receive the message. This can happen if the number is not a valid WhatsApp account, the user is on an outdated version of the app, or they have not accepted WhatsApp's latest terms of service.
Error 131042: There is an issue with the payment method linked to the associated WhatsApp Business Account (WABA), preventing Meta from processing the message.
Error 132016: The message template has been disabled by Meta. This typically occurs when a template receives repeated low-quality ratings from users, such as being marked as spam.
Error 131048: The business account has reached its spam rate limit. This is a temporary restriction imposed by Meta on initiating new conversations when an account's messages are too frequently marked as spam by recipients.
Error 131049: means messages were blocked to prevent spam and message fatigue, which occurs when too many marketing messages are sent to users.
5. From Data to Action: Optimizing Your Welcome Series
Understanding your analytics is the first step toward optimization. Use the data from your report to refine your strategy and improve ROI continuously. Consider the following actions:
Low Purchase Rate? If many users complete the flow but few purchase, consider A/B testing the discount offer (e.g., 10% vs. 15%) or adjusting the delay period.
High Exit Rate? Analyze if users are exiting to other automations. This may be normal, but a high rate could indicate the initial welcome messages are not engaging enough.
High Failure Rate? Consistently monitor the "Failed" status reasons in your report. A spike in a specific error code, like 132016 (Template Disabled), is a critical alert that requires immediate action to create and deploy a new, compliant message template.
Troubleshooting the Welcome Series Automation
This guide provides a systematic, step-by-step process to diagnose and resolve common issues that may prevent your Welcome Series automation from functioning correctly, ensuring every new customer's journey starts perfectly.
1. Initial Diagnostic Checklist
Before diving into more technical details, a few high-level checks can often identify the root cause of an issue quickly. We recommend verifying these foundational settings first to ensure your automation has a solid base to run on.
Verify Automation Status: Navigate to the Welcome Series automation page and check its status. The campaign must be marked as 'Active' to run. If the status is 'Paused', 'Disabled', or 'Pending', the automation will not trigger for new subscribers.
Check for System-Level Warnings: Look for a warning notification banner at the top of the automation page. Hovering your cursor over this warning will provide specific information about critical issues that are preventing the automation from running, such as problems with your WhatsApp templates, a disconnected e-commerce integration, or an account billing issue.
Confirm E-commerce Integration: Ensure that your e-commerce platform app (e.g., Salla, Zid, Shopify, WooCommerce) is correctly installed and that the connection is active. The Welcome Series is triggered by actions on your storefront, so the automation cannot function without a valid connection to your e-commerce platform.
Review Account Billing Status: Check for any outstanding invoices for your WhatsApp Business Account with Meta. Service can be suspended due to payment issues on Meta, which will halt all automations and campaigns until the balance is settled.
If these initial checks all pass, the issue likely lies with the trigger mechanism itself, which we will diagnose next.
2. Resolving Message Delivery Failures
If your pop-up form is working and subscribers are being added to the automation but are not receiving messages, the issue likely lies with the WhatsApp message template, your WhatsApp account's health, or specific platform settings. This section breaks down each potential point of failure.
3. WhatsApp Template Issues
Misconfigured WhatsApp templates are the most common source of message delivery problems. WhatsApp requires precise settings for templates to be approved and sent successfully.
Invalid Template Status: Check the template's status in your BusinessChat settings. A template must be approved by Meta before it can be used.
Status | Meaning & Required Action |
Pending Review | The template is awaiting approval from Meta, which can take up to 24 hours. The automation cannot use it until it's approved. |
Rejected | Meta has rejected the template. It must be edited to comply with WhatsApp policies and then resubmitted for review. |
Paused / Disabled | Meta has flagged the template for low-quality ratings (e.g., a high rate of blocks or spam reports from users). It can no longer be used, and a new template must be created. |
Syncing Template Status: If you have recently made changes to your templates in Meta's WhatsApp Manager (such as editing a rejected template), you must sync your number's status in BusinessChat to fetch the latest updates. To do this, navigate to Account Settings -> WhatsApp Numbers -> Sync Numbers.
4. WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) & Number Health
The underlying health of your WhatsApp Business Account, which is managed by Meta, can directly impact your ability to send messages, regardless of your BusinessChat settings.
Number Quality & Status: Check your number's quality rating from the main BusinessChat dashboard. A "Low" (red) quality rating can lead to your number's status being changed to 'Restricted' or 'Suspended', which prevents you from initiating new conversations with customers.
Messaging Limits: WhatsApp imposes daily limits (Tiers) on the number of new conversations a business can initiate within a 24-hour period. If you reach this limit, no further Welcome Series messages can be sent until the limit resets.
WABA Billing Issues: A failed payment method or an outstanding balance on your WhatsApp Business Account will cause Meta to block all outgoing messages. Ensure your billing information in Meta Business Manager is up-to-date and all invoices are paid.
If your templates and account health are in good standing, the next step is to investigate why messages might be failing for individual customers.
5. Analyzing Individual Message Failures
Sometimes, the automation runs correctly for most subscribers but fails for specific individuals. BusinessChat provides detailed error codes that allow you to diagnose these individual cases precisely.
5.1. Locating the Error Code
To find the specific reason a message failed to deliver to a customer, follow these steps:
Navigate to the conversation with the customer who did not receive the automated message.
Locate the failed message in the chat history. It will be marked with a delivery failure indicator.
Click on the red exclamation mark icon ( ! ) that appears below the message.
Copy the error code that appears in the pop-up window.
5.2. Common Error Codes and Solutions
Once you have the error code, use the table below to understand the cause and identify the appropriate solution.
Error Code | Reason for Failure | Recommended Solution |
131026 | The recipient is unable to receive the message. This could be because it's not a valid WhatsApp number, the user has an old version of the app, or they have not accepted WhatsApp's latest Terms of Service. | Advise the customer to update their WhatsApp application and accept the latest policies. There is no direct fix available from the business side. |
131042 | There is a problem with the payment method linked to your WhatsApp Business Account (WABA) in Meta's system. | Check your billing settings in your Meta Business Manager and resolve any outstanding payment issues or update your payment method. |
132001 | The specified message template does not exist or has not been approved for the recipient's language. | Verify that the template is fully approved by Meta and that a version exists for the intended language if you are targeting multiple regions. |
132015 / 132016 | The template has been paused or permanently disabled by Meta due to poor quality ratings (e.g., high spam or block reports). | This template can no longer be used. You must create a new, improved template for your automation and resubmit it for approval. |
131048 | Your number has reached its spam rate limit, which has restricted your ability to initiate new messages. | Check your number's quality status in WhatsApp Manager. Reduce the frequency of your marketing campaigns until the quality improves from "Low" to "Medium" or "High." |
131049 | Meta's algorithm has chosen not to deliver the message. This often occurs when a user has received too many marketing messages from various businesses in a short period. | Ensure "Smart Sending" is activated for your marketing campaigns to avoid over-messaging your audience. If the message is transactional, consider using a utility template. |
Finally, let's address a common question: why some customers appear in the automation report but are marked as "Exited" before completing the series.
5. Understanding "Exited" Customers
When reviewing your automation report, you may see that some subscribers are marked with an "Exited" status. This status does not necessarily indicate an error. Instead, it often means the customer's journey was intentionally and automatically diverted based on their actions, ensuring they receive the most relevant message at the right time.
Here are the primary reasons a customer might be marked as "Exited":
Started a Higher-Priority Automation: Certain automations, particularly the Abandoned Cart flow, are given higher priority. If a customer who is currently in the Welcome Series flow adds an item to their cart and then abandons it, the system will move them out of the Welcome Series and into the Abandoned Cart automation. This is done to prevent sending conflicting messages and to prioritize the more urgent recovery message.
Unsubscribed from Marketing: If a customer replies with an opt-out keyword or otherwise unsubscribes from receiving marketing messages from your business while they are in the automation flow, they will be immediately and permanently removed from the series.
Made a Purchase: If a customer makes a purchase that is not attributed to the Welcome Series campaign, the system removes them from the flow because they have already converted, achieving the primary goal of the welcome offer.