
Many Shopify merchants struggle to keep their customers engaged and convert conversations into sales because traditional channels like email and SMS fail to deliver meaningful results.
WhatsApp marketing stands out with click‑through rates of 50% for well‑timed broadcasts, vastly outperforming most other channels. That means your messages are far more likely to be clicked when they arrive at the right moment. Still, sending broadcast messages manually drains time, leads to inconsistent messaging, and misses key opportunities for timely offers or updates.
Automating WhatsApp broadcast bot messages changes this dynamic. It lets you send personalized, high‑impact messages at scale without constant manual effort. For Shopify stores, this can mean higher engagement, faster conversions, and sales that come directly from automated interactions on a platform your customers already use every day.
A WhatsApp Broadcast Bot is a tool that helps businesses send messages to many contacts on WhatsApp at once, automatically.
In a standard broadcast, WhatsApp delivers the message to everyone on your list individually, so recipients do not see each other’s details.
Where automation comes in is when a bot replaces the manual process of selecting contacts and sending messages one by one. A broadcast bot can connect with your systems or marketing platform to trigger and deliver messages automatically based on conditions you set.
For example, you can configure the bot to send promotional messages to customers who meet specific criteria, such as recent purchases, abandoned carts, or upcoming offers, without manual effort on your part.
For Shopify merchants, staying connected with customers through automation can provide consistent communication, enhance the customer experience, drive higher conversions, and ultimately boost sales. Here’s a look at the key benefits of integrating a WhatsApp broadcast bot for your Shopify store.
These benefits become clearer when you see how broadcast bots stack up against the manual broadcast list feature built into WhatsApp Business.
Also Read: WhatsApp’s Session messages and Template messages
As a merchant, you need to choose the right tool to engage your customers efficiently. WhatsApp broadcasts allow you to communicate with multiple customers at once, but the approach you take can greatly impact your results. Let’s compare WhatsApp Broadcast Lists (available in the WhatsApp Business app) with WhatsApp Broadcast Bots (powered by the WhatsApp Business API).
|
Feature / Capability |
WhatsApp Broadcast List (Business App) |
WhatsApp Broadcast Bot (API Automation) |
|
Maximum Recipients |
Up to 256 contacts per broadcast list. |
Sends to thousands or more, depending on your messaging tier and reputation. No per‑list cap. |
|
Message Automation |
Manual only. You must select contacts and send each broadcast manually. |
Fully automated broadcasts using triggers, workflows, and scheduled campaigns. |
|
Personalization |
Same message sent to all users with no dynamic data insertion. |
Dynamic personalization using variables (names, order details, segments). |
|
Opt‑In Requirements |
Contacts must have saved your number to receive messages. |
Opt‑in is still required, but contact save is not required to deliver messages. |
|
Team Access / Multi‑User Support |
Single device with limited linked devices; not built for shared inboxes. |
Supports multi‑user access, shared inboxes, and agent assignments via integrations. |
|
CRM & E‑commerce Integration |
None. |
Deep integrations with CRM, e‑commerce tools (Shopify), analytics platforms, and automation workflows. |
|
Scalability |
Good for small contact lists only. |
Built for scaling to large audiences with segment‑based campaigns. |
|
Analytics & Reporting |
Basic delivery status only (ticks). |
Comprehensive performance metrics (delivery, reads, clicks, conversions). |
|
Scheduling / Triggers |
Not available. Messages must be sent manually at the time you choose. |
Scheduling, triggers, drip campaigns, and automated sequences are supported. |
|
Message Type Support |
Standard text or media. No automated templates or workflows. |
Supports WhatsApp template messages. |
|
Cost |
Free to use. |
Paid solution via WhatsApp Business API and service provider costs. |
Also Read:How to Send WhatsApp Broadcast Messages with Sample Templates
The differences are apparent: API-based automation offers the control and scale that Shopify merchants need. Here's precisely how to set it up for your store.
Automating broadcasts using a WhatsApp bot requires the WhatsApp Business API. You can’t achieve scalable, automated broadcasts with manual broadcast lists alone. The API lets you send template messages to large audiences, personalize content, and integrate with your Shopify store and customer data.
Zoko provides a user‑friendly platform built on this API so you can create, schedule, and optimize automated broadcasts efficiently. Here is a step-by-step checklist to create a successful campaign
Before launching any broadcast campaign, link your Shopify store with Zoko. This syncs your customer data, purchase history, and product catalog to help you tailor your broadcast segments and messages. Once connected, you can trigger notifications based on real customer behavior, like purchases or cart activity.
To automate broadcasts, you need a WhatsApp API access through a Business Solution Provider like Zoko. The setup includes:
Once approved, Zoko gives you access to automated messaging, multi‑user management, and template scheduling.
Start by deciding what you want the broadcast to do. Common goals include:
Then use Zoko’s segmentation tools to divide your Shopify audience into logical groups like high‑value buyers, recent customers, or cart abandoners.
Note: Goal clarity helps messaging resonate with recipients and improves engagement metrics such as click‑through and conversion rates.
WhatsApp requires pre‑approved templates for business‑initiated messages. Within Zoko’s dashboard:
Templates will ensure your message meets WhatsApp’s commerce and quality policies before it's sent.
Pro tip: Personalization (e.g., customer name, cart item name) boosts relevance and performance.
With templates approved and audience segments defined:
Zoko’s platform lets you schedule messages in advance so they go out at optimal times without manual intervention.
Also Read: How to Schedule your Broadcast
After your broadcast goes live, track performance metrics like:
Use Zoko’s analytics dashboard to understand what worked and what didn’t. Then tweak:
Continuous refinement helps improve results over time.
For high‑converting campaigns, create automated flowhippo flows within Zoko. For example:
Zoko lets you build these flows without code, so your broadcast campaign becomes part of a larger automation ecosystem.
These steps lay the foundation for success, but real-world results show what's possible when you execute them properly.
Also Read: Understand the Order Delivered Flow
Petsy is a pet supply store that turned to WhatsApp and Zoko to improve its marketing performance and drive sales. Before using Zoko, Petsy relied on traditional channels like email, which often struggled with low engagement and limited visibility.
After adopting Zoko’s WhatsApp broadcast features, Petsy used targeted, segmented messaging to deliver promotions directly to customers’ WhatsApp chats. By crafting messages based on customer preferences and sending them at optimal times, Petsy was able to make its communication more relevant and engaging for pet owners.
As a result, the brand generated approximately US $79,648 in revenue from WhatsApp broadcasts over 4 months, and saw conversion rates increase by roughly 32% compared to their email campaigns. This case highlights how automation, segmentation, and personalized WhatsApp broadcasts can drive stronger engagement.
Do you want to achieve results like this for your Shopify store? Get started with Zoko today and see how an automated WhatsApp broadcasts bot can boost your revenue. Sign up now for a 7-day free trial!
Yes, you can broadcast messages to a large number of recipients through the WhatsApp Business API. However, you'll need a Business Solution Provider to handle large‑scale broadcasts beyond the limits of the WhatsApp Business app.
The 24-hour rule allows businesses to send unlimited messages within 24 hours of a customer's last interaction. After 24 hours, any message sent outside this window must be pre-approved as a template message to avoid restrictions.
WhatsApp doesn’t allow unsolicited bulk messaging. To send bulk messages, businesses must use approved templates through the WhatsApp Business API and ensure recipients have opted in to receive messages. Any message sent must comply with WhatsApp's guidelines to avoid being flagged as spam.
To send automated WhatsApp messages, you need to use the WhatsApp Business API with an automation platform like Zoko. Set up triggers based on customer actions, such as cart abandonment or new orders, and schedule personalized messages to be sent automatically.
WhatsApp blasting refers to sending bulk messages to many recipients simultaneously. This is done using the WhatsApp Business API, which helps businesses send messages at scale while adhering to WhatsApp's rules and regulations.



