This article includes instructions on setting up and using the Relay messaging app.

Important: You are responsible for using the WhatsApp and text features in Relay in compliance with all applicable laws. Certain jurisdictions may require end-user consent prior to initiating telephonic outreach. Meta requires end user opt-in prior to sending proactive messages. By using these features, you agree that you have received the required consent.

The Relay bulk messaging app by Zendesk Labs enables businesses to proactively reach out to their end users on either WhatsApp or SMS. This functionality up levels your customer support to create a proactive, engaging customer experience. 

This article contains the following topics:

  • Before you begin
  • Installation
  • Using the app
  • Best practices

Before you begin

Relay helps brands bring better support experiences to their consumers through proactive messaging for support use cases. 

Things to consider:

  • You must have a Zendesk Suite Pro or higher account to use Relay, and at least one integration with WhatsApp and/or SMS (Twilio or MessageBird) via Sunshine Conversations (not Talk or Text).
    • Learn how to set-up a WhatsApp or SMS channel with Sunshine Conversations.
  • You need to be signed in as a Zendesk admin to complete the setup.
  • You must activate Custom Objects.
  • You must have permission to View Custom Objects

Installation and setup

Activate Sunshine Conversations API and create an Authorization Token

  1. Create your API Key
    1. Admin Center → Apps and integrations → Conversations API
    2. Select Create API.
    3. Write a name for the key, ie. Key for Relay
    4. Select Next.
    5. Save the App ID, Key ID, and Secret key to a notepad.
  2. Build a secure Authorization Token
    1. Go to this Sunco token generator
    2. Input your saved key ID and Secret Key
    3. Select Generate Token
    4. Save the provided token

[Optional] Get your WhatsApp Namespace

  1. To find your WhatsApp Namespace, go to your Facebook Business Messenger
    1. Open Accounts, then WhatsApp accounts, and locate your Business Account
    2. Open Settings, then WhatsApp Manager
    3. Select Message Templates under Account Tools
    4. Click on the Namespace button on the toolbar to retrieve your Namespace info

Install the app

  1. Go to the Relay app listing.
  2. Click Install in the upper-right of the page.
  3. Select your account and click Install.

Configure the app

  1. Fill out the App ID and Authorization Token, which you saved in steps 1.5 and 2.3.
  2. Fill out your WhatsApp namespace, as needed.
  3. Fill out your Zendesk subdomain under the subdomain settings. The subdomain is a unique identifier of your Zendesk account, which appears before .zendesk.com in your account URL.
  4. Optional:
    1. You can change the number of “Blackout” days - this setting prevents you from sending a duplicate template to someone within the number of days referenced.
    2. You can restrict this app to certain staff by Role or by Group.
      1. All users of Relay must have permissions to VIEW Custom Objects
  5. Click Install - you’re all set!

Using the App

Overview of your existing messaging templates:

screenshot-1.png

To view all of the templates you created, click on the app icon on the left navigation bar. 

You can click through each template, toggle between the SMS and WhatsApp previews, and view the status of the template for each integration.

  • Things to know:
    • All SMS templates will be “Ready” at all times, as there is no overseeing body approving or rejecting templates.
    • You will see all WhatsApp templates across all of the WhatsApp phone numbers you have under a single Namespace.

Create a new message template:

screenshot-2.png

 

To begin creating a new template, from the Relay Notifications screen, select Create. 

Setup Step

  1. Name your template - make it descriptive and unique. 
    • There are certain characters, caps, etc that are not permitted by Meta - these will be automatically deleted or adjusted.
  2. Select which integrations you want this template available on.

Message Step

  1. WhatsApp requires several additional pieces of information prior to approving a template for sending.
    • Select the Category for this message template. Relay does not support the Authentication message category. For more information about the Message category, see here.
    • Select the language for this message template.
  2. [Optional] Enter a Header. For images, documents, or videos, you need to provide a URL for where the attachment is hosted. You can use the Zendesk Help Center Article Attachments for this purpose.
  3. Enter the Body of your message. Some elements of rich text won’t be supported on different channels, but you can see the outcome in the Preview.
  4. [Optional] Enter Buttons to drive action from your recipient
    • Calls to Action can be Links or Buttons to place a call
    • Quick Replies are responses the recipient will send back to you
    • Calls to Action and Quick Replies cannot be combined in a single message
  5. Dynamic Values
    • You can use Dynamic Values in the Header, Body, and/or the Buttons. Start a Dynamic Value with a double bracket {{ then enter an example of what the value will look like, then close the double bracket. Example: Hello, {{Clarice}}
    • Dynamic Values will then be populated in the Send step with either static values (ie. Happy {{Monday}} ) or dynamic values populated from User data points.

Submit template

  1. Things to know:
    • If this template is on a WhatsApp channel, the template will be submitted to Meta, and returned within 24 hours with Approval or Rejection. Often this takes just minutes.
    • Your SMS templates will be ready immediately for sending.

 

Set up your audience and send your message:

screenshot-3.png

To send your template, select Send in the top right corner of the Overview page, or select Send from the three dots on the individual template line.

  • Select the integration you’ll send this template on. You can only send to one integration at a time.

Audience - Write your query to build your audience using Zendesk Advanced Search syntax. Common data points used in this audience creation include User Tags, custom user fields, created dates, and system user fields.

  • This step is critical to targeting your audience correctly and not spamming your customers or employees. Study the linked article to confirm the appropriate search operators, etc. 
  • Recommendation: Spot check users that are returned in the search to confirm the meet the audience criteria you intended.
  • You can add contacts from the excluded list to the included list from the Manage Audience modal. Contacts that match your search criteria are excluded only if you have sent that exact template to that user previously, in the time frame specified in your App Configuration.
  • You can remove contacts from the included list from the Manage Audience modal. You might do this if you have extenuating circumstances that make you want to remove someone, despite their match to the search criteria.

Field Mapping - Relay will present each dynamic value that was identified when the template was created.

  • Static types should be used if, for example, you’re going to send the same template each week, and want to change the day of the week each time. Every user receiving this template will receive the same value in a single send, but you can change that value the next time you send it.
  • Dynamic values will pull in relevant System User Fields and all Custom User Fields.

Send

  • You can now see a summary of the channel you will send on, and the total audience. Hit Send!
  • Do not navigate to a different page in Relay until sending is complete. You can navigate around Support to other pages on other tabs.
  • Things to know:
    • Your audience needs to stay below 300,000 users. If your audience peaks above this, then you will miss users in your search results.
    • Relay will send about 8 messages per second, which is about 28k messages per hour. 

Best Practices

  • Always send a test message to yourself to ensure your links are working correctly, etc.
  • Store end-user opt-in status somewhere on their user record, and include this as a filter on your search query when you're sending your campaign. This could be a user tag, a check box, etc.
  • Include a call-to-action on every message to drive end-user engagement.
  • It's possible your end-users won't know that they can respond to your messages. You may want to include an invitation to ask questions in your templates (ex. Let me know if you have any questions).
  • Remember that WhatsApp and SMS are different from an email channel - your messages should be short and sweet, with an optional call-to-action for more information. No one wants to receive a paragraph via text.
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