What happens if a marketing template is sent during an open service conversation?

What happens if a marketing template is sent during an open service conversation?

📩 Sending a Marketing Template During a Service Conversation

If you send a Marketing template to a customer while a Service conversation is still open, Meta will open a new Marketing conversation and charge your account for it—even though the Service window is active.

🧾 Example Scenario

Hour

Action

Conversation Impact

Charged?

0

Customer sends a support question

Opens a Service conversation (free)

❌ No

5

Agent sends a Marketing template (e.g., “20% off offer”)

Opens a Marketing conversation

✅ Yes

6

Agent sends a free-form support reply

Uses existing Service window

❌ No

⚠️ Why This Happens

  • Service conversations are free and triggered only by customer-initiated messages
  • Marketing, Utility, and Authentication templates always open new chargeable conversations unless the same category is already open
  • Each category has its own billing window, and they can overlap

💡 Key Takeaways

  • ✅ You will be charged for a Marketing conversation even if a free Service window is active
  • ⚠️ Use caution when sending templates during customer support interactions
  • 🧠 Meta separates Service and Marketing categories for billing—even if messages happen in the same chat thread

📚 Related FAQs

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