What is Message Trail and how do I use it to track automated WhatsApp template messages in MyOperator?
⚡Quick answer -
Message Trail lets you tag any WhatsApp template message sent via our API with a custom trail name (e.g., “OrderStatusUpdates”) and then view real-time delivery, read, and reply stats—plus export a detailed CSV report—right from your dashboard.
When should I use this guide?
Use these steps if you:
• Send WhatsApp template messages programmatically (API calls, not CSV uploads).
• Need to monitor OTPs, order updates, or any automated notifications.
• Want CSV or on-screen analytics without building your own log parser.
1. Feature overview
Message Trail is a grouping and reporting layer on top of the WhatsApp Business API:
What you send | What you see |
Template + | A dashboard card called “OrderStatusUpdates” showing sent, delivered, read, failed & replied counts |
Typical use cases:
• Order confirmations, shipping, and delivery updates
• OTP / authentication messages
• Trigger-based welcome or utility messages
Key benefits:
✓ Live health-check on critical messages
✓ Logical grouping instead of one massive log
✓ One-click CSV exports for audits and analytics
2. When does Message Trail NOT work?
• Accounts on the “Compact” plan (feature unavailable).
• Messages uploaded via CSV (only API-triggered messages are tracked).
• Trails older than 6 months (data auto-archives and disappear from UI).
• Trail names that violate the naming rules (see table below).
• Link-tracking columns stay empty unless link-tracking is enabled for that template.
3. Prerequisites & plan limits
Requirement | Value |
Eligible plans | All except “Compact” |
Max trails per WABA phone number | 1 000 |
Trail name rules | Alphanumeric, hyphen (-) or underscore (_), ≤ 30 chars, string only |
Data retention | 6 months in dashboard; older trails auto-archived |
4. Step 1 – Add the trail parameter (developer setup)
The One-Time Setup (For their Tech Team)
- To track a category of messages, their developer simply needs to add an extra parameter called "trail" when sending a template message through our API.
- Inside this, they'll specify a "name" that describes the message type. For example: "trail": { "name": "OrderStatusUpdates" }.
- Trail Name Rules: The "name" must follow these rules:
- It must be a string (text). Numbers, boolean values (true/false), or objects are not allowed.
- It must be alphanumeric and can include - (hyphen) and _ (underscore).
- The maximum length is 30 characters.
That’s it—no additional endpoints or headers.
5. Step 2 – Monitor trails in the dashboard (for the user)
- Log in and open Message Trail in the left-hand menu.
- Use the date-range picker (Today, Yesterday, Last 7 Days, or Custom).
- Each card shows Sent, Delivered, Failed, Read, and Replied totals.
- Click a card to drill into real-time message-level events.
- Use the search bar to locate any trail by name.
Alt text: Tracking your trail messages
6. Step 3 – Download a CSV report
- In the Message Trail list, click Download next to the desired trail.
- Choose the same date range used in Step 2.
- A CSV file downloads with these columns:
Column | Description |
Name | Recipient’s name (if available) |
Mobile Number | Destination number |
Template Name | WhatsApp template ID |
Template Category | Marketing, Utility, Auth, etc. |
Message Status | Sent, Delivered, Read, Failed |
Sent At | Timestamp |
Delivered At | Timestamp |
Read At | Timestamp |
Replied At | Timestamp |
Reply Type / Text | Text, Media, etc. |
Failure Reason | If status = Failed |
Link | Tracked URL (if link-tracking enabled) |
Link Clicked At | Timestamp of first click |
7. Auto-archiving & data retention
• Trails with no activity for 6 months are automatically archived.
• Archived trails no longer appear in the dashboard but still count toward the 1000-trail limit. Rename or delete old trails if you hit the cap.
Keywords - WhatsApp Message Trail, template message analytics, trail parameter, delivery tracking, OTP monitoring, order status reports
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