Facebook Messenger Policies

In the latest updates from March 4, 2020, Facebook wants to provide a seamless and reliable way to support the effective connection between business and people through Messenger. With these policies, Facebook encourages you to respond to your customers in a timely manner when they reach out, and provide important updates that are personally relevant to the customers.

Some of you noticed there is always a “Get Started" button, which is designed to get rid of spam and requires the chat-users to actively interact with the bot. Particularly, this article will introduce some types of Facebook messages which you should be aware of when sending messages to your subscribers, how these policies are used in BotStar, and giving some tips to help you use wisely.

Note: Please note that this is BotStar interpretation of Facebook’s rules. If you’re uncertain, and want to consider your specific case thoroughly, you should refer to Facebook’s official Platform Policy Overview.

5 types of messages on Facebook Messenger

As of March 4, 2020, there are 5 types of messages on Facebook Messenger: Standard Message, Message Tag, One-time Notification, News message and Sponsored Message.

Standard Message

Bot operators can send messages in 24 hours from the last message of the customer, it can include promotional and non-promotional content. If your customers respond to the bot, the conversation will be counted 24 hours again. Customers have the options to block or mute a conversation with a business at any time. In BotStar, you can send Standard Message through: Promotion Broadcast and simple text between bot and customers. For instructions, please read this article about Broadcast.

Message Tag

Bot operators can send important and personally relevant 1:1 updates to customers outside the Standard messaging window. Message tags can not be used to send promotional content, including but not limited to deals, offers, coupons, and discounts. If you do, Facebook may restrict the ability of your page to send messages. Instead of being allowed to choose from one of 17 supported tags when sending content outside the 24-hour window, after the 4th, you’ll be limited to three tags, plus one in beta, to choose from. These supported tags include Confirmed Event Update, Post Purchase Update, Account Update and Human Agent (closed BETA). You can refer to our document here for more details.

One-time Notification

An OTN message is a type of message that you can send to customers after 24 hours of their interaction with the page as long as the customer agrees to receive this message. If the person engages with the message, the standard messaging window will reopen. In other words, bot operators can request their customers to send one follow-up message outside the 24 hours window. For details about OTN in BotStar, check it out here.

News Message

Only Page which has been approved by the Facebook News Page Index (NPI) can send unlimited non-promotional messages, you can send at any time regardless of time passed since the customers’ last activity. For more details about registering Facebook News Page Index (NPI), please check here. New Message is an unlimited non-promotional message, you can use Subscription Message in BotStar to deliver your message to customers. It is important to keep in mind that you can’t send promotional messages in Subscription Message and if you do, you're in violation of this policy and as a consequence, your page will lose messaging privileges.

Some tips to use these policies wisely

Don’t forget to send only 1 standard message when the chat users are outside 24 hours.
Keep track of your Block Percentage: Locate your page “Block Percentage” under the insights section of your Facebook page. If this number rises above 3% you should revisit your messaging strategy.
Always give your customers the option to unsubscribe: This practice will help you curate your audience and It will keep frustrated customers from blocking your page.
Don’t Spam your customers: Generate a message strategy beforehand. Every message you send must have a defined purpose.
Set the right expectations: Let your customers know they’re talking to a Chatbot. Let them know that you’re planning on sending future messages and give them the option to say no. Especially in your Subscription messages, make sure to set clear expectations - how often you will message them, and what type of content for example.

If you have any concerns, please feel free to leave a comment below or contact us through support@botstar.com. For more details on how we have helped our customers grow their business, you can view our use cases, blogs or join our BotStar community to learn and share new things 😊

#5 types of messages on Facebook Messenger

#Standard Message

#Message Tag

#One-time Notification

#News Message

#Sponsored Message