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Message categories

WhatsApp message categories for every department

Each message a customer sends is tagged with a department and a topic, such as Support › Delivery issue. Every department then works through its own timeline, whichever chat or number the message came in on.

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What are WhatsApp message categories in Risponse?

WhatsApp message categories in Risponse are department tags on each incoming message, such as Sales, Support or Billing, plus a subcategory like Delivery issue. Because they work per message, one chat can feed several teams, and each department replies from its own timeline. They are separate from Meta’s marketing, utility and authentication template categories, which affect how template messages are priced.

The problem

One chat, three questions, and no clear owner for each

Customers do not write one topic per chat, so chat triage that sorts whole threads leaves part of each conversation without an owner.

  • Topics pile up in one thread

    A customer asks about a late parcel, then an invoice, then a new order. Tags on the whole chat cannot show which message needs which team.

  • Every team reads every chat

    Billing opens chat after chat to find billing questions. Sales does the same. Each team scans the whole inbox to find the few messages that are theirs.

  • The second question waits

    When a chat belongs to everyone, the first topic gets an answer and the next one is easy to miss. Mixed requests are the ones that slip.

Per-message sorting

One chat can reach more than one team

Each message gets its own category and subcategory. When a customer asks about a delivery and a payment in the same chat, Support and Billing each see the part that is theirs, and nobody has to forward anything.

  • Department and topic. Each message carries both, so Support › Delivery issue and Support › Return request stay apart.
  • Categories you set up. Create a category for each department and the topics inside it, so the inbox matches how your business is organised.
  • Visible before you open a chat. Category chips show in the chat list, so anyone can see what a chat is about at a glance.

Department timelines

Each team works from its own timeline

Each timeline works as a WhatsApp department inbox. It lists the messages in one department’s categories, from every chat and every connected number, so your billing team answers billing questions in order instead of hunting for them.

  • Across every number. Messages to your sales line, support line and store number meet in one timeline per department.
  • Answer in place. Reply to a message right where you found it. The customer gets your answer in their WhatsApp chat as usual.
  • Less to scan. Each team reads its own messages, not the whole inbox, so a busy day stays manageable.
See how the shared inbox works

What you get

Message categories that keep every request with its team

  • Category and subcategory

    Two levels on every message: the department, and the topic inside it. Billing › Refund needs a different answer from Billing › Invoice copy.

  • Several topics, one chat

    Categories attach to messages, not chats, so a chat that mixes a refund and a new order reaches both Billing and Sales.

  • A timeline per department

    Each department gets one timeline built from every chat, with a reply button on each message so the team answers from the same view.

  • Every number included

    Messages to all your connected numbers flow into the same department timelines, whether the customer wrote to the sales line or the store.

    Multiple numbers in one inbox

  • Works alongside labels

    Labels sort whole chats and decide which chats a member can see. Categories sort the messages inside them. Use labels for the customer and categories for the topic.

    Labels in the docs

Not the same thing

Message categories, labels and Meta template categories

Three different things on WhatsApp get called categories or tags. Here is what each one sorts and what it is for.

CompareRisponse message categoriesRisponse labelsMeta template categories
What it sorts Each incoming message Whole chats, contacts and tickets Message templates a business sends
Example Support › Delivery issue VIP, Renewal, Mumbai Marketing, utility, authentication
What it is for Getting each request to the right department’s timeline Filtering the inbox and sharing chats with members How Meta prices template messages
Where it applies Your Risponse inbox, on every connected number Your Risponse inbox and member access Business API and coexistence numbers

Meta prices each delivered template message by its category and the recipient’s country. Your Risponse categories are internal and have no effect on that price.

How it works

From one shared inbox to a timeline per team

  1. 01

    Connect your numbers

    Link each WhatsApp number with a QR scan, or connect a Business API number. Messages from all of them arrive in one inbox.

  2. 02

    Set up your categories

    Invite your teammates, then set up a category for each department, with the topics it handles as subcategories.

  3. 03

    Work your own timeline

    Each incoming message gets a category and lands in that department’s timeline. Every team answers its own messages, in order.

FAQ

Message categories: your questions answered

Still unsure? Email us and a person from our team will reply.

Email info@risponse.com
Are WhatsApp message categories the same as Meta’s template categories?

No. Meta sorts Business API message templates into marketing, utility and authentication, and bills messages by category and recipient country. Risponse message categories are for your team: they tag each incoming message by department so it reaches the right timeline. On a Business API number, both exist side by side and do not affect each other.

Meta: message templates
How do I categorise WhatsApp messages by department?

Set up a category for each department in Risponse, with subcategories for the topics it handles, such as Delivery issue or Return request. From then on, every new message carries a category and a subcategory and appears in that department’s timeline. Your team replies from there.

Can one chat show up in more than one department’s timeline?

Yes. Categories belong to messages, not chats. If a customer asks about a late delivery and then about a payment in the same chat, the first message reaches Support and the second reaches Billing, and each team answers its own part.

What is the difference between message tagging and labels?

Labels tag whole chats, contacts and tickets, and admins use them to decide which chats a member can see. Message categories tag single messages so they reach a department timeline. A simple split works well: labels for who the customer is, such as VIP, and categories for what each message is about.

Labels in the docs
Do message categories work across multiple WhatsApp numbers?

Yes. Each department timeline gathers messages from every chat and every connected number. A billing question sent to your store number and one sent to your support line end up in the same Billing timeline.

Multiple numbers in one inbox
Can customers see WhatsApp message categories?

No. Categories live in your Risponse inbox and are only there to organise your team’s work. The customer sees a normal WhatsApp chat and the replies your team sends.

Guides

Read more in our guides

In the docs

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The number your team will answer from.

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