3 Steps to 2020 Messenger Marketing Compliance

First it was January 15, 2020. Then, it was March 4th, 2020.

Messenger marketers have been anxiously anticipating these dates when 2020 Facebook Messenger policy changes will be implemented.

In September 2019, Facebook announced some major changes to their policies on Messenger, and while some were reasonable, some seemed to be completely bizarre. They are all aimed to create a better experience for the end-user, but in the meantime, Facebook has created quite a headache for many Amazon sellers and small business owners alike.

But marketers have adapted, and you can be more than prepared to continue your success on Messenger with no problem at all. We’ll share all you need to know to get your existing flows 100% compliant as well as set up your business for future success with no problem.

These policy changes will take effect on March 4, 2020. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know to be prepared for these Messenger policy changes along with the action needed to ensure your Messenger marketing strategies continue without a blip.

First, let’s talk about what’s changing:

Businesses can now only message subscribers within 24 hours of a subscriber’s last interaction with their page (the “24-hour messaging window”).

Promotional content is ONLY allowed within the 24-hour window. During those 24 hours, you have complete freedom to message your user as you did before there were restrictions.

Outside of the 24-hour messaging window, your messages to your customers must be tagged with one of four Message Tags: Confirmed Event Update, Post-Purchase Update, Account Update, or Human Agent.

Here’s the breakdown on these message tags along with a few common use cases for them:

Confirmed Event Update: Send the user reminders or updates for an event they have registered for (e.g., RSVP’ed, purchased tickets). This tag may be used for upcoming events and events in progress.

Post-Purchase Update: Notifies the user of an update on a recent purchase. (Receipts, shipping updates, and order changes included)

Account Update: Notifies the user of a non-recurring change to their application or account.

Human Agent: Allows human agents to respond to user inquiries. Messages can be sent within 7 days after a user message.

Important: With ManyChat, messages without one of these four Message Tags will not deliver outside the 24-hour messaging window as of March 4th, 2020.

You’ll need to use SMS or email steps within ManyChat for messages that you want to send to your customers outside of the 24-hour messaging window that do not fit ay of the four message tags.

NEW UPDATE: Facebook rolled out a one-time notification API in February 2020 to enable one relevant, explicitly requested updates and notifications to your subscriber. This one-time notification can include content that would generally not fall into one of the four message tags.

Now that you have a solid grasp on what Facebook now requires, let’s talk about how to get ready for these Messenger changes in 2020.

In just three simple steps, you’ll be ready to go with all of your existing ManyChat flows.

1. Add tags to your existing ManyChat flows using ManyChat’s simple and powerful Flow Checker.

Although only four message tags are allowed in Messenger outside of the 24-hour period, it’s never been easier to ensure that all of your messages will delivery properly.

Wen you click the blue heartbeat icon in your flow builder, you’ll be taken through a simple compliance wizard that will audit your flows to find messages that need to be tagged. It couldn’t be easier to use, and will alert you if any of your messages are at risk of not being delivered!

Most of the flows that you download from SellerTools fit neatly into a post-purchase update or account update tag. Use your best judgement on this when deciding which tag to assign to each message in your flows. Keep in mind that your users want and need the information that you are sharing with them!

Good news – you’re actually giving your customers the information they have requested, so you’re at a lower chance of being monitored and audited.

Here’s a good rule of thumb: don’t spam your customers, continue to provide value, and you’ll continue to have great success with Messenger marketing.

2. Add steps to capture and opt in email addresses and phone numbers alongside verifying orders.

Amazon sellers are arguably the most prepared of any Messenger marketers to transition to email and SMS follow-up.

Since your customers are verifying orders, claiming payments, and processing warranties and product registrations, it’s a really reasonable request to ask them to share their emails and phone numbers.

Especially with SellerTools Giveaway Automation, you’ll be building your list with some of the highest-quality emails that customers even have.

With the promise of sending customers gift cards through email, you’ll all but guarantee that they will share their most frequently-checked emails in ManyChat.

All you need to do is add a user response step near your order ID verification step to capture their email addresses and phone numbers and save them to system fields.

This will enable you to easily follow up with your customers through SMS and Email for messages that do not fit into the 4 message tags, without even leaving ManyChat!

3. Configure and customize your review request emails

If you’re using any of the powerful FREE SellerTools ManyChat flows, you’ll only need to really make changes to your review request flows in order to ensure ManyChat compliance.

The best news? You only need to alter how your users get into your review request flows.

And with the steps you have already taken to capture their email addresses and phone numbers, this will be simple and easy.

Using ManyChat’s Email and/or SMS step, you can send your customers a simple message asking about their experience, and your customers are a few clicks away from a 5-star review!

We offer this powerful strategy built in to many of our flows already. You can download this simple template for FREE with our giveaway automation flow!

Click here to get access and start ranking, rebating, and acquiring reviews with 100% confidence in your compliance!

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Don’t be like the rest of them. Most Amazon sellers are either scrambling to be prepared for March 4, 2020 or are giving up on ManyChat completely moving forward. It’s safe to say we are still in the golden age of Messenger marketing, and by taking these simple action steps, you’ll be well on your way to future-proofing your business on ManyChat and beyond.