WhatsApp · Expiring deals

WhatsApp Limited-Time Offer Templates With a Built-In Timer

Meta has a template type made for deals with an end date: the limited-time offer, or LTO. It adds a short panel, an expiration timer and a copy button under the header, before the body. These six examples show what it can do and where its limits are.

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Go to the examples Try the format

Everything on: image, panel, timer, copy button: WhatsApp limited-time offer on an iPhone

Everything on: image, panel, timer, copy button: WhatsApp limited-time offer on an Android phone

Timer and code, iPhone and AndroidRead →

Six examples

Limited-time offer examples for WhatsApp, one variation each

With and without a timer, with an image, a video or nothing on top, and one read in its final hour. Each example card shows the fields Meta asks for, the plain wording and the message on both phones.

Template 01 · Timer and code

Everything on: image, panel, timer, copy button

MarketingFashionTwo days before a category deal closes

This is the format as Meta designed it. The panel text and the timer sit right under the image, so the deadline is read before the body.

Fields

Header

Image product photo

LTO

20% off knitwear · expiry timer on

Body

Our merino and cable knits are 20% off until Sunday, {{first_name}}. Copy the code below and paste it in at checkout. Reply STOP to opt out.

Buttons

Copy offer code · KNIT20 Shop knitwear

Marketing · 2 buttons · body 140 / 600 characters

Edit this version →

A gift with purchase, timer switched off: WhatsApp limited-time offer on an iPhone

Template 02 · No timer

A gift with purchase, timer switched off

MarketingHomeAt the start of a month-long promotion

A timer suits days, not weeks. For a month-long deal the template can hide the expiration, with the end date written in the body and nothing to copy.

Fields

Header

Image product photo

LTO

Lamp with sofas · expiry timer off

Body

Order any sofa before the 31st, {{first_name}}, and an Arc floor lamp comes with it at no cost. Nothing to enter: it is added to the delivery. Reply STOP to opt out.

Buttons

See the sofas

Marketing · 1 button · body 165 / 600 characters

Edit this version →

A short demo above the timer: WhatsApp limited-time offer on an iPhone

Template 03 · Video header

A short demo above the timer

MarketingBeautyThree days before the deal ends

A mask is easier to sell in motion: how it goes on, how long it stays. The video plays above the panel, and the timer still shows beneath it.

Fields

Header

Video product demo, 0:18

LTO

25% off mask set · expiry timer on

Body

Eighteen seconds on how the overnight mask set works, {{first_name}}, and the set is 25% off for three more days. Reply STOP to opt out.

Buttons

Copy offer code · MASK25 Get the mask set

Marketing · 2 buttons · body 136 / 600 characters

Edit this version →

What the last hour looks like: WhatsApp limited-time offer on an iPhone

Template 04 · Red timer

What the last hour looks like

MarketingSupplementsSent the day before; shown here as read late

WhatsApp turns the timer red when the code has less than an hour left. Write the body so it still makes sense to someone who opens it late.

Fields

Header

Image product photo

LTO

30% off protein · expiry timer on

Body

Until 9pm tonight, our whey isolate is 30% off, {{first_name}}. If the timer above is red, there is under an hour to go. Reply STOP to opt out.

Buttons

Copy offer code · WHEY30 Order the whey

Marketing · 2 buttons · body 143 / 600 characters

Edit this version →

One customer's code, carried in the button URL: WhatsApp limited-time offer on an iPhone

Template 05 · Personal link

One customer's code, carried in the button URL

MarketingFashionFive days before a one-customer deal ends

The URL button accepts one variable, so the value in the copy button can travel in the link as well. Shoppers who tap through skip the copy step.

Fields

Header

Image product photo

LTO

15% off for you · expiry timer on

Body

A code made for you alone, {{first_name}}: 15% off anything, boots included, for the next five days. The shop button applies it for you. Reply STOP to opt out.

Buttons

Copy offer code · SOFIA15 Shop with code applied

Marketing · 2 buttons · body 159 / 600 characters

Edit this version →

Text only: panel, timer, body: WhatsApp limited-time offer on an iPhone

Template 06 · No header

Text only: panel, timer, body

MarketingSupplementsThe morning a bundle deal starts

The header is optional. Without an image, the panel and the timer become the first thing on screen, which suits a deal that needs no picture.

Fields

LTO

3 for 2 vitamins · expiry timer on

Body

Choose any three vitamins and pay for two, {{first_name}}. The cheapest one comes off at checkout with the code. Reply STOP to opt out.

Buttons

Copy offer code · TRIO Pick three

Marketing · 2 buttons · body 135 / 600 characters

Edit this version →

LTO builder

Fill in the LTO fields and check each limit

Choose a version and edit the panel text, the body and the two buttons. The counters follow this format's own caps, which are tighter than a standard template's.

Version

Panel text0 / 16

Body0 / 600

Bold with *asterisks*. Timer and code values are added at send time, so the preview uses samples.

Footer0 / 60

Button 10 / 25

Button 20 / 25

Body under 600 characters
Panel text up to 16, buttons up to 25
Variable not at either end
Opt-out line in the body

9:41

‹

Business account

Today

Message

A limited-time offer in its final hour with a red timer, on an iPhone

The same offer in its final hour on an Android phone

The format, field by field

What Meta's LTO format allows

It looks like a normal marketing message with an extra panel, but the rules differ. These are the four that change how you write it.

Sixteen characters on the panel

The line under the header is capped at 16 characters, so "20% off knitwear" fits and a sentence does not.

A body of 600, not 1,024

The main text is shorter than in a standard template, and sample values count towards the limit.

A link is compulsory

Every version needs a URL button. When the timer is shown, a copy-code button is required too, and it comes first.

No footer, no desktop

The format has no footer, so any opt-out line goes in the body. The web and desktop apps do not show the panel at all.

Writing it

Five rules for expiring deals

Lead the panel with the dealThe 16 characters are read first. Use them for the deal itself, not the brand name.
Match the timer to the lengthShow the countdown when a deal lasts days. For a month-long one, switch it off and put the date in the body.
Write for late readersSomeone may open it with minutes left. A body that still reads correctly then avoids frustration.
Keep it short at checkoutThe code field takes 15 characters at most, and shorter values are easier to recognise when typed.
Send only to opted-in contactsThe format exists only in the marketing category, which means marketing opt-in is required.

Run expiring deals with Zefir

With your team, Zefir writes each LTO, delivers it to consenting customers with the right end time, and matches every purchase with the send that drove it.

Request access See how it works

$530M+WhatsApp revenue that Zefir has attributed

12 to 15%larger order values, on average

FAQ

WhatsApp limited-time offers, explained

What is a WhatsApp limited-time offer template?

Meta built it as a marketing format that adds a short panel, an optional expiration timer and a copy button under the header, with a link button below. Zefir drafts and delivers these for your own promotions.

How long can the panel text be?

Up to 16 characters, while the body can run to 600. Zefir writes each template inside those limits.

Does the timer have to be shown?

No, the expiration can be switched off, in which case the copy-code button becomes optional. Zefir writes the template either way, to suit how long the deal runs.

Can I add a footer or a STOP button?

There is no footer in this template format, so the opt-out wording goes at the end of the body. Zefir adds it and logs every opt-out it receives.

Will every customer see the timer?

Customers on WhatsApp web or desktop see a notice that the message type is not supported there, so the body should carry the key details too. Zefir sends only to contacts with a consent record.

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