For AI agents: the complete documentation index is available at https://docs.clickmax.io/en/llms.txt, the full documentation bundle is available at https://docs.clickmax.io/en/llms-full.txt, and this page is available as Markdown at https://docs.clickmax.io/en/features/contacts/follow-up-automatico-whatsapp.md.
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      • How do I make a follow-up WhatsApp go out on its own after X minutes?

      In the task creation window, pick the WhatsApp type and turn on the Smart follow-up mode switch. The date and time fields give way to a sequence of steps: in each one you say how long to wait and which message to send. At the scheduled time the message goes out with nobody clicking, and the task completes on its own.

      Before you start

      • Role: anyone with CRM access creates tasks within their own service scope. See what each role reaches in the permissions table.
      • You need a WhatsApp number with Automations enabled for you. If there is none, the switch stays off and the window says so — ask an admin in Connections. With a single number, it comes pre-selected.
      • The task must be attached to an opportunity whose contact has a phone number.
      • The mode exists only for WhatsApp tasks. Task, Call and Meeting are still done by a person, and the switch does not appear on those types.

      Step by step

      1. Open the creation window from the Activities menu or from the opportunity card.
      2. In the type selector, pick WhatsApp.
      3. Turn on Smart follow-up mode. The agenda on the right gives way to the sequence.
      4. At the top of the sequence, check Send from (the number that fires) and Stop when — these two rules apply to every step. In Send from, each option shows the account photo, its name and the actual phone number; type part of the name or number to filter.
      5. On Step 1, set the wait — minutes, hours or days. The real firing date shows next to the step number.
      6. Write the text under Message, or click Use an approved template and pick one (see which fits when in the section below). Click Done to close the step.
      7. Save with Create follow-up.

      The task shows up in the owner's agenda with the Automatic badge, like any other — the difference is that nobody has to carry it out.

      With the switch off (the default), the window is the usual one: date, time and duration, and the task is a reminder you carry out yourself.

      Chaining several touchpoints

      Still with the mode on, use the New step shortcuts (+1 day, +3 days, +7 days) at the end of the sequence. Each step has its own wait and its own message; the sending number and the stop rule belong to the whole sequence and are not repeated per step.

      Steps stay collapsed, showing in two lines what will be sent. Click the pencil to open one; only one is open at a time.

      Waits are cumulative: "30 minutes" on step 1 and "1 day" on step 2 means the second goes out one day after the first, not one day from now. Each step's preview already shows the added-up date, so you don't have to do the math.

      Every step in the mode is an automatic WhatsApp message — that is what the mode means. If you want a call or a task in the middle of the sequence, create it as a regular task, with the switch off.

      Template variables

      A template with variables ({{1}}, {{2}}…) doesn't ask for fixed text: you map each position to a contact field, using the insert-variable button next to the field. At firing time, each step resolves the variables against that opportunity's contact.

      This matters because the message goes out later — sometimes days later. Typing the contact's name by hand would freeze into the text whoever they were on the day you built the cadence.

      The catalogue is the same one used by automations and the broadcast sender: standard contact fields, custom fields and tags.

      Free text or approved template?

      WhatsApp only allows freely written messages within 24 hours of the contact's last message. Outside that window, the carrier requires an approved template.

      Your follow-up goes out…Use
      Minutes or a few hours after a conversationMessage (free text)
      The next day or laterUse an approved template
      You're not sureUse an approved template — it works in both cases

      If you use free text and the 24-hour window has already closed by firing time, the send does not happen and the task stays open with the reason (see below).

      When the contact replies

      With Stop if the lead replies on, the contact's answer cancels the steps that have not fired yet. The tasks don't disappear: they stop being automatic and stay in the agenda, because that is exactly where someone should be looking at them.

      When something doesn't go as expected

      The automatic message never disappears silently. If the send doesn't happen, the task stays open in the owner's agenda, with the failure badge and the written reason — for someone to take over by hand.

      Badge on the taskWhat it means
      ScheduledThe time hasn't come yet
      SendingThe send is in progress
      SentThe message went out and the task was completed
      FailedThe send didn't happen; the reason shows next to it
      CancelledThe contact replied first and the sequence stopped

      Most common failure reasons: the contact has no phone on file, the 24-hour window closed and the message was free text, or the chosen template is no longer approved.

      Editing later

      When you reopen an automatic task, the switch is already on and the window shows the message and the state of the send. Date and time stay in the usual fields — the task already has a deadline, and it is not recalculated from a wait just because you opened the window to fix the text.

      • Changing the time, text or template of a step that hasn't fired yet works normally.
      • A step that was already sent cannot have its message changed — swapping the text afterwards does not undo what the contact received.
      • Turning the switch off returns the task to a manual reminder in your agenda.
      • Completing or cancelling the task by hand before the time also cancels the send.
      • A step left more than 6 hours overdue without firing (after an outage, for example) stops being sent automatically and stays open for a human decision. Follow-up is about timing: a message arriving days late would no longer be the follow-up you set up.

      If it didn't work

      • The switch doesn't appear: the task type isn't WhatsApp. Change the type at the top of the window.
      • The switch is locked: none of your WhatsApp numbers has Automations enabled. The notice at the top of the block says so; it is enabled per number, under Connections.
      • Neither the number nor the template button shows up: same case as above — with no enabled number there is no template catalogue to open.
      • I can't save: every step needs a message. A step with no template and no text shows the warning next to the field.
      • Editing, I can't save it as automatic: an automatic follow-up needs a time. Uncheck All day.
      • The task was created but didn't fire: check the badge. Scheduled means the time hasn't come; Failed carries the reason next to it.
      • The message didn't reach the contact: check that the contact has a phone number and that the workspace's WhatsApp number is still connected.