WhatsApp auto reply is the quickest way to make sure a patient or a prospective tenant gets something back when you are with a patient, on a round or fast asleep. A fixed greeting, an away message and a handful of saved answers will cover the first minute of most enquiries. This guide shows what to write for a clinic and for a PG, where fixed replies stop working, and what to do about the rest.
What can WhatsApp auto reply do for a clinic or a PG?
The WhatsApp Business app has three built-in tools for this, and WhatsApp describes them on its Business app features page. Each one does a different job:
- Greeting message: WhatsApp says it sends a custom welcome message to new customers when they start a conversation with your business.
- Away message: WhatsApp says it responds automatically to messages received outside your business hours, so people know when you will be back.
- Quick replies: shortcuts for messages you send often, so you can answer common questions in a few taps.
The first two are automatic. The third is not: quick replies still need a person to open the chat and tap. That difference matters later, because a clinic that closes at 8 pm and a PG warden who sleeps at 11 pm both receive questions after those hours, and only the greeting and away message can answer without you.
How do you set up WhatsApp auto reply in the Business app?
Set it up on the WhatsApp Business app, not the regular WhatsApp app, and keep the number your patients or tenants already know. WhatsApp publishes a step-by-step Help Center page for each tool, and the menu names can differ slightly between Android and iPhone and between app versions, so follow the page for your phone:
- Open the Business app and find its business tools in the settings.
- Write and switch on the greeting message. Keep it short and put your name and what you do first.
- Write and switch on the away message, and set your business hours so it only goes out when you are closed.
- Create your quick replies, one per common question, each with a short shortcut name you will remember.
- Test the whole thing by messaging your business number from a different phone, once during hours and once outside hours.
The official pages are called How to use greeting messages, How to use away messages and How to use quick replies in the WhatsApp Help Center. If your phone's menu looks different from what you expected, search for those titles rather than guessing.
What should a clinic's greeting and away message say?
A clinic greeting has one job: confirm that someone has seen the message and tell the patient what to do next. It should not try to answer a medical question. Keep a line for emergencies, because a patient with a serious problem will not wait for your reply.
These are samples, not fixed text. Replace each bracket with your own details.
Greeting message:
Hello, thank you for contacting [clinic name]. We are open [days] from [opening time] to [closing time]. To book a visit, please send your name, the doctor or service you need and your preferred day. For an emergency, please call [emergency number] or go to the nearest hospital.
Away message:
Thank you for messaging [clinic name]. We are closed now and will reply when we open at [time] on [day]. To book, please send your name, the service you need and a day that suits you, and we will confirm the slot. For an emergency, please call [emergency number].
Two habits keep these useful. Ask for the details you need in one go, so your first human reply can confirm a slot. And give a real opening time, never "shortly". Patient names and booking details are personal data, and India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 sets out the rules for processing it, so ask only for what you need to book.
Before you switch the messages on, check each one against this list:
- It names the clinic and gives the days and hours.
- It tells the patient what to send to book: name, service or doctor, and a preferred day.
- It gives an emergency number.
- The away message states a real opening time.
- It gives no medical advice.
Which quick replies should a clinic save?
Open your last fifty chats and note the questions that repeat. For most clinics they fall into a few groups:
- Timings
- Doctor availability
- Consultation fee
- Location and parking
- How to book
Save one quick reply for each. Your own fee and timing numbers go in the brackets, and you update them in one place when they change.
Consultation fee:
The consultation fee with [doctor name] is Rs [amount]. [Mention here what is and is not included, for example whether a follow-up within [number] days is free.] To book, please send your name and a preferred day.
Timings and location:
[Clinic name] is at [address and landmark]. Parking is [available or not, and where]. We are open [days and hours]. Please arrive [number] minutes early for your first visit.
Do not use quick replies for anything clinical. A question about a symptom, a medicine, a report or a test result needs your doctor or trained staff, and the right quick reply is a polite one that says so and offers a call or visit.
Questions about symptoms or reports:
Thank you for your message. We are not able to advise on symptoms or reports over chat. Please book a visit or call [number], and the doctor will guide you.
What should a PG's auto reply cover: rent, deposit, food and check-in?
PG and hostel enquiries come at odd hours, often from people who are still deciding between three places. The greeting should say what you have, and the quick replies should answer the four questions almost every prospective tenant asks. Use a table to decide what goes in each saved reply:
| Question | What your saved reply should state |
|---|---|
| Rent | Monthly rent for each room type, what it includes, and when it is due |
| Deposit | Amount, when it is paid, and the conditions for refund |
| Food | Meals included, timings, and whether a vegetarian option exists |
| Check-in | Visiting hours, ID needed, notice period, and rules on guests |
Sample greeting for a PG:
Hello, thank you for your interest in [PG name]. We have [room types] available for [gents, ladies or both]. Please tell us your name, the type of room you prefer and your expected move-in date, and we will share rent, deposit and a visit time.
Sample quick reply for rent and deposit:
Rent at [PG name] is Rs [amount] a month for a [single, double or triple] sharing room, including [list of inclusions]. The refundable deposit is Rs [amount], paid at the time of joining. Rent is due by [date] each month. To see the rooms, please share a convenient day and time.
Write every figure from your current agreement. If a number is not final, leave it out and say you will confirm on a call. A wrong figure is worse than no figure.
How do you keep auto replies accurate over time?
The usual failure is a reply that was right in January and wrong by June. A small routine prevents it:
- Keep all your replies in one note, with the date you last checked each one.
- Review the note on the first of every month and whenever a fee, timing, holiday or doctor schedule changes.
- Put the date or the month in any reply that mentions a festival, an offer or a temporary closure, and remove it as soon as it ends.
- Ask one staff member to read every reply once as if they were a new patient or tenant, and fix anything unclear.
Where do fixed WhatsApp auto replies fall short?
A fixed reply sends the same words to everyone, so it works when the question is predictable and fails when it is not. Four limits show up quickly in a clinic or a PG:
- It cannot understand the question. A greeting goes out when a conversation starts. It does not read what the patient wrote or answer it.
- It cannot book. It can ask for details, but a person still has to check the calendar or the room list and confirm.
- It does not adapt to a changed situation. If the doctor is on leave or the last bed was taken this morning, the reply keeps saying what you wrote.
- It stays in the language you wrote. If your patients message in Tamil or Hindi and your reply is in English, some will not read it.
None of this is a reason to skip auto replies. It is a reason to be clear about what they are: a polite first response, not a front desk.
When does an AI chat answer help more than a fixed reply?
If the same enquiries arrive all day and you cannot answer them quickly, the next step is something that reads the question and responds. This is what Anssay is built for. Its home page says it does the following:
- Answers calls, WhatsApp messages and website chats in English, Tamil and Hindi, day or night.
- Books appointments into your calendar.
- Answers only from what you have confirmed.
- Sends tricky ones, such as prices, complaints and anything new, to you with context.
- Lets you take over any chat with one tap.
For a clinic, the site says Anssay never gives medical advice. For a PG, it lists PGs and hostels among the businesses it is built for. You can see the full list on the solutions section of the home page. One feature fits this topic well: the site says you reply once, tap Save, and Anssay answers that question itself next time.
On cost, the pricing page lists the Chat plan, which covers WhatsApp and website chat, at Rs 2,999 a month excluding 18% GST, which comes to Rs 3,539 with GST. The Voice plan covers phone calls only, and the page says to choose Voice + Chat if you want Anssay to chat on WhatsApp as well. Treat any fee questions as ones you confirm in advance, since the site lists prices among the things that come to you when they need judgement.
If you automate WhatsApp through the Business Platform rather than the Business app, WhatsApp's Business Messaging Policy says businesses may message people only with opt-in permission from the recipient.
What mistakes should you avoid with WhatsApp auto reply?
Most problems come from a handful of habits that are easy to fix:
- Writing a long message. People read the first two lines on the lock screen. Put the useful part there.
- Answering medical questions. A clinic's auto reply should never suggest a cause, a medicine or a dose.
- Leaving out an emergency line. A patient with a serious problem needs a phone number, not a booking request.
- Promising a reply time you cannot meet. Say when you open, and be ready to reply then.
What is a sensible first week for your clinic or PG?
You need nothing beyond the Business app for this.
- Day one: read your last fifty chats and list the questions that repeat.
- Day two: write the greeting and away message from the samples above, with your own details.
- Day three: create five to eight quick replies, one per repeated question, and check each figure against your records.
- Day four: test from a second phone during hours and after hours.
- Day five: ask a colleague to message as a new patient or tenant and note anything that confused them.
- Days six and seven: count how many chats still needed you to type a long reply. That number tells you whether fixed replies are enough.
If the number is small, you are done. If it is large, your questions need answering, not just acknowledging. Anssay offers a 14-day free trial with no card needed, so you can test it on your own enquiries before paying anything, and you can start from the contact page. If your chats are mostly simple timings and fees, the Business app alone may be all you need.