25 WhatsApp Auto Reply Message Samples (EN+BM)

If you searched for a WhatsApp auto reply message sample for business, you have probably seen the big global lists: 23 examples here, 60 templates there. Almost all of them are the same message wearing different clothes: "Thanks for reaching out, we'll get back to you as soon as possible." Here is our position after watching thousands of MSME conversations: that message is a polite dead end, and in Malaysia it also fails half your customers because it only speaks English.

These samples are written for the copy itself. If you have not switched the feature on yet, follow the auto reply setup walkthrough for Malaysian businesses first, or the broader WhatsApp auto reply guide, then come back here for the words.

What makes a WhatsApp auto reply actually work?

A working auto reply does three things in under 50 words: it confirms a human saw nothing yet but the business did, it states an honest reply time, and it asks one question that moves the enquiry forward. Most businesses stop at the first item and lose the value of the other two.

The timing stakes are real. Leads contacted within 5 minutes are 21 times more likely to qualify than leads contacted after 30 minutes (Drift, 2019). An auto reply cannot close anyone, but it resets that clock: the customer got a response, so the mental timer that sends them to your competitor stops ticking.

Here is the contrarian part: "We'll get back to you as soon as possible" is arguably worse than no auto reply at all. It burns your one guaranteed impression on a sentence that gives the customer nothing to do, promises nothing specific, and teaches them that messages to your number get a robotic shrug. Every sample below replaces that sentence with an honest window ("within 15 minutes during business hours") and one question.

One more rule that the global template lists get wrong: ask one question, not three. A first message that demands name, budget, location and preferred date reads like a form. One question gets answered; a questionnaire gets ignored.

Greeting message samples for business hours

Greetings fire when someone messages you for the first time, or after 14 days of silence. Use them to set the reply window and start qualification.

Sample 1: General (EN)

Hi! Thanks for messaging [Business Name]. A real person replies within 15 minutes during business hours (Mon–Sat, 9am–6pm). While you wait, may I know which service you're looking for?

Sample 2: General (BM)

Hai! Terima kasih kerana menghubungi [Nama Syarikat]. Kami akan balas dalam masa 15 minit pada waktu bekerja (Isnin–Sabtu, 9 pagi–6 petang). Sementara itu, boleh kongsikan servis yang anda perlukan?

Sample 3: Warm and personal (EN)

Hello! You've reached [Business Name]. I'm probably with a customer right now, but I'll reply personally within the hour. Quick one so I can help faster: is this about a new enquiry or an existing order?

Sample 4: Warm and personal (BM)

Hai, terima kasih kerana hubungi [Nama Syarikat]! Saya mungkin sedang melayan pelanggan sekarang, tapi saya akan balas sendiri dalam masa sejam. Soalan ringkas: ini pertanyaan baru atau pesanan sedia ada?

Away message samples for after hours

After-hours is where the money leaks. Enquiries sent at 9pm are often decided by 9am, and the business that acknowledged them at 9:01pm usually wins the conversation. We covered the full pattern in why you lose leads after hours; these samples are the first-aid version.

Sample 5: Standard after-hours (EN)

Thanks for your message! We're closed for the day (business hours: 9am–6pm, Mon–Sat). Leave your name and what you need, and you'll be first in line when we open tomorrow.

Sample 6: Standard after-hours (BM)

Terima kasih atas mesej anda! Kami sudah tutup untuk hari ini (waktu operasi: 9 pagi–6 petang, Isnin–Sabtu). Tinggalkan nama dan keperluan anda, kami akan hubungi anda dahulu esok pagi.

Sample 7: After-hours with next step (EN)

We're offline until 9am, but your message is saved. To get a quote ready before we even call you back, share: your area + the service you need. We'll reply with a price range first thing tomorrow.

Sample 8: After-hours with next step (BM)

Kami di luar talian sehingga 9 pagi, tetapi mesej anda sudah disimpan. Untuk dapatkan sebut harga lebih cepat, kongsikan kawasan anda dan servis yang diperlukan. Kami balas dengan anggaran harga esok pagi.

Break, lunch and Friday prayer samples

Malaysian operating rhythms do not appear in any global template list. If your counter closes for Friday prayers, say so; customers respect a specific reason far more than silence.

Sample 9: Friday prayers (BM)

Kami sedang berehat untuk solat Jumaat dan akan kembali pada 2:45 petang. Tinggalkan mesej anda, kami akan balas sebaik sahaja kembali. Terima kasih atas kesabaran anda!

Sample 10: Lunch break (EN)

We're on lunch break until 2pm. Your message is in the queue. If it's urgent, reply URGENT and the first team member back will call you before anything else.

Festive and public holiday samples (Malaysia)

Festive closures are long enough that a plain away message feels like abandonment. State the return date, then capture the booking anyway.

Sample 11: Hari Raya (BM)

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri daripada [Nama Syarikat]! Kami bercuti dari [tarikh] hingga [tarikh]. Untuk tempahan selepas cuti, tinggalkan nama dan tarikh pilihan anda sekarang. Maaf zahir dan batin!

Sample 12: Chinese New Year (EN)

Happy Chinese New Year from [Business Name]! We're closed from [date] to [date] for reunions and probably too much yee sang. Booking slots for after CNY are open now. Reply with your preferred date to reserve one.

Sample 13: Merdeka / national holiday (EN)

Selamat Hari Merdeka! [Business Name] is closed for the public holiday and back on [date]. Leave your enquiry now and you'll be at the top of our list when we return.

Sample 14: Generic public holiday (BM)

Terima kasih kerana menghubungi kami! Kami tutup sempena cuti umum dan akan beroperasi semula esok. Boleh kongsikan apa yang anda perlukan? Kami akan susun balasan ikut giliran sebaik kembali.

High-volume and campaign day samples

On a 9.9 or 11.11 campaign day, reply expectations collapse under volume. An honest queue message protects your quality rating, because customers who know the wait rarely re-send the same message five times.

Sample 15: Campaign day (EN)

Thanks for messaging [Business Name]! We're getting a high volume of orders for [campaign name], so replies may take up to 2 hours. To speed things up, send the product code you're interested in and we'll prepare your total.

Sample 16: Campaign day (BM)

Terima kasih atas mesej anda! Kami sedang menerima pertanyaan yang tinggi sempena [nama promosi], jadi balasan mungkin mengambil masa sehingga 2 jam. Untuk mempercepatkan, hantarkan kod produk yang anda berminat.

Keyword reply samples: price, location, booking

If your tool supports keyword-triggered replies, these three intents cover the bulk of first messages. Keep the answer real: a price range with one qualifying question beats "PM for price" every time.

Sample 17: Price (EN)

Our packages start from RM[X]. For an exact quote, share two things: 1) the service you need, 2) your area. We'll send a full quote within 1 working hour.

Sample 18: Price (BM)

Harga pakej kami bermula dari RM[X]. Untuk sebut harga tepat, kongsikan: 1) servis yang diperlukan, 2) kawasan anda. Kami hantar sebut harga penuh dalam masa 1 jam waktu bekerja.

Sample 19: Location (EN)

We're at [address], open Mon–Sat 9am–6pm. Here's the map pin: [link]. Are you planning to drop by today? We can have your item or consultation slot ready.

Sample 20: Booking (EN)

We'd love to book you in. Share your preferred day and time, and we'll confirm the nearest available slot within the hour. Weekday mornings usually have the shortest wait.

Industry samples: renovation, clinic, F&B, property, home services

Same skeleton, different vocabulary. Swap the question to the one detail that actually changes your quote or your schedule.

Sample 21: Renovation (EN)

Thanks for contacting [Company Name]! To give you a realistic quote range, share your property type (condo/landed) and which areas you want to renovate. We'll reply with a range and a site-visit slot within 2 working hours.

Sample 22: Clinic (EN)

Thank you for contacting [Clinic Name]. For appointments, share your preferred day and whether this is a first visit or a follow-up. For urgent matters, please call [number] directly.

Sample 23: F&B / restaurant (BM)

Terima kasih kerana menghubungi [Nama Restoran]! Untuk tempahan meja, kongsikan tarikh, masa dan bilangan tetamu. Untuk pakej katering, taip KATERING dan kami hantar menu penuh.

Sample 24: Property agent (EN)

Hi! Thanks for your interest in [project/listing name]. Viewing slots this week are filling up. Share your preferred day (weekday evening or weekend?) and I'll lock one in for you.

Sample 25: Home services (BM)

Terima kasih! Kami sedang di lokasi kerja sekarang. Untuk sebut harga pantas, hantarkan gambar bahagian yang perlu dibaiki dan kawasan rumah anda. Kami balas sebelum 6 petang hari ini.

Why should every auto reply ask one question?

Because the auto reply's real job is not politeness, it is protecting the enquiry from your own team's follow-through gap. From what we have seen inside MSME sales operations, roughly 3 in 10 dead leads were assigned to a salesperson who simply never acted on them, with no consequences. When the auto reply has already captured the area, the service and the timeline, the lead survives that neglect far better: any team member can pick it up cold and continue, instead of restarting from "Hi, how can I help?"

There is also a volume argument. Nine in ten Malaysian internet users aged 16 to 64 use WhatsApp (DataReportal, Digital 2024 Malaysia), which means your first reply is the front door of the business for almost every customer you will ever have. A two-person aircon servicing team in Subang Jaya cannot answer that door at 10pm. Their auto reply can, and if it asks "landed or condo, and how many units?", tomorrow's first call starts with a quote instead of a greeting.

The free WhatsApp Business app will take you a long way with the samples above. Its ceiling is that it sends the same static text to everyone and cannot read the answer. AI-powered replies like Raion HUB's auto-reply pick up from there: they answer from your own price list and documents, ask the next question based on what the customer said, and label the lead in the CRM before a human ever opens the chat.

How to write your own auto reply

Once you outgrow copy-paste, use the same formula these 25 samples are built on.

Keep it under 50 words where you can. WhatsApp is a chat app; a five-paragraph auto reply reads like a legal notice and gets skimmed into oblivion.

Frequently Asked Questions

The bottom line

Auto replies are the cheapest sales hire you will ever make: they work every night, every public holiday and every Friday prayer break, and they never forget to ask the qualifying question. Once yours is live, the next leak to plug is what happens after the customer answers. That is a follow-up problem, and we keep a matching copy-paste library of WhatsApp follow-up message templates for exactly that stage. For the full system view, the complete WhatsApp automation guide for Malaysian businesses connects the pieces.