What's the difference between a template and a one-off message?

A template is a reusable, pre-configured message tied to an event (Lead Assigned, File Stage Changed, Sanction Approved). When the event fires, SigmaDSA finds matching templates and sends them automatically. One-off messages are typed manually from a record's Actions menu (Send SMS, Send WhatsApp) and don't go through the template system.

Why do WhatsApp templates need approval from Meta?

WhatsApp Business Platform requires every templated message to be pre-approved by Meta to prevent spam. The approval check looks at the body content (no promotional language outside Marketing category) and variable usage (must be placeholders, not free-text). Templates sync to Meta automatically when you save; status shows in the Meta Status column (PENDING → APPROVED, typically 1–24 hours; or REJECTED with a reason).

What does Auto-Trigger do?

Auto-Trigger ties a template to a system event — Lead Created, Lead Assigned, File Stage Changed, Sanction Approved, etc. When that event fires, every template with the matching trigger is sent. Templates without an Auto-Trigger never fire automatically; they're used by the Send Message action manually.

How do variables work?

Variables let you personalise the message. Use double-curly notation in the body — `applicant name`, `loan amount`, `file number` — and SigmaDSA substitutes them at send time with the actual record values. WhatsApp uses numbered placeholders (`1`, `2`, …) that Meta approves; SigmaDSA maps your named variables to those numbers automatically.

Why are some notifications recipient Customer vs Employee?

Same event can fire different templates to different audiences. Example — File Stage Changed has two templates — one to the customer ("Good news, your loan moved to Sanctioned!") and one to the assigned employee ("HDFC sanctioned file LF-2026-00001 ₹10 L"). Configure the Recipient field per template.

Notifications — SigmaDSA Help

Manage email, WhatsApp, and SMS notification templates in SigmaDSA — define when messages fire, who receives them, what the body says, and which variables are interpolated. WhatsApp templates sync to Meta for approval.

The Notifications page (/settings/notification-templates) is your tenant's message-template library — every automated email, WhatsApp, and SMS the system sends. Templates tie to system events (Auto-Trigger), pick a Recipient class (Customer / Employee / Admin), and interpolate variables from the underlying record.

Notification Templates page with action buttons, filters, and templates table highlighted — Notifications: (1) Action bar — Refresh from Meta / Reset to Defaults / Recreate All on Meta / Add Template, (2) channel + status filters, (3) templates table.

What's on the page

Top action buttons

Button	What it does
Refresh from Meta	Re-pulls approval status for every WhatsApp template from Meta. Run after submitting new templates so the Meta Status column updates.
Reset to Defaults	Restores the seed catalogue of 25 templates that ships with every tenant. Wipes your edits — use cautiously.
Recreate All on Meta	Forces every WhatsApp template to re-submit to Meta. Use if templates somehow get out of sync.
Add Template	Open the modal to create a new template.

Filters

Channel — All / Email / WhatsApp / SMS.
Status — Active / Inactive (controls whether the template fires).

Table columns

Column	What it shows
Name	Friendly display name.
Template Key	System identifier (lowercase, underscores). For WhatsApp, this is the Meta template name.
Channel	WhatsApp / Email / SMS.
Trigger	The auto-fire event (Lead Assigned, File Stage Changed, etc.) or "Unknown" if manual-only.
Recipient	Customer / Employee / Admin.
Status	Active / Inactive.
Meta Status	For WhatsApp: APPROVED / PENDING / REJECTED.
Created	When the template was added.
Actions	Edit / Delete / Preview / Re-submit to Meta.

Add a template

Click Add Template

A centred modal opens.

Add Notification Template modal with field groups highlighted and Save — Add Template: (1) Name + Template Key, (2) Channel + Auto-Trigger, (3) Recipients, (4) Message Body, (5) Variables list, (6) Save.

Identity

Name — friendly display name (e.g., "Lead Assigned to You").
Template Key — lowercase identifier with underscores, ends with channel suffix (_wa for WhatsApp, _email for email, _sms for SMS). E.g., lead_assigned_wa. This must be unique and, for WhatsApp, becomes the Meta template name.

Channel + Auto-Trigger

Channel — WhatsApp / Email / SMS. Drives whether the template syncs to Meta.
Auto-Trigger — pick the system event that fires this template:

Trigger	Fires when
Lead Created	A new lead is saved.
Lead Assigned	A lead is assigned (or reassigned) to a user.
Lead Converted	A lead is converted to a file.
Callback Scheduled	A new callback is created.
Callback Reminder	30 mins before a callback's scheduled time.
File Created	A new file is created.
File Stage Changed	A file moves between stages.
File Status Changed	A file's within-stage status changes.
File Rejected	A file is marked Rejected.
Document Request Sent	The team requests documents from a customer.
Document Uploaded by Customer	A customer uploads via the share-link.
Bank Login Created	A bank login row is added.
Sanction Approved / Received	A sanction is recorded.
Disbursal Recorded	A disbursal is logged.

Leave Auto-Trigger empty for manual-only templates (used by Actions → Send Message).

Recipients

Check one or more:

Customer — message goes to the applicant's mobile/email.
Assigned Employee — message goes to the file/lead's current owner.
Admin Users — message goes to every user in the admin role (use for revenue events like Disbursal).

Message Body

Free-text body with variable placeholders. Variables use the format {{variable_name}}.

For WhatsApp, the body must follow Meta's template guidelines:

Marketing language requires Marketing category submission.
No URLs that aren't allowed.
No emoji-heavy spam.
Variables must be sequential — {{1}}, {{2}}, {{3}} (SigmaDSA maps your named variables to numbers automatically).

For Email, basic HTML is supported.

For SMS, plain text only, 160-character segments.

Variables

The Variables card lists the placeholders available for the chosen trigger. For example, Lead Assigned exposes:

{{lead_id}}, {{lead_name}}, {{lead_mobile}}, {{lead_loan_type}}, {{lead_amount}}, {{assignee_name}}, {{tenant_name}}.

Copy the placeholder text into your Message Body. SigmaDSA substitutes them at send time.

State	What it means	Can it send?
PENDING	Submitted to Meta, awaiting review.	No (queued).
APPROVED	Meta approved.	Yes.
REJECTED	Meta rejected with a reason.	No. Edit + resubmit.
PAUSED	Too many user complaints reported it as spam.	No (auto-paused).
DISABLED	Manually disabled by admin or auto-disabled due to repeated rejections.	No.

To re-submit a rejected template: open Edit → fix the issue per Meta's reason → Save → SigmaDSA resubmits.

Common flows

Onboard a new lender alert — Add Template → name "HDFC Sanction Received" → Channel WhatsApp → Auto-Trigger Sanction Approved → Recipient Customer + Admin Users → write body using {{file_id}}, {{lender_name}}, {{sanctioned_amount}} → Save → wait for Meta APPROVAL.
Fix a typo — Edit the template → save. For WhatsApp, this does not auto-resubmit — Meta re-approves only on full re-creation. Use Recreate All on Meta to force re-submission if needed.
Temporarily silence a noisy alert — Edit → set Status=Inactive → save. Template is preserved; no sends until reactivated.
Audit what's firing — go to Notification Logs.

Permission gating

LoanCRM.NotificationTemplates.* permissions. Default granted to admin role.

Notifications