{"id":601,"date":"2026-10-29T13:05:56","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T13:05:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vectalk.com.br\/blog\/christmas-new-year-whatsapp-marketing\/"},"modified":"2026-10-29T13:06:01","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T13:06:01","slug":"christmas-new-year-whatsapp-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vectalk.com.br\/blog\/en\/christmas-new-year-whatsapp-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"Christmas and New Year on WhatsApp: campaigns, holiday on-call support and automated messages"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Updated on October 29, 2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To run Christmas WhatsApp marketing without losing sales or customers, split December into three tracks: marketing campaigns up to the last shipping day, utility notifications for people who already bought, and an on-call schedule with automated replies for the holiday shutdown and New Year’s Eve. Your templates must be approved and in good quality standing before December 1, and the budget comes from Meta’s official rates: R$ 0.3217 (Brazilian reais) per marketing template delivered to a Brazilian number and R$ 0.0350 per utility template.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This guide assumes you use the official WhatsApp Business API<\/a> and have an opt-in list. It uses the Brazilian calendar and Brazilian rates as the example; if your customers are elsewhere, swap in your local dates and your country’s rate card. If you are still preparing Black Friday, start with the Black Friday on WhatsApp guide<\/a>: December inherits whatever quality and limit your number ends November with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The December 2026 calendar (Brazil)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Date<\/th>What it is<\/th>What to do on WhatsApp<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Early December<\/td>Christmas shopping starts<\/td>Main gift campaign<\/td><\/tr>
Your carrier’s cutoff date<\/td>Last day for an order to arrive before Christmas<\/td>“Last chance to get it in time” send<\/td><\/tr>
By Dec 20<\/td>Legal deadline for the second installment of the 13\u00ba sal\u00e1rio<\/em> (Law 4,749\/1965)<\/td>Good time for higher-ticket offers<\/td><\/tr>
Thursday, Dec 24<\/td>Christmas Eve<\/td>Reduced service; utility and replies only<\/td><\/tr>
Friday, Dec 25<\/td>Christmas (national holiday)<\/td>On-call or away message<\/td><\/tr>
Dec 26 to 30<\/td>Exchanges, returns, gift cards<\/td>Utility and support<\/td><\/tr>
Thursday, Dec 31<\/td>New Year’s Eve (R\u00e9veillon<\/em>)<\/td>Reduced service<\/td><\/tr>
Friday, Jan 1, 2027<\/td>New Year’s Day (national holiday)<\/td>On-call or away message<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For readers outside Brazil: the 13\u00ba sal\u00e1rio<\/em> is a mandatory “thirteenth salary” that Brazilian employers pay, with the second installment due by December 20, so many consumers have extra cash in December. December is also the start of the Brazilian summer and school holidays, and many companies close for a year-end recess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The shipping cutoff depends on your carrier, the shipping method and the region. Confirm it with your carrier before writing any template that mentions a deadline, and pass the date as a variable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marketing or utility: what each December message is<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Meta defines utility as non-promotional messages tied to something the customer requested or that are essential to them. Everything else is marketing: offers, news, invitations and relationship messages. The template categorization page<\/a> lists birthday greetings and year-end thank-you messages under a marketing objective (“build customer relationships”) and says mixed content, such as an order update with a promotion, is marketing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Message<\/th>Category<\/th>Why<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Brand “Merry Christmas” or “Happy New Year”<\/td>Marketing<\/td>A greeting not tied to a purchase is relationship-building<\/td><\/tr>
Gift offer, coupon, free shipping<\/td>Marketing<\/td>Promotion<\/td><\/tr>
“Last day to receive before Christmas”<\/td>Marketing<\/td>Persuades to buy<\/td><\/tr>
Order confirmed, PIX payment pending, invoice<\/td>Utility<\/td>Tied to the customer’s purchase<\/td><\/tr>
Order shipped with tracking code<\/td>Utility<\/td>Tied to the customer’s purchase<\/td><\/tr>
Return window for the customer’s order<\/td>Utility<\/td>Information about their purchase<\/td><\/tr>
Recess notice to customers with open orders<\/td>Utility, if non-promotional<\/td>Essential for that customer<\/td><\/tr>
Recess notice to the whole list<\/td>Likely marketing<\/td>Not tied to a customer transaction<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

PIX is Brazil’s instant payment system; a “PIX pending” message reminds the buyer to complete payment. Adding “enjoy 10% off your next order” at the end of a shipping notice turns the template into marketing. When Meta recategorizes a utility template as marketing, it normally gives one day of notice, the template stays approved and is billed as marketing from then on. For the full criteria, see marketing, utility or authentication<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sample templates for December<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Short texts to register as templates in November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christmas campaign (marketing)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Hi {{1}}! The {{2}} Christmas shop is live, with gifts from {{3}}. Pick yours with the button below.<\/em> URL button and a “Stop promotions” button.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last shipping day (marketing)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

{{1}}, orders placed by {{2}} arrive before Christmas in your area. After that, delivery moves to next year.<\/em> URL button. The date is a variable filled with the cutoff your carrier confirmed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Order shipped (utility)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Your order {{1}} has shipped. Tracking code: {{2}}. Estimated delivery: {{3}}.<\/em> URL button to track. No coupon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recess notice for open orders (utility)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

{{1}}, our support team will be on recess from {{2}} to {{3}}. Your order {{4}} continues through normal delivery and you can track it with the link below.<\/em> URL button.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Happy New Year (marketing)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

{{1}}, thank you for shopping with {{2}} in 2026. Happy New Year!<\/em> Even without an offer, it is a greeting, and Meta treats it as marketing. Decide whether it is worth R$ 0.3217 per contact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep a backup template with different wording for each important send: a template paused on December 20 takes down the whole campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On-call support and automated holiday messages<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The official API has no “away message” toggle like the WhatsApp Business app: your system replies, triggered by the incoming message webhook. The business-hours logic is covered in welcome, away and business-hours messages<\/a>; for December, add two things: the recess period and on-call time slots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

const RECESS = { start: '2026-12-24', end: '2027-01-03' };\n\/\/ reduced on-call hours during the recess (America\/Sao_Paulo time zone)\nconst ON_CALL = {\n  '2026-12-28': ['09:00', '13:00'],\n  '2026-12-29': ['09:00', '13:00'],\n  '2026-12-30': ['09:00', '13:00'],\n};\n\nfunction supportStatus(date, time) {\n  if (date < RECESS.start || date > RECESS.end) return 'normal';\n  const slot = ON_CALL[date];\n  if (slot && time >= slot[0] && time < slot[1]) return 'on_call';\n  return 'recess';\n}\n\nconst REPLIES = {\n  on_call: 'Hi! We are on reduced on-call hours until 1 pm. For orders, send your order number; returns resume on Jan 4.',\n  recess: 'Hi! We are on recess until Jan 3 and back on Jan 4. Your message has been logged. ' +\n          'To track an order, use the tracking link we sent you.',\n};<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
date<\/code> and time<\/code> come from the message timestamp<\/code> converted to your operation’s time zone, as in the away-message article. Three precautions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n