What's new in Echo.

SMS when WhatsApp can't get through

Connect your WinSMS, BulkSMS or SMSPortal account and Echo can send your message as an SMS automatically when WhatsApp can't deliver it, for example when the recipient isn't on WhatsApp. You can edit the SMS text for each campaign, SMS replies come into their own conversation thread, and an opt-out line ("Reply STOP to opt out") is added for you.

Personalise campaigns with your own CSV columns

When you import contacts from a spreadsheet, you can now keep any extra columns as custom fields, such as a ministry, a group name or a pickup time, and use them to fill in your template variables. Every recipient gets a message that's specific to them. This works with manual imports for now.

A new Support Staff role

Add team members as Support Staff to help manage your inbox. They can see all conversations and assign them to the right person, but they can't send campaigns or change your WhatsApp setup. For Planning Center organisations, Support Staff can also work with Planning Center workflow cards.

One daily summary instead of a pile of reminder emails

Echo used to send a separate reminder email for every conversation waiting on a reply. After a big campaign, that could mean hundreds of emails. Now each person gets one email a day listing the conversations still waiting for them and when each reply window closes. Campaign replies are grouped by campaign. You choose the time it arrives under Organisation Settings.

See your WhatsApp business verification status

Organisation Settings and your dashboard now show where your business stands with Meta's verification, so you can see straight away whether there's anything you need to do.

Filter conversations by number

If your organisation has more than one WhatsApp number, you can now filter the inbox to show conversations on a single number, or only SMS conversations.

Choose which number to reply from

If the number a conversation started on has been removed, Echo now lets you choose which of your other numbers to reply from, so the conversation can keep going.

More from the Echo API

The Echo API can now work with Conversations too. Connected systems can read conversation history, reply and manage conversations. These permissions are off by default, and you choose which ones each app gets under API Access.

A faster, smarter Conversations inbox

• Faster for large inboxes. The list loads in pages and shows the total number of matching conversations.
• Oldest first. Sort the inbox so the people who've been waiting longest appear at the top.
• Formatting you can see as you type. Bold, italic, strikethrough and monospace now look right in the message box before you send, using the same toolbar as the template builder.
• Media opens in Echo. Photos open in a viewer, and videos, voice notes and PDFs play or open without downloading first.
• Every message type shows correctly. Stickers, locations and shared contacts now display properly. When WhatsApp can't pass a message through to Echo, you'll see WhatsApp's own explanation instead of a blank or confusing message.

Clearer WhatsApp message pricing and billing

• Pricing with dates. Echo now shows the date each WhatsApp messaging rate takes effect, so you know which rate applies to your messages and when you'll be billed for them.
• Up to date with Meta's prices. Rates have been updated for Meta's pricing changes from 1 October 2026, in all supported currencies.
• Spending limits that hold. Spending limits, quotas and plan limits are now checked properly before messages go out, so there are no surprises on your bill.
• Meta's messaging limits. Messaging limit tracking now follows Meta's updated rules, and all limit tiers display correctly throughout Echo.
• Costs in the mobile app. The app shows message costs and explains Meta's pricing changes.

Templates you can rely on

• Images, videos and documents are checked when you upload them, so a template that's accepted will send.
• Templates are tested before they're used in a campaign.
• A new help page explains which media files WhatsApp accepts.

Team and account management

• Invited team members now show in the Users tab before they've accepted.
• Accepting an invitation is smoother.
• Echo emails now carry the Echo logo, so they're easy to recognise.
• Subscribing and paying through Paystack is more reliable.

We've done a lot of work behind the scenes to make Echo more secure, more reliable and faster.

These arrived in August:

• The Echo API. Send messages and manage contacts from your own systems. Documentation is at echo.solenex.it/docs.
• Echo without Planning Center. Organisations can now sign up and use Echo without a Planning Center account, and import and manage their own contacts.
• Automatic replies filtered out. Away messages that come back after a campaign are set aside instead of filling your inbox.
• Browser notifications for new messages.
• A redesigned conversation view, faster, with a contact's full message history shown in the thread.