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The composer sits below the open conversation and handles far more than plain text — between free-form messaging, four media types, emoji, and voice notes, you rarely need to leave the conversation panel to get a messaging task done. Hover over any icon in the toolbar for a tooltip describing what it does.
Chat composer with all icons labeled

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Free-form text

Type into the text field and send, the same as any messaging app. This is only available while the conversation window is open — once it expires on WhatsApp, Messenger, or Instagram, the field is replaced with a prompt to send an approved template instead.

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Media attachments

Four dedicated icons sit beside the text field, each opening a file picker for its format: You can also drag a file directly from your desktop onto the composer instead of using the file picker.

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Emoji

The emoji icon opens a picker to insert emoji into your message, the same as any modern chat app.

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Voice notes

Click the microphone icon to start recording, then click the send icon when you’re done to deliver it as a voice message — supported on channels that accept voice, such as WhatsApp.
For messages you send often — the same explanation, promotion, or set of instructions — build a quick reply instead of retyping it each time.

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If sending fails

If a message will not send, work through these in order:
  1. Check the conversation window. On WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram, free-form messaging blocks once the customer’s reply window has expired — see Conversation window. The composer itself will tell you if this is the case, replacing the text field with a template prompt.
  2. Send an approved template instead. Use Choose a template in the composer, or Actions → Send a WhatsApp template — see Chat actions. Sending a template and getting a reply reopens the window for normal messaging.
  3. Check the channel connection. If templates also fail to send, the channel itself may be disconnected — see the relevant messaging channel troubleshooting page.