---
description: 🚀 Explore respond.io's April 2024 update, where WhatsApp commerce, spam prevention and smart chats let you boost sales and improve customer engagement.
title: April 2024 Platform Release: New Meta Product Catalog Integration, Block Contact Feature and Respond AI Improvements
image: https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/4yHVPB4AKo2zR3aSfyfVnO/9a771fd8968d13e566afb09f124b13e3/platform-release-april-2024_72c4b678402f5593f74fbc0dba49a551.png
---

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# April 2024 Updates: New Meta Product Catalog Integration, Block Contact Feature and Respond AI Improvements

[![Gabriella](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/6TgzTm0QlIPDnG4YWA41K4/4ac61d3efe97d14652a514c5727318bd/Avatar.svg?q=70&w=400&fm=avif)](/author/gabriella)

[Gabriella](/author/gabriella)

· 25 Mar 2025

·

3 min read

![April 2024 Platform Release: New Meta Product Catalog Integration, Block Contact Feature and Respond AI Improvements](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/4yHVPB4AKo2zR3aSfyfVnO/9a771fd8968d13e566afb09f124b13e3/platform-release-april-2024_72c4b678402f5593f74fbc0dba49a551.png?q=70&w=400&fm=avif)

This month’s update introduces the new Meta Product Catalog integration to enable WhatsApp commerce, the [highly requested](https://respond.canny.io/feature-request/p/block-ban-contacts-feature) Block Contact feature to prevent spam and multiple AI improvements for enhanced chat efficiency on respond.io. Let’s get into the details of these updates.

## Drive WhatsApp Commerce Conversions with the New Meta Product Catalog Integration

We're introducing the Meta Product Catalog on respond.io, a powerful feature designed for businesses to effectively promote and showcase their products through an interactive product catalog. 

![How the WhatsApp catalog appears to customers](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/1DNIQrkLpl2MENEdth2OtG/037a0df82ab8f9770376a767c6408ff1/april-2024-newsletter_e99442b9a9c05326c21be773a0f91fcc.jpg?fm=avif&w=1000) 

With the WhatsApp API now supporting product messages, we've seized this opportunity to provide this valuable feature so you can drive sales over chat effortlessly. Let’s look at what this update has in store for you.

### Connect your Meta Product Catalog to Respond.io

By connecting your [Meta Product Catalog](https://help.respond.io/l/en/whatsapp/meta-product-catalog#using%5Fmeta%5Fproduct%5Fcatalog%5Facross%5Fmodules%5Fand%5Ffeatures) to respond.io, customers can discover products, ask questions, and place orders all in one continuous WhatsApp conversation without having to navigate away to a separate website or app for more product info. 

![Connect your Meta Product Catalog to respond.io](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/66q0ZHGrnjFSWaZHKcNiB0/ed12b223d8c2879e3ce24cbe05c59698/apr-newsletter-1_66916e7f26d51332cb6548b79c42fe8a.jpg?fm=avif&w=1000) 

Below, we’ll look at how you can send product messages on respond.io.

### Enhance Engagement with Product Messages Across Various Modules

Drive customer engagement by sending the entire catalog, as well as single and multiple Product Messages in the Inbox Module. Simply click on the Meta Product Catalog icon, select the appropriate product(s) based on the conversation context and send them directly to your customers.

![Sending product messages via the Inbox Module](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/5iCTbjCWfZuLxNa3Vyyju2/b56879c307adec4b25d41e6cd2bab1bd/apr-newsletter-2_7aa52135fd5dbbfa3c6a7ed35c51b566.gif?fm=avif&w=1000) 

You can also send catalogs as WhatsApp product message templates through the Inbox, Workflows and Broadcasts Modules, as well as Make and Zapier Integrations.

### Integrate your Catalog with Webhooks

Create webhook integrations for incoming and outgoing product messages between respond.io and Zapier or Make. 

![Integrate your catalog with webhooks](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/fvcRc5QivRxk4S1xcMj7g/6b63f1753b7fe6eb0b348016a15e6dba/apr-newsletter-3_3bc764768e7da61a33b9c43e47fe7ced.gif?fm=avif&w=1000) 

This way, you can customize your Contacts shopping experience, identify top-selling products and more.

## Improved Spam Control Through Contact Blocking

Empower your sales team to manage high-volume spam effectively with respond.io's Block Contact feature. By filtering out irrelevant messages, sales professionals can concentrate on building meaningful customer relationships and driving conversions.

![Block spam contacts in the Inbox Module](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/acsae4qZz1S620id77LM1/2bc94f6400a706f017ac4bc054ea9b09/2_43aff669a2aec51f6689b6bc5ea5a13d.gif?fm=avif&w=1000) 

Agents can easily block a Contact from the Inbox Module, while Owners and Managers can also block Contacts from the Contacts Module.

![Block spam contacts in the Contacts Module](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/3fgiCl2aOtPhpO0PHi1H6j/e0b2202d460717b5ba939f8af6fb7334/1_a9850deadb5b765d85d7b40e93d35f6b.gif?fm=avif&w=1000) 

Once a Contact is blocked, the conversation will be moved to the Blocked Contacts Inbox, while the Contact will be moved to the Blocked Contact Segment in the Contacts module.

![Blocked contacts conversations will be moved to the Blocked Contacts Inbox](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/7ziwF5d3hI2qa0O671Lmh4/e1488c20c1d767548995204c984f91ba/apr-newsletter-6_26c69b0058cffb59f7361e4c1ba5c3c0.png?fm=avif&w=1000) 

If you’ve mistakenly blocked a Contact, you can [reverse the action](https://help.respond.io/l/en/automate-conversations/managing-spam#unblock%5Fa%5Fcontact) by using the same method you used to block them. For more about this feature and the implications of blocking Contacts, read [this guide](https://help.respond.io/l/en/automate-conversations/managing-spam).

## Improve Customers’ Chatbot Experience with Respond AI's Latest Upgrades

We’ve made multiple improvements to the AI Agent Workflow and Knowledge Sources to ensure smoother operational efficiency. Let’s explore the updates.

### New Exit Conditions for AI Agent

Two [new AI Agent Branches](https://help.respond.io/l/en/workflows/step-respond-with-ai) have been added to ensure a smooth customer journey when the AI Agent cannot handle the conversation. The two Branches are _Failure: Speak to the Human,_ and _Failure: AI is Unable to Answer_.

To allow customers to speak to a human agent, toggle on _Contact Ask to Speak to a Human Agent_ in the AI Agent Step. This will direct customers to the _Failure: Speak to the Human_ Branch, where you can assign them to a human agent.

![New AI Agent exit conditions to ensure a smooth customer journey](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/5CUgThC4ROLkqr0uSk4zis/eb3f8566b4106425d461fd02637a7d5a/apr-newsletter-7_182704879288a6988cb9577d41a6705e.gif?fm=avif&w=1000) 

Turn on the _Failure: AI Unable to Answer_ toggle in the AI Agent Step to ensure seamless conversation handover when customers ask questions that exceed the [Knowledge Sources](https://help.respond.io/l/en/workspace-settings/workspace-setting-respond-ai#knowledge%5Fsources) available to the AI Agent. You can then assign a human agent when customers fall into this Branch.

### Showing AI Agent Instructions

Users can now quickly know what tasks an AI Agent is set to perform. Previously, one of the challenges of using an AI Agent in a Workflow was understanding its behavior once the Workflow is saved or published.

![Identify the purpose of your AI Agent with a click](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/656cWj7nYLaYHm1nvW5ucv/d0fe743efd85d5d013d06068a7e012ab/apr-newsletter-9_9a5b6047b2291a7e43c38081f6c47522.gif?fm=avif&w=1000) 

The [Show AI Instructions](https://help.respond.io/l/en/workflows/workflows-overview#saving%5Fa%5Fworkflow) button has now been added to show you a summary of the AI Agent’s behavior.

### Idle Branch Wait Time Increased for AI Agent Workflow

AI Agent Workflow idle duration now has a maximum of 1 hour instead of only 15 minutes, giving your contacts more time to respond before the conversation is automatically closed. Note that you can alter the time limit when required.

### Knowledge Sources: Scheduling Website Sync

You can now perform [more actions](https://help.respond.io/l/en/workspace-settings/workspace-setting-respond-ai#knowledge%5Fsources) on existing Knowledge Sources. Apart from viewing the website's log information, such as the links crawled within the website, you can also schedule to recrawl the website periodically using Resync under the Actions menu.

![Schedule website sync for Knowledge Sources](https://assets2-proxy.respond.io/ph8r57dk1q9w/7BkMXOXQMZBmFlDeeSmX8o/05b5964fc8795a04d0e505d56d70b07b/apr-newsletter-8_87a65b50088a9ed3a5e6aff863fd4454.gif?fm=avif&w=1000) 

Doing so will update the current data with the most recent content on your website, keeping the Knowledge Source up to date.

Other improvements this month include:

* The support for text files apart from PDF files as Knowledge Sources.
* AI Agent will now prioritize seeking clarification or getting more context before sending the fallback message: _"I cannot find the answer in the provided context."_ This fallback message will only be used after the AI Agent has attempted to clarify the Contact's inquiries and if it cannot find an answer.
* Error messages such as _“I cannot find the answer in the provided context”_ are now sent in the same language as the conversation.

If you’re not a respond.io user and want to experience these features and enhancements firsthand, [sign up for a free trial](https://app.respond.io/user/register) and explore our platform’s full capabilities.

Turn customer conversations into business growth with respond.io. ✨

Manage calls, chats and emails in one place!

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2025-12-05T05:06:34.635Z

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