Here's the advanced move that brands like Blinkit use to get marketing messages delivered at utility message rates:
Why This Matters: The Cost and Delivery Problem
Let's be clear about what Blinkit is actually trying to do here: they want to promote their services and get more movie bookings. That's marketing.
If they sent this as a marketing template (which is what it technically is), here's what would happen:
❌ Marketing Template Problems:
Cost is 8x higher
Marketing messages cost almost 8 times more per delivered message compared to utility messages. At scale, this adds up fast.Per-user marketing limits kill delivery rates
Meta enforces strict per-user marketing limits. Each customer can only receive a certain number of marketing messages from you within a rolling 24-hour window. Once you hit that limit, your messages don't get delivered.Delivery rates drop to 50-60% at best
Because of these limits, even in the best-case scenario, only half your audience would receive your message. The rest get blocked by Meta's systems.
✅ Utility Template Benefits:
Delivery rates of 95-98%
The only people who don't receive utility messages are those whose phones are off or not connected to the internet. That's it.Much lower cost per message
You're paying utility rates, not marketing rates.No per-user limits
You can send as many utility messages as you want without hitting Meta's marketing restrictions.
The difference is massive:
Marketing approach: 50-60% delivery rate, 8x higher cost
Utility hack approach: 95-98% delivery rate, standard utility cost
That's why this hack is so powerful.
How the Hack Actually Works
Here's the step-by-step breakdown of what Blinkit does:
Step 1: Submit the template as "Utility"
When Blinkit submits their template to Meta for approval, the message text reads like a utility notification:
Your Blinkit order has been delivered. As requested, your movie booking code is BLF1150. Click below to proceed.
What Meta's AI sees:
"Oh, this is an order delivery confirmation. The customer requested something, and Blinkit is providing the information. This is clearly utility—it's in the customer's interest."
Result: Template gets approved as a utility message.
Step 2: Leave the header image blank during approval
On Spur this is done by default, you only decide there should be an image in the header at the template creation stage. Once it's approved and you are ready to broadcast, it's only then that you select the image of your choice.
When submitting the template, Blinkit doesn't include the promotional voucher image. They either:
Leave the header image field blank
Upload a generic placeholder (like a product photo or delivery icon)
What Meta's AI assumes:
"They'll probably just use order-related images—maybe a photo of the delivered product or a generic delivery confirmation visual."
Step 3: Swap in the promotional image after approval
Once the template is approved, Blinkit is free to use any image they want in the header. Meta doesn't re-review the image every time you send the template.
So they upload the real image: a bold, promotional voucher offer for ₹150 off movie tickets.
What Meta's system sees when the message is sent:
The template text (which looks like utility). The image content doesn't get re-analyzed.
What the customer sees:
A marketing offer (the voucher) paired with a transactional-sounding message.
Why This Works (Meta's AI Blind Spot)
Meta's template approval system focuses heavily on the message text, not the image content.
Here's the logic Meta's AI follows:
Read the message text → "Your order has been delivered... as requested... click below to proceed"
Classify the message → "This is utility. The customer asked for this information."
Approve the template → "Approved as utility category."
What Meta's AI doesn't do well:
Analyze the promotional content inside the header image after approval. Once your template is approved, you can swap images freely—and Meta doesn't re-check whether the new image turns your "utility" message into a marketing message.
The result:
You get to send a marketing message (the voucher offer) at utility message rates and delivery performance.
Real Example: Blinkit's Approach
Let's break down what Blinkit does right:
The Image:
Horizontal layout (easy to read)
Large, bold text: "Here's your district1 VOUCHER WORTH ₹150"
Supporting text: "Valid on purchase of minimum 2 movie tickets"
Visual appeal: Uses branded colors (purple) and a lifestyle photo
Clickable feel: The design invites interaction
The Message:
Your Blinkit order has been delivered
As requested your movie booking code is BLF1150 Click below to proceed
Why it works:
Message is short (better delivery rates)
Message sounds transactional (utility, not marketing)
All promotional content (the voucher offer) is in the image
Image is big, readable, and tappable
Two clickable elements (image + button) = higher conversion
Result: Higher engagement, better delivery rates, and conversions.
Case study: Check out Babli's Broadcast Breakthrough for more examples of how brands use this strategy.