I’m using Zapier to connect my YouTube channel with a Telegram group and automatically post updates. The connection works but I’m having trouble with the message formatting.
What I’m trying to create:
Display thumbnail at the very top without any spacing
Include clickable text link but disable the preview
Add a short description limited to 100 characters
Current problems I’m facing:
When I add the image URL, it shows up as a quoted block instead of appearing at the top, and the actual URL text is visible
The text link works but it generates an unwanted preview below the message
I’ve been experimenting with different settings in Zapier but can’t get the formatting right. Has anyone successfully created this type of custom message layout for Telegram using Zapier? Any tips on how to structure the message properly would be really helpful.
Your problem is Zapier not handling Telegram formatting properly. I’ve dealt with this exact issue automating blog posts to Telegram channels. The thumbnail showing as quoted text? You’re probably putting the image URL in the message body instead of the right spot. Switch from ‘Send Message’ to ‘Send Photo’ in your Zapier Telegram action. Drop the image URL in the Photo field, not the message text. To kill link previews, check the advanced settings in your Telegram action. Find ‘Disable Web Page Preview’ and set it to true. No more automatic previews cluttering up your posts. For the 100-character description limit, add a Formatter step before your Telegram action. Use ‘Truncate’ to cut descriptions at exactly 100 characters. Keeps everything consistent. Here’s a trick I found: use HTML formatting in the message text field. Telegram supports basic HTML tags, which gives you way better control over how text looks compared to Zapier’s default formatting.
zapier’s telegram integration is a pain for this stuff. better to go with the Bot API. set up webhooks to send POST requests to telegram’s API directly, use disable_web_page_preview and sendPhoto method. gives way more formatting control!
Been there with Zapier and Telegram - total formatting nightmare. What you’re seeing is super common since Zapier’s Telegram integration sucks for precise message control.
That thumbnail showing as a quoted block? Zapier sends images as attachments instead of embedded media. And those link previews you can’t get rid of? Telegram’s default behavior that Zapier can’t override.
I ditched Zapier for Latenode after weeks of this crap. Latenode gives you direct Telegram Bot API access, so you can:
Use sendPhoto method first, then sendMessage right after
Set disable_web_page_preview to kill those annoying previews
Actually format text with proper HTML or Markdown
My workflow: YouTube trigger → trim description to 100 chars → send photo → send formatted message with preview disabled. Takes 10 minutes to setup and actually works.
Zapier’s “simple” approach falls apart when you need real API control.
I’ve dealt with this exact same issue! The problem is Zapier treats your thumbnail URL as text instead of an actual image. To resolve it, split your workflow into two separate Telegram actions. First, use the sendPhoto action to send the image with the photo URL field. Then, send your text content as a second action. This method prevents the URL from showing as quoted text. For the persistent link previews, navigate to your Telegram action’s advanced options and enable the “disable_web_page_preview” setting. Lastly, to avoid any truncation of the description, implement a text formatter step in Zapier that limits it to 100 characters before it reaches Telegram. While this approach requires additional setup, you will gain enhanced control over the formatting.