Website chat puts a chat bubble on your own website. Visitors message you from any page, and you reply from the Inbox. Set it up under Settings → Website chat (in the Marketing & Communication section).
Who can change it
Owners and admins can change these settings by default, as can anyone whose role has been given permission to manage integrations. Everyone else can see the page but can't change it. Click Save at the top right after making changes.
1. Add it to your website
- Make sure the switch says Chat is on. When it's off, the bubble won't show on your site.
- Click Copy code to copy your one-line code.
- Paste it just before the closing </body> tag on every page of your website. If you use a site builder, paste it into its "custom code" box instead.
Make a new code replaces your code with a new one. When you confirm, the chat stops working on any site still using the old code until you paste in the new one. Use it if your code ended up somewhere it shouldn't be.
2. Look and greeting
Leave a box empty to use the default. A live preview on the right shows your changes as you make them.
- Name shown in chat: for example a first name.
- Photo link (optional): a web address starting with https://. If empty, your logo is used.
- Greeting: the first message visitors see when they open the chat.
- Pop-up line next to the bubble: a short line that appears beside the bubble.
- Color: pick a color or type one like #2563eb. It defaults to your brand color.
- Theme: Match visitor, Light or Dark.
- Corner: Left or Right.
Ask for a phone or email after their first message (new contacts become leads): when on, the chat asks visitors how to reach them after they send their first message.
3. AI receptionist
Turn on AI answers website chats to have the AI receptionist answer chats right away, day or night, from your AI Assistant answers. It's part of the Growth plan and up.
- Replies from the AI are labeled "AI".
- Visitors can tap Talk to a person at any time.
- It goes quiet as soon as someone on your team replies.
Two more switches control what it can offer: Give "starting at" prices from your price list, and Offer open times from your booking calendar (visitors book on your booking page). For when it answers, hand-off wording and a test chat, see Setting up the AI receptionist for chat and calls.
What visitors see
A bubble in the corner you picked, with your pop-up line beside it. Opening it shows your greeting and quick-reply buttons ("I'd like a quote", "I want to book a time", "I have a question"). On a phone, the chat opens full screen.
If asking for contact info is on, a small "So we can get back to you" card asks for their name and a phone number or email.
Contact info, leads and texting consent
- A visitor who shares contact info that's new to your shop becomes a customer and a lead, so they show up in your Leads hub.
- If the contact info matches a customer you already have, the chat isn't attached to that customer automatically. Confirm it from the Inbox.
- Sharing a phone number in the chat is never consent to text. Get the customer's permission before you text them. See Texting rules: consent, STOP and quiet hours.
Replying
Chats land in your Inbox as Web Chat conversations. Reply there like any other message.
Related
- Setting up the Web Chat Widget: the shareable chat link under Settings → Integrations
- Working and scheduling leads in the Leads hub
Frequently asked questions
Q: Where do I paste the code?
A: Just before the closing </body> tag on every page of your website, or in your site builder's "custom code" box.
Q: What happens if I click Make a new code?
A: Your old code stops working. The chat won't show on any site still using it until you paste in the new code.
Q: Does the AI answer chats automatically?
A: Only if you turn on AI answers website chats, which needs the Growth plan or higher. Otherwise your team answers every chat from the Inbox.
Q: If a visitor gives their phone number in the chat, can I text them?
A: Not on that alone. Sharing a number in the chat makes them a customer and a lead, but it isn't consent to text. Get their permission first.
Q: How do I hide the bubble without removing the code?
A: Turn the switch to Chat is off and save. The bubble won't show on your site until you turn it back on.