How to get your AI agent to greet visitors when they start a chat
The instructions below are for desktops and laptops only.
Your AI agent can send visitors a welcome message when they start a chat. In this guide, we’ll show you how to set this up using the Base Prompt.
If you want the widget to greet visitors before they start a chat (for example, on page load), use a Trigger instead. To learn about Triggers, see this guide: Creating and managing triggers
Before you begin
Enable AI Assist on your property. See this guide to learn more: Getting started with AI Assist
Assign your AI agent to Live Chat (under Channels) so it can respond in your website widget. LEarn more here: Deploying multiple AI Agents across support channels
Modify the Base Prompt
3. Click Add-ons on the top menu.
4. Click Settings under AI Assist.
5. Select your AI agent.
6. Go to the Settings page.
7. Scroll down to Base Prompt. Add clear instructions for the greetings.
To learn more about editing the Base Prompt, see this guide: Modifying the Base Prompt
Here’s a prompt snippet you can copy and paste:
- when a new chat begins, greet the visitor in one short sentence, identify yourself as the AI assistant for [Your Business], and ask a simple follow-up question.
- if the visitor’s name is available, use it once in the first sentence.
- keep the greeting concise and helpful (no more than 2 sentences before asking a question).
You can paste an exact line if you prefer strict wording, for example:
"Hi {{visitor_name}}, I’m the AI assistant for [Your Business]. How can I help today?"
Tip: You can be more prescriptive by writing:
- when the chat starts, say exactly: "Hi there! I’m the AI assistant for [Your Business]. How can I help today?"
Your AI agent will use this line verbatim as the first message.
You can also use “[option]” to add suggested messages. These become clickable buttons for visitors, allowing them to trigger specific actions or conversation flows.
For example:
- Include this in your response:
“How can we help you today?
[option] Check order
[option] Deposit status”
8. Click Save.
Set your AI agent to greet before answering
By default, your AI agent may respond directly to the visitor’s first question. If you want it to always greet first, add a specific instruction in the Base Prompt.
Here’s a snippet you can copy and adapt:
- when a new chat begins, always send the greeting message before answering the visitor’s question.
- do not respond to the question until after sending the greeting.
Example:
"Hi {{visitor_name}}, I’m the AI assistant for [Your Business]. How can I help today?"
(then respond to the visitor’s question)
This way, your AI agent always starts with a welcome message or flow instead of skipping straight to an answer.
Test the greeting
Use the built-in preview panel in your AI agent’s settings to try sample visitor messages and confirm the greeting appears as the first response.
Additional considerations
Each AI reply (including the greeting) counts toward your monthly AI Assist message allocation. See this guide to learn more: Understanding billing for AI Assist
Keep the greeting short and helpful. Avoid long intros; include a single clarifying question.
Personalize your message based on visitor goals.
Experiment with different greeting styles and buttons to find what resonates best with your target audience.
To learn about creating scripted chat sequences for your AI agent, check out this guide:
Using Suggested Message and AI Assist to create scripted chat sequences
Customers reaching out on Facebook?
Connect Facebook Messenger to tawk.to and easily handle all customer conversations in your centralized inbox. With AI Assist, you can deploy AI agents to help answer your customers’ questions when you’re busy or unavailable. See these guides to learn more:
Connecting Facebook Messenger to tawk.to
Get SMS messages in your inbox
Connect Twilio SMS to tawk.to and keep all your customer conversations in one place. AI Assist can reply to SMS inquiries anytime, helping you deliver faster support. See these guides to learn more:
Connecting Twilio SMS to your tawk.to Inbox
Connecting multiple Twilio SMS accounts and inboxes
Updating Twilio SMS inbox settings
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