Using Suggested Message and AI Assist to create scripted chat sequences

The instructions below are for desktops and laptops only.

You can use scripted chat sequences to guide visitors through predictable, helpful conversations using suggested messages (clickable reply buttons), shortcuts, triggers, the Pre-Chat form, and AI Assist. This approach keeps conversations consistent, reduces friction for visitors, and lets AI Assist reliably pick the next step in the script.

• Shortcuts — reusable response templates you send in chat or tickets. To learn how to create and manage them, see this guide: Creating and managing Shortcuts
  
  

• Suggested messages — clickable buttons shown to visitors when you send a shortcut. When a visitor clicks a button the text is sent as if they typed it.
  
  

• AI Question — a field in a shortcut that tells AI Assist to use that shortcut when a visitor types (or clicks) matching text.
  
  

• Triggers — automated messages or actions based on rules (for example, a timed site notification). Triggers can send suggested messages to start a sequence. Learn more about triggers here: Creating and Managing triggers
  
  

• Pre-Chat form — collects visitor input before the chat begins. Visitor’s submission appears as a message that AI Assist can respond to and use to start a scripted flow. Learn more about the Pre-Chat form here: Using the Pre-Chat form

2. Select the correct property.

3. Click Administration in the top menu.

4. Click Shortcuts under Settings in the left menu.

5. Click a shortcut from the list, or create a new shortcut: Click Add Shortcut and then New Shortcut.

6. Add the Message. Keep it short and action-oriented (for example: “How can I help today?”).

7. Add up to 4 suggested messages. Under Message, click Add Element, and then choose Suggested Messages. Click Add Message to add more suggested messages. Use the Widget Preview on the right to see how your messages will appear to visitors.

8. Under Questions, add up to 5 possible visitor inputs that should trigger this Shortcut (these can be exact or partial matches). This tells AI Assist which Shortcut to deliver when it sees matching text.

Click Add Question to add more questions.

Tip: Write AI Questions using simple phrases a visitor might actually use (not internal jargon).

9. Click Save.

When the shortcut is sent, visitors see the suggested messages as buttons. When clicked, the button text is sent as a message in the chat, and AI Assist will continue with the scripted flow.

You have two common ways to kick off a scripted chat:

• Using a Basic Site Notification trigger

• Using the Pre-Chat Form

A. Using a Basic Site Notification trigger

1. Click Triggers under Settings in the left menu.

2. Click Add Trigger.

3. Set the Trigger Type to Basic - Site Notification. Note: Each property can only have 1 Basic Site Notification trigger. If you already have one set up, you can either modify it or remove it and create a new one. Then, set the Trigger Name, Delay, and Agent’s Name and avatar.

4. Under Set your message, enter the trigger message and add suggested messages. When a visitor clicks a suggested message, AI Questions in your shortcuts detect that reply and AI Assist sends the next shortcut in the sequence.

5. Click Save at the bottom right corner when you’re done.

Example:

In this example, we ask the visitor to select “I’m a new customer” or “I’m an existing customer”. The shortcut for “I’m a new customer” would contain related suggested messages, such as “Make a new order” and “Product info”, and the AI question “I’m a new customer”.

The shortcut for “I’m an existing customer” would contain suggested messages such as “Check order status” and “Cancel an order”, and the AI question “I’m an existing customer”.

B. Using the Pre-Chat Form

1. Click Chat Widget under Channels in the left menu. Then, click Edit Content under Widget Content.

2. Scroll to Widget State, click the Pre-Chat tab, and Enable Pre-Chat. Add the relevant fields to the Header and Body Cards as required. Use the Options Choice to give the visitor options to select. Note: These selections must match the relevant AI questions in your shortcuts.

3. Exit the Widget Content editor when you’re done. Your changes are saved immediately.

When the visitor submits the form, their selection appears in chat, and AI Assist will respond if you’ve set the corresponding AI questions.

Example:

In this example, we ask the visitor to select either “Make a new order” or “Check existing order”:

The shortcut for “Make a new order” would contain suggested messages listing product options, the AI question “Make a new order”. Note: The AI question must match one of the selections in the Options Choice section of the Pre-Chat form.

You can also use the Base Prompt to train AI Assist to start the conversation after the visitor gives their details in the Pre-Chat form. “[option]” sends suggested messages in the form of buttons.

For example:

- if the visitor starts the chat by submitting their name, email and/or phone number, respond to this and say
“Welcome! How can we help you today?

[option] I want to make a new order

[option] I want to check an existing order

[option] I have a different question”

Use similar keywords as the AI questions in your shortcuts so that when the visitor clicks a button, AI Assist will use the relevant shortcut.

Learn more about modifying the Base Prompt with this guide: Modifying the Base Prompt

• For each choice a visitor can make, create a shortcut whose AI question exactly matches the suggested message text (or a close variation). When the visitor clicks the suggested option, AI Assist will match the AI Question and send the next shortcut automatically.

• Repeat this pattern to chain multiple steps and build a full scripted flow.

• Message limits & billing
  AI Assist uses a monthly message allocation. Every AI response consumes your allocation. When you reach the limit, AI Assist will stop responding until the next billing period unless you purchase overages or upgrade. Plan your scripted flows to manage message usage (for example: reduce unnecessary messages or limit sequence length). Learn more here: How to top up AI Assist message credits
  
  

• Keep text visitor-friendly
  The suggested message text becomes the visitor’s message when clicked. Use phrasing that maps clearly to your AI Questions (avoid ambiguous wording).
  
  

• Test thoroughly
  Try the full sequence in the widget preview. Test both clicking suggested messages and typing equivalent phrases to ensure AI question matching works as expected.
  
  

• Accessibility & engagement trade-offs
  Adding a Pre-Chat form can reduce incoming chats (some visitors skip forms).

Creating and managing Shortcuts

Creating and Managing triggers

Using the Pre-Chat form

Getting started with AI Assist

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If you need further help setting up your scripted chat sequences, schedule a call with us, and we’ll help you.

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