Customer communication
Set up Live Chat
Choose who can reply, configure the storefront widget and working hours, then test a full conversation.
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Live Chat puts a conversation window on your storefront and delivers those conversations to authorised devices in the PrestaOne app. Setup is complete when a shopper can send a message and an intended recipient can reply—not simply when the widget switch is on.
Start with a connected store. Keep the module open in the Back Office and have the recipient's phone available.
1. Choose the people who will reply
Open Connections & Access in the module. Find each intended recipient's device, enable Live Chat access, and save. Wait for the permissions update to complete.
At least one connection must have effective access to the service. If the module reports no active recipient, no active connection or unconfirmed recipient status, resolve that status before changing the widget's appearance. The storefront widget can stay hidden even while its saved switch is on.
The inbox is shared by eligible recipients. Agree who will answer incoming conversations so two people do not send conflicting replies. Each person should use their own PrestaOne account.
2. Enable and identify the storefront widget
Open the module's Live Chat tab. In Storefront widget, turn on the widget and set the text a visitor will see:
| Setting | How to use it |
|---|---|
| Chat title | The heading in the chat window, such as “Customer support”. |
| Welcome message | A short invitation that explains what visitors can ask. |
| Widget position | Choose the storefront corner that does not cover checkout, consent or accessibility controls. |
| Chat avatar | Choose the available avatar option; check any custom image at its small displayed size. |
These settings control the visitor-facing widget. Reply access is managed separately in Connections & Access. Enlarge ↗
Expand Appearance: colors and live preview if you need to adjust the widget's colours. Use the preview to check that the title, message bubbles and input remain readable. The preview illustrates appearance; it is not a live conversation test.
Save the settings and wait for Live Chat settings saved. Then open the actual storefront to check placement on both a normal page and a product page.
3. Set working hours and useful status messages
In Working hours and status messages, decide whether the availability label should follow a schedule.
- Check the store timezone printed above the schedule. Times are interpreted in that timezone, not the phone's timezone.
- Enable Use working hours if you want scheduled availability. Select the working days and set a start and end time for each enabled day. The end must be later than the start on that day; a single interval cannot run through midnight.
- Write a Working hours message that sets a realistic expectation, for example “Our team is here until 17:00”.
- Write an Outside working hours message, for example “Leave a message. We will reply on the next working day”.
- Save. Check the storefront's displayed message against the current day and time in the store's timezone.
Turn on Use working hours to reveal the daily schedule. The two messages describe your availability to shoppers. Enlarge ↗
With working hours enabled, the displayed online/away state follows the schedule. It does not prove that a person is currently holding a phone. With the schedule disabled, availability follows recipient presence. Neither mode is an automatic reply bot: shoppers' messages still need a human response.
Outside-hours text describes when to expect a reply. It is separate from the service-access checks that decide whether the widget may appear at all.
4. Prepare quick replies
In the Live Chat settings, add replies for questions you answer repeatedly, such as delivery times or returns. Each quick reply has a short label, a complete reply text and a display order. The module supports up to 10 replies.
Use labels that your team can recognise quickly: “Delivery times” is easier to choose than the first sentence of a long message. Save the reply, then open a conversation in the app and check that it appears in the quick-reply picker.
Selecting a quick reply puts its text into the composer. Read it, adjust any situation-specific details, then send it. Do not put private customer information in shared quick replies.
5. Check a complete conversation
Use a test visitor and an inbox you control. A useful test follows the same route as a real shopper:
- Open the public storefront in a separate browser session. On a product page, open the widget and send a recognisable test question.
- On the intended phone, select the same store and open Live chat. Find the new conversation; the Open filter is useful here.
- Open the conversation and check the shopper's question and any available product context. Send a short reply from the phone.
- Return to the storefront and confirm the reply is visible. This checks both directions.
- Close the conversation in the app when finished, then find it under Closed. Reopen it if you need to continue the exchange.
The app's Messages area is for PrestaShop customer-service threads; Live chat is for storefront widget conversations. Check the right inbox when looking for a test message.
If you also need alerts while the app is in the background, follow Set up phone notifications. Receiving a message with the app open does not verify background push delivery.
If the widget or replies do not work
| Symptom | First check |
|---|---|
| Widget switch is on, but no widget appears | Read the Live Chat status in Overview. Confirm an eligible connection and selected recipient before investigating the theme. |
| Module says recipient status is unconfirmed | Restore the connection and reload the module. Repeatedly switching the widget on and off does not repair access synchronisation. |
| Widget appears in the preview only | Check the real storefront, saved settings and module status. After an update, ask the store administrator to clear generated PrestaShop/theme caches if stale assets remain. |
| Wrong online/away message | Check the store timezone, enabled days and schedule. A phone in a different timezone does not change the store's schedule. |
| Conversation exists, but one colleague cannot open it | Check Live Chat access on that exact device connection and refresh the app. |
| Message arrives in the inbox, but no phone alert | Check Push notifications, operating-system permission, Focus/Do Not Disturb and battery restrictions. Live Chat recipients are controlled through device access in the module. |
Chat conversations are not a permanent support archive: the module automatically removes conversations older than 90 days. Keep any required long-term business records in your normal store support process.