SiteAssist

How to Add an AI Chatbot to Your Website in 10 Minutes (No Coding Required)

Step-by-step guide to adding an intelligent AI chatbot to any website in under 10 minutes. Works with WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Webflow, and custom sites - no technical skills needed.

How to Add an AI Chatbot to Your Website in 10 Minutes (No Coding Required)

Want to add an intelligent AI chatbot to your website but think it's too complicated or time-consuming? Think again. In this tutorial, you'll have a fully functional AI assistant live on your website in just 10 minutes - and you won't write a single line of code.

Whether you're running a WordPress blog, Shopify store, custom website, or anything in between, this guide works for you.

What You'll Achieve in 10 Minutes

By the end of this tutorial, you'll have:

All without touching a single line of code.

What You'll Need

Before we start, make sure you have:

No technical expertise, coding knowledge, or developer help required.

Why This Method Works for Any Website

Unlike complex chatbot solutions that require integrations, APIs, and developer resources, this approach uses a simple embed script that works with:

If you can paste a script into your website (like Google Analytics), you can add this chatbot.

AI Chatbot widget on a website This is what your AI chatbot will look like on your website

Step 1: Create Your Free SiteAssist Account (2 minutes)

First, you'll need a SiteAssist account. Don't worry - the free plan includes everything you need to get started, and there's no credit card required.

  1. Go to siteassist.io/register
  2. Sign up with your email or use Google sign-in
  3. Verify your email address (check your inbox)
  4. Complete the quick onboarding flow:
    • Create your workspace (name it after your company)
    • Create your first project (name it after your website)

That's it! You now have a SiteAssist account and your first project is ready to go.

Free Plan Includes:

Need more? You can always upgrade later or start with a 30-day free trial of any paid plan.

Step 2: Set Up Your Website Crawler (3 minutes)

Now comes the magic. Instead of manually teaching your chatbot about your business, SiteAssist's smart crawler automatically reads your entire website and trains the AI on your content.

Create Your Crawler

  1. From your project dashboard, click "Web Crawlers" in the sidebar
  2. Click the "Add Crawler" button
  3. Fill in the crawler details:

Name: Give it a descriptive name like "Main Website" or "Company Site"

Start URL: Enter your website's homepage URL

https://yourwebsite.com

Preset: Choose the type that best matches your site:

  1. (Optional) Click "Advanced Settings" if you want to:

    • Exclude specific pages (e.g., /admin, /checkout)
    • Set a maximum page limit
    • Configure crawl depth

  2. Click "Create & Start Indexing"

Web crawler configuration interface The crawler setup interface - just enter your URL and hit go

What Happens Next?

Your crawler immediately starts working:

You'll see a progress bar and real-time logs showing which pages are being crawled. Don't worry - the crawler only reads your public content and doesn't affect your website's performance.

Pro Tip: If you have a large website (100+ pages), the crawler might take a bit longer. You can move to the next step while it works in the background!

Step 3: Customize Your AI Assistant (2 minutes)

While your crawler is working (or after it finishes), let's personalize your AI assistant to match your brand.

Navigate to Assistant Settings

  1. Click "Assistants" in the sidebar
  2. Click on your default assistant (usually named "Default Assistant")
  3. You'll see multiple customization tabs

Basic Information

Display Name: What your chatbot introduces itself as

Example: "Alex from Acme Support"

Welcome Message: The first thing visitors see

Example: "👋 Hi! I'm here to help you find what you need. Ask me anything about our products or services!"

System Prompt: How your assistant behaves (this is powerful!)

Example: "You are a friendly customer support assistant for Acme Corp.
Be helpful, concise, and professional. Always try to guide users to
relevant products or services. If you don't know something,
politely say so and offer to connect them with our team."

Assistant customization interface Customize your assistant's personality and appearance

Appearance Settings

Theme Color: Choose a color that matches your brand

Position: Where the chat widget appears

Widget Style:

Advanced Settings (Optional)

Conversation Starters: Add suggested questions to help visitors

Examples:
- "What services do you offer?"
- "How much does it cost?"
- "How do I get started?"

Business Hours: Set when to offer human handoff Email Notifications: Get notified of new conversations

Save your changes when you're done customizing.

Step 4: Test Your AI Assistant (1 minute)

Before going live, let's make sure everything works perfectly.

Use the Built-in Playground

  1. Look for the "Test Assistant" or "Playground" button
  2. Click it to open the testing interface
  3. Try asking questions like:
    • "What does your company do?"
    • "What are your pricing plans?"
    • "How do I contact support?"

The AI should respond with accurate information from your website. If answers seem off, wait for the crawler to finish or add more Q&As manually.

Assistant playground testing interface Test your assistant before going live

Add Manual Q&As (Optional)

If your AI doesn't have certain information, you can add it manually:

  1. Go to "Knowledge Base" → "Q&As"
  2. Click "Add Q&A"
  3. Enter a question and answer
  4. Save and test again

Example:

Step 5: Embed Your Chatbot (2 minutes)

Now for the final step - adding your chatbot to your website!

Get Your Embed Code

  1. Click "Assistants" → "Installation" (or look for an "Embed" tab)
  2. You'll see two installation options:

Option A: Widget Script (Recommended)

<script src="https://widgets.siteassist.io/widget.js"
        data-project-id="your-project-id"
        async>
</script>

Option B: Iframe Embed

<iframe src="https://widgets.siteassist.io/chat/your-project-id"
        style="border: none; position: fixed; bottom: 20px; right: 20px;">
</iframe>
  1. Click "Copy to Clipboard"

Widget installation code Copy your unique embed code

Add to Your Website

The exact steps depend on your platform:

For WordPress:

  1. Go to Appearance → Theme Editor
  2. Edit footer.php or use a plugin like "Insert Headers and Footers"
  3. Paste the script before the closing </body> tag
  4. Save changes

For Shopify:

  1. Go to Online Store → Themes → Actions → Edit Code
  2. Open theme.liquid
  3. Paste the script before </body>
  4. Save

For Wix:

  1. Go to Settings → Custom Code
  2. Click "+ Add Custom Code"
  3. Paste the script
  4. Set it to load on "All pages" in the "Body - end"
  5. Apply

For Webflow:

  1. Go to Project Settings → Custom Code
  2. Paste the script in "Footer Code"
  3. Publish your site

For Custom HTML Sites:

  1. Open your HTML file
  2. Paste the script before the closing </body> tag
  3. Upload the updated file

For React/Next.js:

  1. Add the script to your _document.js or _app.js
  2. Or use a Script component:
<Script
  src="https://widgets.siteassist.io/widget.js"
  data-project-id="your-project-id"
  strategy="lazyOnload"
/>

Verify Installation

  1. Visit your website in a new browser tab
  2. You should see the chat widget appear in the bottom corner
  3. Click it and send a test message
  4. Congratulations! Your AI chatbot is live! 🎉

Live chatbot on website Your AI chatbot is now live and helping visitors!

Troubleshooting Common Issues

The Widget Doesn't Appear

Check these:

Solution: Re-copy the embed code and make sure your project is active in the dashboard.

The AI Gives Incorrect Answers

Possible causes:

Solution: Wait for crawling to complete, then test again. Add any missing information manually.

The Widget Looks Wrong

Style conflicts:

Solution: Contact SiteAssist support - we can help adjust widget styling to match your site perfectly.

Messages Aren't Being Tracked

Check:

Solution: Go to Settings → API Keys and verify your configuration.

Best Practices for Success

Now that your chatbot is live, here are some tips to maximize its effectiveness:

1. Monitor and Improve

Check your conversations regularly:

2. Optimize Your System Prompt

Your system prompt is powerful. Good prompts include:

Example of a great prompt:

You are Emma, a friendly customer support assistant for GreenTech Solutions,
a solar panel installation company. Be helpful, professional, and enthusiastic
about sustainable energy.

Key priorities:
- Always ask for location (we serve California only)
- Mention our 25-year warranty on all installations
- For pricing questions, encourage booking a free home assessment
- If someone asks about technical installation details, offer to connect them
  with our engineering team

Be concise but thorough. Use emojis sparingly (☀️ 💚 are okay). Never
make promises about specific pricing without an assessment.

3. Add Conversation Starters

Help visitors know what to ask:

4. Set Up AI Actions (Advanced)

Take your chatbot further with AI Actions:

Learn more about AI Actions →

5. Keep Your Content Updated

When you update your website:

Measuring Success

Track your chatbot's performance in the Analytics section:

Key Metrics to Watch:

Good benchmarks:

Scaling Beyond the Free Plan

As your website grows, you might need more:

When to Upgrade:

Paid Plans Include:

View pricing →

Real Results from Real Businesses

Here's what businesses are seeing after adding their AI chatbot:

"We added the chatbot on Friday, and by Monday we had answered 147 questions without lifting a finger. It's like having a support rep who never sleeps." - Sarah M., SaaS Founder

"Installation took literally 8 minutes. We went from idea to live chatbot in the time it takes to grab coffee." - James T., E-commerce Store Owner

"Our bounce rate dropped by 23% in the first month. Visitors are getting answers immediately instead of leaving." - Maria L., Marketing Director

What Makes This Different from Other Chatbots?

You might be wondering how this compares to other chatbot solutions:

FeatureSiteAssistTraditional ChatbotsDIY with ChatGPT
Setup Time10 minutesHours to daysComplex integration
Coding RequiredNoneOften yesSignificant
Learns Your SiteAutomaticManual trainingManual setup
PricingFree tier available$50-500+/monthAPI costs + dev time
CustomizationFull controlLimitedFull but complex
MaintenanceAutomatic updatesManual updatesOngoing dev work

SiteAssist gives you the power of custom AI without the complexity or cost.

Common Questions

Q: Will this slow down my website? A: No! The script loads asynchronously, so it won't affect your page load speed. It's lighter than most analytics scripts.

Q: Can I remove SiteAssist branding? A: Yes! Paid plans include white-label options to remove "Powered by SiteAssist" branding.

Q: What happens when I hit the free tier limit? A: Your chatbot will display a message that you've reached your monthly limit. You can upgrade anytime to continue service.

Q: Can I use this on multiple websites? A: Yes! Create separate projects for each website. The free plan includes 1 project; paid plans include multiple projects.

Q: Is my data secure? A: Absolutely. We're GDPR compliant, encrypt all data, and never train our models on your conversations. Read our privacy policy →

Q: Can I customize the widget design? A: Yes! You can customize colors, position, welcome messages, and more. Advanced CSS customization is available on paid plans.

Q: What if the AI doesn't know something? A: The AI will politely say it doesn't know and can offer to connect the visitor with your human support team. You can also add manual Q&As anytime.

Q: Does this work with languages other than English? A: Yes! The AI supports 100+ languages and will respond in whatever language the visitor uses.

Next Steps

Congratulations! You now have a fully functional AI chatbot on your website. Here's what to do next:

Immediate Actions:

  1. ✅ Share the news with your team
  2. ✅ Monitor your first conversations
  3. ✅ Add any missing Q&As you discover
  4. ✅ Test the chatbot on mobile devices

This Week:

This Month:

Take Your Chatbot Further

Want to unlock more power? Check out these resources:

Get Started Right Now

Ready to add an AI chatbot to your website? It takes just 10 minutes:

👉 Start your free account at SiteAssist.io

No credit card required. No coding needed. No catch.

Need help? Our team is here for you! Email support@siteassist.io or use the chatbot on our website (yes, we use SiteAssist too! 😊)

Have you added your AI chatbot yet? Share your experience or questions in the comments below!