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SMS Chat Widget: How to Convert Website Visitors
An SMS Chat widget captures new leads by encouraging website visitors to start text conversations with you.
We’ll show you how SMS Chat compares to other chat widgets, like AI chatbots and Facebook messenger, plus how to set SMS Chat up.
What is a chat widget?
A chat widget is a small window on a website or app that allows leads and customers to communicate with your business in real-time. Chat widgets can be powered by live chat software or AI chatbots.
Chat widgets like Facebook messenger are a great tool if customers are reaching out to you on social media, but we recommend having a chat tool on your website as well. Potential customers make buying decisions as they browse your website, and they are even more likely to purchase if they can reach you instantly for things like customer service or general inquiries on your homepage.
What is SMS Chat?
SMS Chat is a widget that prompts website visitors to start text message conversations with you. Your replies become texts to the potential customer’s phone, and their contact info is saved for future follow-ups.
The potential customer texts you once using SMS Chat, then they continue the rest of the conversation with you on their mobile device. You also get to keep their contact information for follow-ups.
SMS Chat is user friendly, plus it's a live chat app—which is what potential customers want, instead of using an AI chatbot. The ultimate appeal for new customers is that they can instantly reach a real person for help.
How do you set up an SMS Chat widget?
Before you add SMS Chat to your website, you’ll want to make sure it suits your company’s individual needs. The widget is customizable in a variety of ways, which we’ll break down below.
The Icon and Prompt: This is the first part of the widget website visitors will see. You have the option to add whatever call-to-action you desire to the widget to the contact form, like:
"Schedule your appointment/service!"
"Talk to one of our reps."
"Get a free estimate!"
"Ask about our inventory."
You can also change the size and colors of the icon to match your website, or upload your own image for the button icon.
Header: The top of your form, where you can customize what it says, as well as the background and text color of your message.
Custom Fields: All forms start with the basic fields of Name, Phone Number, and Message. You can add an additional two fields for whatever information you want to collect.
Message Routing: This allows your visitors to select which phone number/dashboard they want their message to go to.
Message Prefill: Activate this feature if you want visitors to be able to send a prewritten message to you without having to type their own.
Language: Select which language you want your chat form to appear in. Text Request currently offers English, Spanish, and French.
Send Button: Finally, customize the text and color of your send button to best fit your new, personalized chat form.
When you finish building your widget and the live preview looks the way you want it, add it to your website by following these steps:
1. Click Publish Settings to save your current version of the widget.
2. Copy the Code Snippet.
3. Paste the code directly into your website’s HTML in the Footer, just before the closing </body> tag.
4. Toggle your SMS Chat Widget on.
Make your changes and select Publish Settings anytime edits are needed.
Want to learn more ways to convert website visitors with SMS?
A business texting platform like, Text Request, can empower your team with even more SMS features to convert leads, including mass texting, keywords, mobile apps, and more. Contact us to learn which text messaging features are best for your business.
