The idea borrows from a shop floor, where an assistant offers help after seeing someone linger. Online, the equivalent is a short contextual message on a high-intent page, such as pricing or checkout, offering to answer a specific question. Generic invitations perform poorly; messages that reference what the visitor is actually looking at do better.
Proactive chat is easy to overdo. Popping up immediately on every page, repeating after dismissal, or covering content on mobile makes it an irritation rather than a service. Sensible implementations delay the trigger, limit it to pages where questions are likely, respect a dismissal for the rest of the session, and keep the invitation small and easy to close.
Clerkzo supports this pattern through configuration in Widget Studio, where the greeting, the pages it appears on, and the quick-reply chips offered alongside it are all set without touching code. Used sparingly on pages where visitors hesitate, it turns a passive widget into an opening question.
Related guides
Related terms
Browse all 104 terms- Website chat widgetA website chat widget is the small chat window, usually in the corner of a website, that lets visitors ask questions and get help without leaving the page.
- Live chatLive chat is a chat window on a website that a member of the business's team answers in real time, as opposed to an automated chatbot.
- Chat LauncherA chat launcher is the small, persistent button on a website, usually in a bottom corner, that a visitor clicks or taps to open the chat window. It is the entry point to the whole conversation.
- Chat BubbleA chat bubble is the rounded container that holds one message in a chat interface, visually separating what the visitor said from what the assistant replied. It is the basic unit of a conversation on screen.