Chatbot Installation Guide

For your website's IT staff or developer

No API key in this URL. The code snippets below show a placeholder (YOUR_API_KEY). Your SmallTalk contact will send you a personalised link with your key already filled in.

What you're installing

This guide walks you through adding the SmallTalk chatbot to your website. The chatbot appears as a small button in the bottom-right corner of your site. Visitors can click it to ask questions 24 hours a day.

Installation is a copy-paste of two lines of HTML into your website's template. No software needs to be installed on your server — the chatbot is hosted by SmallTalk.

Time required: 5–15 minutes, depending on your website platform.
1

Your API key

This key is unique to your business. It tells the chatbot which account and configuration to load.

Your API key will appear here in the personalised link sent by SmallTalk.
Keep this key private. Don't share it publicly or post it on social media. If you believe it has been exposed, contact SmallTalk immediately.
2

The embed code

Choose how the chatbot should appear on your page, then copy the snippet.

Floats a launcher button in the corner of every page of your site — best as a site-wide support option.

HTML
<!-- SmallTalk Chatbot Widget -->
<script type="module" src="https://smalltalk.co.nz/js/adk-chatbot-widget.es.js"></script>
<adk-chatbot api-key="YOUR_API_KEY"></adk-chatbot>
Line 1 loads the SmallTalk chatbot code from our servers.
Line 2 places the chatbot on your page, linked to your account via the API key.
3

Where to paste it

Add the code once in your website's shared page template so it appears on every page. Place it just before the closing </body> tag.

HTML
    <!-- ... rest of your page content ... -->

    <!-- SmallTalk Chatbot Widget -->
    <script type="module" src="https://smalltalk.co.nz/js/adk-chatbot-widget.es.js"></script>
    <adk-chatbot api-key="YOUR_API_KEY"></adk-chatbot>

</body>
</html>

WordPress

  1. 1.Log into your WordPress admin dashboard.
  2. 2.Go to Appearance → Theme File Editor and open footer.php.
  3. 3.Paste the two lines immediately before </body>.
  4. 4.Click Update File to save.
Easier option: Install the free plugin WPCode (formerly Insert Headers and Footers). Paste the code into the Footer section — no theme file editing required.

Squarespace

  1. 1.Go to Settings → Advanced → Code Injection.
  2. 2.Paste the code into the Footer field.
  3. 3.Click Save.

Wix

  1. 1.In the Wix Editor, go to Settings → Custom Code.
  2. 2.Click + Add Custom Code.
  3. 3.Paste the code, set placement to Body — end, apply to All Pages, then click Apply.

Custom HTML site

  1. 1.Open your site's main layout template (often index.html or a shared master template).
  2. 2.Find the closing </body> tag and paste the two lines directly above it.
  3. 3.Save and redeploy/upload the file to your server.
4

Verify it's working

  1. 1.Open your website in a browser. Use an incognito/private window to ensure a fresh load.
  2. 2.Look for a chat button in the bottom-right corner of the page.
  3. 3.Click it and type a test message.
  4. 4.The chatbot should respond within a few seconds.
Success: If you see the chat bubble and receive a response, installation is complete. No further action needed on your end.
Don't see the button? Try clearing your browser cache (Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows, Cmd+Shift+R on Mac) and reloading. If it still doesn't appear, see the troubleshooting section below.
5

Troubleshooting

Chat button doesn't appear
Code wasn't saved, or placed in the wrong file
Check the code is in the footer template that loads on every page. View page source (right-click → View Page Source) and search for "adk-chatbot".
Button appears but sends no response
Browser security policy or ad blocker
Try a different browser without extensions. If it works there, a visitor's ad blocker may be interfering — this affects a small minority of users.
Error message or blank response
Temporary service issue
Wait a minute and try again. If the problem persists for more than 10 minutes, contact SmallTalk support.
Button appears on some pages but not others
Code placed in a page-specific template instead of the site-wide footer
Move the code to the global footer template that applies to all pages.
Issue
Likely cause
What to try
Browser console errors? Open developer tools (F12) and check the Console tab for red error messages. Copy and paste them into your support email — it significantly speeds up diagnosis.

Technical notes

Browser support
All modern browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge). Internet Explorer is not supported.
Performance
The script loads asynchronously and does not block your page from rendering.
Data & cookies
A session ID is stored in the visitor's browser (sessionStorage). No cookies are set. Sessions expire after 10 minutes of inactivity.
CSS isolation
The widget uses Shadow DOM — it will not affect or be affected by your existing site styles.
HTTPS
Your website must be served over HTTPS (the padlock icon in the browser address bar). Most modern websites already are.

What to set up in the admin panel

Once the widget is live, most day-to-day configuration happens in the admin panel at admin.smalltalk.co.nz. Each agent has a tabbed editor — here's what lives in each tab.

Appearance
Header banner image, logo, primary brand colour, title text and title colour. The widget UI adapts automatically.
Messaging
Custom greeting and suggested questions. Both can be translated per language — the widget auto-detects the visitor's language and picks the right copy.
Languages
Toggle which languages the agent supports. Auto-detection is on by default; translated copy falls back gracefully if a language isn't configured.
Deployment
Switch between Bubble and Inline embed modes, restrict to specific domains, or temporarily disable the widget without removing the embed code.
Notifications
Opt in to per-conversation emails, or weekly / monthly summary emails of captured leads and chat activity.
Conversations
Read full transcripts of every chat the agent has had. Useful for spotting gaps in your agent's knowledge.
Changes in the admin panel take effect immediately — no need to redeploy the embed code.

Need help?

Contact SmallTalk Support

ResponseWithin 1 business day

When contacting support, please include the URL of the page where you're trying to install the widget, your website platform (WordPress, Squarespace, etc.), and any error messages you've seen.