- Docs
- Guides
Proactive messages
Proactive messages (auto messages) start the conversation for you. Pick the pages and visitors you want to reach, and a short message from a teammate pops up after a delay you choose.
How auto messages work
You create auto messages in Automation → Auto messages, which workspace owners and admins can open. Each one has a message, an optional sender, an audience and a frequency.
When a visitor loads a page, TalkingDot first checks who they are: contact type, country, device, language, number of visits and whether your team is online. The messenger then checks the page itself, meaning the URL and how long the visitor has been on the page. When everything matches, the message is shown. Single-page apps work too, because the messenger re-checks the rules whenever the URL changes.
Create an auto message
- Open Automation → Auto messages and create one. Give it an internal name, such as “Pricing page – 30 s”.
- Write the message. Keep it to one or two sentences. You can use
{{contact.first_name}}(it becomes “there” when the name is unknown) and{{agent.first_name}}for the sender. - Choose a sender. Pick a teammate so the visitor sees a real name and face (see Sender).
- Set the audience and frequency using the options below.
- Set it live. New auto messages start paused. Switch to live when you're happy, and pause it any time.
Targeting options
| Option | How it matches |
|---|---|
| Page URL | Any page, or the URL contains, is, starts with or does not contain a value. Separate several values with commas. “Is” ignores the query string, the # part and a trailing slash. “Starts with” accepts a full URL or a path such as /blog. Matching ignores upper and lower case. |
| Time on page | Seconds to wait after the page loads, from 0 to 3,600. Defaults to 5. |
| Number of visits | Only visitors with at least this many visits. A new visit starts after 30 minutes without activity. |
| Contact type | Visitors (anonymous), leads (left a name, email or phone) and/or users (identified by your site). Empty means everyone. |
| Country | Two-letter country codes, comma-separated, such as US, GB, DE. |
| Device | Any, desktop, or mobile. Mobile includes tablets. |
| Language | The browser's two-letter language code, such as es. |
| Only when online | Show it only while someone on your team is available. |
| Skip open conversations | On by default. Visitors who already have an open conversation don't get the message. |
Note: Auto messages follow your messenger's visibility rules. They aren't shown on pages where the messenger is hidden, on the hosted chat page, or to blocked visitors.
Frequency
- Once: each contact sees the message one time, ever.
- Once per session: the message can come back on the visitor's next visit (after 30 minutes away), but never twice in the same visit.
A message counts as delivered when it pops up, even if the visitor dismisses it.
Sender
With a teammate as sender, the visitor sees that teammate's name and avatar. If the visitor replies, the new conversation is assigned to that teammate. Without a sender, the message comes from your team name and the conversation follows your normal assignment rules. If the sender has since left the workspace, the conversation also follows the normal rules.
What visitors see
When the rules match and the messenger is closed, a small card appears above the launcher with the sender's avatar, name and message. A notification sound plays if messenger sounds are on. The visitor can:
- Click the card to open the messenger with your message at the top of a new conversation, ready for a reply.
- Dismiss it with the close button. Nothing else happens.
Only one card shows at a time. Nothing pops up while the messenger is already open.
How replies land in the inbox
A conversation is created only when the visitor actually replies. It starts with your proactive message, then the visitor's reply. It appears in the sender's Your inbox, or in Unassigned if there was no sender. Your routing rules in Automation → Rules still run, and so do the first reply or away message. Chatbots don't run on these conversations, because your message has already started them.
Tip: When a teammate is the sender, turn on Only when online so someone is around to answer the reply.
Examples by page type
| Page | Targeting | Message idea |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | URL contains /pricing, 30 s, only when online | “Hi {{contact.first_name}}! Comparing plans? I'm happy to help you pick the right one.” |
| Checkout or cart | URL contains /checkout, 60 s | “Any questions about shipping or payment before you order? Just reply here.” |
| Docs or help pages | URL starts with /docs, 90 s, at least 3 visits | “Still digging? Tell us what you're trying to do and we'll point you to the right place.” |
| Signup page | URL contains /signup, contact type: visitor | “Setting up takes about two minutes. Shout if anything is unclear.” |
| Returning visitors | Any page, at least 5 visits, once | “Welcome back! Is there anything we can help you decide?” |
| International visitors | Country DE, AT, CH, language de | A short greeting in German from a German-speaking teammate. |
Good proactive messages are short and specific to the page, and they ask a question the visitor can answer in one line.
Measuring results
For every auto message, TalkingDot keeps three counts:
- Sent: how many times it popped up.
- Opened: how many visitors clicked the card.
- Replied: how many visitors answered, which started a conversation.
Compare replies with sends to see what works, and pause messages that get dismissed. In Reports, conversations started by replying to an auto message count as new conversations. They also show up under top pages, which tells you which pages bring in the most conversations. Try one change at a time, such as delay, wording or sender, and compare over a couple of weeks.
Related: Chatbots for visitors who start the conversation themselves, and the JavaScript API to open the messenger from your own buttons.