A storefront concierge that answers product questions, recovers carts, and closes the sale — powered by Claude AI, right inside your storefront chat widget.
A few things need to be in place before the Shopping & Support Agent can run. Skim both lists — the second one saves support tickets later.
Eight steps from install to live chat on your storefront.
From the Commerce Ace listing, click Install. The Shopping & Support Agent embeds inside your Shopify admin under Apps — no separate login required.
In Settings → General, set your Agent Name — the name shoppers see in the chat header. Write a Welcome Message that invites them to engage. Choose a Tone that matches your brand: Friendly, Professional, Enthusiastic, or Concise. Finally set the Widget Position — Bottom Left or Bottom Right.
In Settings → Appearance, customize the chat widget to match your brand. Set your Primary Color for the header background, Secondary Color for supporting elements, Header Font Color for the agent name text, and individual colors for the Expand Button, Close Button, and Send Button. Growth and Pro plans unlock full color control.
In Settings → Guided Shopping Agent Behavior, control what Claude shows in product responses. Toggle on Show product images, Show product prices, and Show product availability to give shoppers complete context. Enable Restrict to catalog only to prevent off-topic responses. Set Max Products to Return to control how many product cards appear per recommendation — 3 to 5 is the sweet spot.
In Settings → Knowledge Base, give Claude the context it needs to represent your store accurately. The Store Description is the single most impactful field — describe your products, brand, and audience in 2–4 sentences. Add your Return & Shipping Policy so Claude can answer policy questions accurately. Enter Suggested Questions to show quick-tap prompts in the chat widget — these drive engagement from shoppers who aren't sure what to ask.
In Settings → Customer Support Agent, configure how the agent handles support requests. Enable Order Lookup (Pro plan) to let customers check order status by email or order number in real time. Add your Support Email so Claude can direct customers to the right place when a request is outside its scope. Write an Escalation Message that Claude uses when handing off to your team. When everything looks good, click Save Settings.
In Shopify Admin, go to Online Store → Themes → Customize → App Embeds and toggle on the Commerce Ace Shopping Agent. From here you can also set the Agent Name, Welcome Message, and Suggested Questions directly in the storefront context. Pro plan unlocks a custom Chat Bubble Icon (120×120px PNG) and Header Icon (108×108px PNG). Set Agent Position and adjust Bottom Offset if a cookie banner overlaps the widget. Save the theme when done.
Once enabled, a chat bubble appears on your storefront in the position you selected. Shoppers click it to open the widget — they'll see your welcome message and suggested question chips. As they type, Claude responds with conversational answers and product recommendation cards showing image, title, price, and availability. Pro plan shoppers can ask about their order status by providing their email or order number and get a live answer instantly.
Every setting lives under Shopping Agent → Settings. These are the ones that most affect response quality.
| Setting | What it does | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| Agent Name | The name shown in the chat widget header — what shoppers see. | Match your brand voice |
| Welcome Message | The first message customers see when they open the chat. | Short and inviting — ask what they're looking for |
| Tone | Friendly, Professional, Enthusiastic, or Concise — shapes every Claude response. | Matches your store's existing copy |
| Widget Position | Bottom Left or Bottom Right placement on the storefront. | Bottom Right — avoids most cookie banners |
| Primary Color | Header background color of the chat widget. Growth + Pro only. | Your store's primary brand color hex |
| Store Description | What Claude reads to understand your store. Used in every single response. | 2–4 sentences, accurate and specific |
| Return & Shipping Policy | Claude reads this to answer policy questions accurately without guessing. | Copy your actual policy text |
| Suggested Questions | Quick-tap prompts shown when the chat opens. Drives engagement. | 3–4 questions matching your most common shopper intents |
| Order Lookup | Real-time order status via Shopify Orders API. Pro plan only. | On (Pro plan) |
| Max Products to Return | How many product cards appear per recommendation response. | 3–5 products |
| Restrict to catalog only | Prevents Claude from answering off-topic or making unverified claims. | On |
| Bottom Offset (px) | Distance from the bottom edge of the screen. Increase if a banner overlaps the widget. | 20px default, 80px with cookie banner |
What we tell every Commerce Ace merchant on their onboarding call.
Fill in your store description thoroughly
The store description is the single most impactful setting. Include your product categories, brand story, target customer, return policy, and any services you offer.
Keep product titles and descriptions accurate
Claude answers from your live Shopify catalog. If products have vague titles or empty descriptions, the agent's recommendations will be generic.
Test in an incognito window
The widget persists conversation history for 8 hours. Always test in incognito to see what a first-time visitor experiences.
Enable order lookup on Pro
Order status questions are the most common support request. Pro plan includes live order lookup — customers get answers instantly without emailing you.
Set a clear escalation message
Add an escalation message for when customers ask about things the agent can't handle — cancellations, address changes. Point them to your support email directly.
Growth plan unlocks full color customization
On Growth and Pro plans, you can fully customize every widget color — header, buttons, close icon — to match your storefront exactly.
The most common cause is the App Embed not being toggled on. Go to Online Store → Themes → Customize → App Embeds and make sure the Commerce Ace Shopping Agent is enabled. Save the theme after toggling it on.
Open the app in Shopify Admin and click Activate if you haven't already. The app needs to be activated at least once to connect to your store. Go back to the storefront and try again.
No — those actions stay in Shopify. The agent can look up order status (Pro plan) and explain your return policy, but it directs customers to your support team for order changes.
It pulls your live Shopify catalog on every conversation. Products with detailed titles and descriptions get recommended more accurately than ones with sparse information.
8 hours. After that, the session resets and the customer starts fresh. This prevents stale conversations from carrying over between shopping sessions.
Yes — install the app on each store separately. Each store has its own settings, catalog, and conversation history.
