Most visitors who land on your store never open the chat. Not because they don’t have questions — but because opening a chat widget feels like a commitment. They see the button, hesitate, and keep scrolling. By the time they leave, you never had a chance to help them.
Corelex gives you two tools to break that pattern without being intrusive: a soft tooltip bubble that nudges visitors toward the chat, and an auto-open that brings the panel to them. Used well, these turn passive browsers into conversations before they even think to leave.
This guide walks you through configuring both mechanisms and choosing the right level of assertiveness for your store.
What you’ll set up #
Understanding the two mechanisms #
Before configuring anything, it helps to know what each mechanism actually does — because the difference determines which one is right for which situation.
| Mechanism | What it does | Assertiveness |
|---|---|---|
| Tooltip bubble | A small speech bubble appears above the chat button after a delay. The panel stays closed. The visitor can dismiss it or click to open. | Low — a nudge, not an interruption |
| Auto-open | The full chat panel opens automatically — no click required. | High — the panel is in front of the visitor |
The key rule: if auto-open is enabled for a device type, the tooltip is automatically suppressed for that same device. There is no point showing a teaser if the panel is about to open on its own.
Before you start #
Both mechanisms are available on all Corelex plans and require no connector setup — they work independently of whether the Sales Agent or Service Agent is active.
Go to Corelex → Widget → Behavior in your WordPress admin. Both mechanisms are configured from the same screen.
Step 1 – Configure the tooltip bubble #
The tooltip bubble is the right starting point for most stores. It is visible without covering any content, fires once per session, and respects visitors who dismiss it.
Under Tooltip bubble, configure:
| Setting | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Enable tooltip bubble | Which devices see it: All, Desktop only, Mobile only, or Off |
| Delay (seconds) | How long after page load before it appears. Default: 3 seconds |
| Title | Short headline in the bubble — e.g. Need help choosing? |
| Message | Supporting line below the title — e.g. Our AI assistant can help you find the right product. |
Note: Both title and message are translatable per language. If you serve Dutch or French visitors, configure the translated versions under Language Settings — the correct text loads automatically based on the page language.
Writing the tooltip message: Keep the title under five words and make it a question or an offer — not a statement. Need help choosing? outperforms Welcome to our store because it acknowledges why the visitor might want to engage. The supporting message should complete the thought in one sentence.
Step 2 – Configure auto-open #
Auto-open is more assertive. Use it when you have evidence that visitors who engage with the chat convert well, or when you are running a specific campaign and want the agent front and centre.
Under Auto-open chat panel, configure:
| Setting | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Auto-open chat on page load | Which devices trigger it: All, Desktop only, Mobile only, or Off |
| Open after visiting N pages | How many pages the visitor must view in the session before the panel opens |
The page depth setting is the most important decision here.
| Pages threshold | What it targets | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (default) | Opens on the very first page | High-intent landing pages — a product page from a paid ad |
| 2–3 | Opens once the visitor has shown browsing intent | General store use — avoids interrupting accidental arrivals |
| 4+ | Opens for deep-browse visitors who are clearly engaged | Large catalogues where serious shoppers browse extensively before deciding |
Setting this to 1 on a homepage can feel intrusive — the visitor has just arrived and the chat is already open. Setting it to 3 means the panel only opens for visitors who have navigated at least three pages, which is a strong signal of genuine interest.
Step 3 – Set device targeting #
Both mechanisms support three device modes: All, Desktop only, Mobile only.
The practical reason to split them: on mobile, an auto-opened full chat panel covers most of the screen. This can feel disruptive in a way it simply does not on a wider desktop layout.
The most common pattern:
| Device | Mechanism |
|---|---|
| Desktop | Auto-open (page depth 2–3) |
| Mobile | Tooltip only |
This gives desktop visitors a direct invitation while mobile visitors get a lighter nudge they can act on without the page disappearing behind the chat panel.
To configure this: set Auto-open to Desktop only, and set Tooltip bubble to Mobile only. The two settings work independently — each device type gets the right level of assertiveness.
Step 4 – Understand session behaviour #
Both mechanisms fire once per browser session and then stop. Session storage is scoped to the browser tab — it clears when the tab is closed.
What this means in practice:
This is intentional. Showing the same prompt on every page would be annoying; a fresh visit is a new opportunity.
Choosing the right configuration for your store #
Not sure which combination to use? These starting points cover the most common store types:
New store, low traffic, want maximum engagement: Auto-open on All devices, page depth 1. Accept that some visitors will find it assertive — the conversion data will tell you quickly whether it is working.
Established store, varied visitor intent: Auto-open on Desktop only (page depth 2), tooltip on Mobile only (delay 5 seconds). Balanced approach that respects different device contexts.
Content-heavy store or blog-to-shop funnel: Tooltip only on All devices (delay 8 seconds). Visitors are there to read first — a tooltip that appears after they have had time to engage with content feels like a natural offer, not an interruption.
High-intent campaign landing page: Auto-open on All devices, page depth 1. Visitors arrived from an ad with a specific intent — the chat opening immediately can answer the question that would otherwise cause them to bounce.
What these mechanisms do not do #
These are arrival triggers only. They fire based on page load timing and navigation depth — they do not react to what the visitor is doing on the page (scrolling, hovering, or showing exit intent). If a visitor is about to leave without engaging, that is covered by the exit intent feature, which is configured separately.
