Configure your availability and automatic first reply in Shopify Inbox.
To help manage your customer's expectations when they use your online store chat, you can set up hours of availability and customize an automatic first reply that's sent when the customer sends you a message. By default, your hours of availability are set to always available.
You can set up different automatic first reply messages depending on whether the customer messages you during your hours of availability.
On this page
Set up your hours of availability
From your Shopify admin, click Settings > Apps and sales channels.
From the Apps and sales channels page, click Shopify Inbox.
Click Open sales channel.
Click Chat settings, and then click Availability.
Use the drop-down menus to select a start and an end time for each day of the week that you're available to respond to online store chats.
Optional: To set your availability as always available for a specific day, for that day, click the … menu, and then click Select all hours for this day.
Optional: You can copy the set hours of a particular day to all days of the week. For the day that you want to copy, click the … menu, and then click Apply these hours to all days to set the same schedule for the entire week.
Click Save.
First reply messages
You can set up two different automated first reply messages that are sent when a customer starts a new chat, a during available hours reply, and an outside of available hours reply. By default, automated first reply messages are turned off.
The during available hours message is sent to customers who start a chat during the hours that you set as available. You can use this first reply to ask for any additional information that you need from your customer, and let them know when to expect a reply.
The outside of available hours message is sent to customers who start a chat outside of the hours that you set as available. You can use this message to let your customer know that you're not available, and when to expect a reply.
Turn on automatic first reply messages
From your Shopify admin, click Settings > Apps and sales channels.
From the Apps and sales channels page, click Shopify Inbox.
Click Open sales channel.
Click Chat settings, and then click Availability.
In the Automated first reply section, click Turn on.
Optional: In the Automated first reply section, click During available hours to customize the message that's sent to customers during your available hours.
Optional: In the Automated first reply section, click Outside of available hours to customize the message that's sent to customers outside of your available hours.
You can edit your automated first reply messages at any time by going to Chat settings > Availability in the Shopify Inbox channel.