RMS Shop Assistant — Store Manager's Manual

Give your customers instant answers. RMS Shop Assistant adds an AI-powered chat widget to your product pages that answers questions about products, shipping, returns, and store policies — all from your existing Shopify data.

Table of Contents

• 1. Getting Started
  • 1.1 Installing the App
  • 1.2 How It Works — Overview
  • 1.3 What the Assistant Knows
• 2. Dashboard
  • 2.1 Plan and Usage
  • 2.2 Conversation Stats
  • 2.3 Recent Conversations
  • 2.4 Escalation Summary
• 3. Getting Started Guide
• 4. Settings
  • 4.1 Assistant Identity
  • 4.2 Behaviour
  • 4.3 Escalation
  • 4.4 Topics
  • 4.5 Installed Apps
  • 4.6 Language
  • 4.7 Widget Appearance (Theme Editor)
• 5. The Chat Widget
  • 5.1 How Customers Use the Widget
  • 5.2 Topic Quick-Buttons
  • 5.3 AI Responses
  • 5.4 Suggested Follow-Ups
  • 5.5 Escalation to Human Support
• 6. Escalations
  • 6.1 Viewing Escalations
  • 6.2 Responding to Escalations
  • 6.3 Email Notifications
• 7. Analytics
  • 7.1 Overview Metrics
  • 7.2 Product Engagement
  • 7.3 Advanced Analytics
• 8. Subscription Plans and Billing
  • 8.1 Plan Comparison
  • 8.2 Startup Plan (Free)
  • 8.3 Growth Plan
  • 8.4 Professional Plan
  • 8.5 Enterprise Plan
  • 8.6 Annual Billing Discount
  • 8.7 Free Trial
  • 8.8 Upgrading, Downgrading, and Cancelling
  • 8.9 Conversation Limits
• 9. Privacy and Data Handling
• 10. Frequently Asked Questions
• 11. Troubleshooting
• 12. Support

1. Getting Started

1.1 Installing the App

1. Visit the RMS Shop Assistant listing on the Shopify App Store.
2. Click Add app and authorise the requested permissions.
3. The app installs automatically and you are redirected to the Dashboard inside your Shopify admin.

The chat widget is delivered as a theme app extension and appears on your product pages automatically — no code changes are required.

1.2 How It Works — Overview

RMS Shop Assistant works in three simple steps:

1. Install and configure — Install the app and personalise your assistant's name, personality, and welcome message.
2. Customers ask questions — A chat widget appears on your product pages. Customers click it to ask questions about products, shipping, returns, and more.
3. AI provides answers — The assistant uses your actual store data — product descriptions, pricing, stock levels, store policies, and active discounts — to give accurate, helpful answers instantly.

No training or data upload is required. The assistant reads your Shopify data automatically.

1.3 What the Assistant Knows

The assistant draws all its knowledge from your live Shopify data:

Tip: The more detailed your product descriptions and store policies are, the better the assistant's answers will be.

2. Dashboard

The Dashboard is your home screen, providing an at-a-glance overview of your assistant's activity.

2.1 Plan and Usage

A card at the top shows your current plan and how many conversations have been used this month. A progress bar fills as usage increases, turning red when you approach your plan's limit.

2.2 Conversation Stats

Three key metrics are displayed:

2.3 Recent Conversations

The five most recent conversations are listed, showing the product the customer was viewing (or "General inquiry"), a preview of the last message, and the date.

2.4 Escalation Summary

A sidebar shows escalation counts grouped by status: Pending, In Progress, Responded, and Closed. If there are pending escalations, a "Needs attention" badge is displayed.

3. Getting Started Guide

The Getting Started page provides a step-by-step onboarding wizard with a progress tracker:

1. Install the App — Confirms the app is installed and connected to your store.
2. Configure Your Assistant — Personalise the assistant's name, welcome message, and personality in Settings.
3. Add Support Email — Provide a contact email for when the assistant cannot answer a question.
4. Test Your Assistant — Visit a product page on your storefront to see the assistant in action.

Each step is marked as complete once finished. The page also includes tips for success and quick links to Settings, Analytics, Escalations, and Billing.

4. Settings

All configuration is done on the Settings page within the app.

4.1 Assistant Identity

Custom personality selection requires a paid plan. Free plan users use the default "Friendly and helpful" personality.

4.2 Behaviour

4.3 Escalation

Escalation is available on Growth, Professional, and Enterprise plans only.

4.4 Topics

You can add or remove topics from either list to control what the assistant will and will not discuss with customers.

4.5 Installed Apps

If you have other Shopify apps installed that customers might find useful (for example, a size chart app or a "back in stock" notifier), you can register them here. For each app, enter:

• App name — The name of the app (e.g., "RMS Size Helper")
• Button label — What the customer sees on the page (e.g., "Size Guide")

When a customer asks a relevant question, the assistant will suggest they use that app and tell them which button to look for.

4.6 Language

Ten languages are supported: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Italian, and Dutch.

On Professional and Enterprise plans, the assistant can automatically detect the customer's browser language and respond in that language. On lower plans, the assistant always responds in the default language.

4.7 Widget Appearance (Theme Editor)

Additional visual settings are configured directly in the Shopify theme editor, not in the app Settings page:

1. Go to Online Store > Themes > Customize.
2. Navigate to a product page template.
3. Select the RMS Shop Assistant block to see its settings.

5. The Chat Widget

This is what your customers see on your storefront.

5.1 How Customers Use the Widget

A floating chat button appears in the bottom corner of product pages (and collection pages, if enabled). Customers click it to open the chat panel.

If auto-greet is enabled, the widget automatically opens after the configured delay and displays your welcome message along with topic quick-buttons.

When the widget is closed and an auto-greet message has fired, a small notification badge appears on the chat button to draw attention.

5.2 Topic Quick-Buttons

After the welcome message, customers see a set of quick-select buttons for common topics:

• Product Details — Ask about the current product
• Promotions — Check for current promotions or discounts
• Shipping — Ask about shipping options and delivery
• Returns — Ask about the return policy
• Privacy Policy — Ask about data privacy
• Sizing Help — Ask about sizing and fit

Customers can tap a button to start a conversation on that topic, or simply type their own question.

A Browse topics button is also available after every AI reply, allowing customers to return to the topic list at any time.

5.3 AI Responses

The assistant responds in real time. While the AI is composing a reply, an animated typing indicator is shown.

Responses can include formatted text (bold, italic, bullet points, numbered lists, and headings) as well as clickable links. The assistant may link to specific pages on your store when relevant (for example, linking to your returns policy page).

The assistant is aware of which section of the product page the customer is currently viewing and tailors responses accordingly.

5.4 Suggested Follow-Ups

After each AI reply, two to three suggested follow-up questions appear as clickable chips. Customers can tap a suggestion to continue the conversation or type their own question instead.

5.5 Escalation to Human Support

When the assistant determines it cannot confidently answer a question — or when the conversation reaches the escalation threshold — customers are offered the option to submit their question for human follow-up.

The escalation flow:

1. The assistant asks: "Would you like to submit your question for a human to follow up?"
2. The customer clicks Yes, get human help.
3. A short form appears asking for:
   • Category — Product Information, Shipping, Returns, Pricing, or Other
   • Email address — Pre-filled if the customer is logged in
   • Question — A text field for their question
4. The customer submits the form, and the escalation is created.

Escalation is available on Growth, Professional, and Enterprise plans only. On the free plan, the assistant directs customers to your support email address instead.

6. Escalations

The Escalations page is where you manage questions that customers have escalated to your support team.

6.1 Viewing Escalations

Escalations are listed with the most recent first, 20 per page. You can filter by:

• Status — Pending, In Progress, Responded, or Closed
• Category — Shipping, Returns, Product Information, Pricing, or Other

Each escalation shows the customer's email, the category, the product they were viewing, and a preview of their question.

6.2 Responding to Escalations

Click any escalation to open its detail view, which includes:

• The customer's full question
• The complete conversation history (up to 20 messages), showing both the customer's messages and the assistant's replies
• A response text area

Available actions:

6.3 Email Notifications

When a customer submits an escalation, you receive an email notification (if an escalation notification email is configured in Settings). The email includes the category, product name, the customer's email address, their question, and a link to view the escalation in your dashboard.

When you respond to an escalation, the customer receives an email containing their original question and your response, with a suggestion to return to the store if they have further questions.

7. Analytics

The Analytics page provides insights into how customers interact with the assistant. Data covers the last 30 days.

7.1 Overview Metrics

Four key metrics are displayed:

7.2 Product Engagement

A table showing up to 20 products ranked by engagement:

7.3 Advanced Analytics

Available on Professional and Enterprise plans:

• Popular Topics — A ranked list of the most-clicked topic quick-buttons
• Language Breakdown — Conversations grouped by the customer's language
• Daily Activity Chart — A chart showing message volume per day over the last 30 days

Free and Growth plan users see a notice explaining that advanced analytics are available on the Professional plan and above.

8. Subscription Plans and Billing

8.1 Plan Comparison

8.2 Startup Plan (Free)

The Startup plan is ideal for getting started and evaluating the app. It includes:

• 50 conversations per month — suitable for low-traffic stores.
• AI-powered responses — the assistant answers customer questions using your store data.
• Basic analytics — overview metrics and product engagement.
• Topic quick-buttons — customers can browse common topics.
• "Powered by RMS" branding — a small attribution link is shown at the bottom of the chat widget.

8.3 Growth Plan

The Growth plan adds smarter AI and human escalation for growing stores:

• 500 conversations per month — 10x the free plan's limit.
• Smart model routing — the AI automatically uses more capable models for complex questions, providing higher-quality responses.
• Escalation to human support — customers can submit questions for your team to follow up on.
• Email notifications — receive an email when a customer escalates a question.
• Custom personality — choose between friendly and professional tones.
• No branding — the "Powered by RMS" attribution is removed.
• All Startup plan features included.

8.4 Professional Plan

For established stores with higher traffic and multi-language needs:

• 2,500 conversations per month — 5x the Growth plan.
• Multi-language auto-detection — the assistant detects the customer's browser language and responds in that language automatically.
• Collection page widget — show the assistant on collection pages, not just product pages.
• Advanced analytics — daily activity charts, popular topics, and language breakdowns.
• Priority support — faster response times from our team.
• All Growth plan features included.

8.5 Enterprise Plan

For high-volume stores that need maximum capacity:

• 10,000 conversations per month — 4x the Professional plan.
• API access — integrate assistant data with external systems.
• All Professional plan features included.

8.6 Annual Billing Discount

Save approximately 17% by choosing annual billing (pay for 10 months, get 12):

Toggle between Monthly and Annual billing on the Billing page using the billing interval switch.

8.7 Free Trial

Every paid plan includes a 7-day free trial. During the trial:

• You have full access to all features of the selected plan.
• You will not be charged until the trial period ends.
• You can downgrade to the Startup (Free) plan at any time before the trial ends to avoid charges.

8.8 Upgrading, Downgrading, and Cancelling

To upgrade: Go to the Billing page, select a higher plan, and confirm. You will be redirected to Shopify's charge approval page. Once approved, the new plan takes effect immediately.

To downgrade: Select a lower plan (including Startup). Your features adjust to the new plan immediately.

To cancel: Select the Startup (Free) plan or click Cancel plan. Your subscription is cancelled immediately and you are moved to the free plan. Your settings and conversation history are preserved.

All billing is handled through Shopify's built-in billing system. Charges appear on your regular Shopify invoice — no separate payment method is needed.

8.9 Conversation Limits

Each plan has a monthly conversation limit. A conversation is counted when a customer starts a new chat session. When you reach your limit:

• The chat widget stops responding to new conversations for the remainder of the billing period.
• Existing active conversations are not interrupted.
• A usage warning appears on the Dashboard and Billing page when you reach 90% of your limit.

Upgrading your plan or waiting for the next billing cycle restores access.

9. Privacy and Data Handling

RMS Shop Assistant is designed with privacy in mind.

Data collected from customers:

Customer conversations use anonymous session identifiers — no account or login is required. Customer data is not used for marketing and not shared with third parties.

How the AI works:

Conversation content is sent to Anthropic's Claude AI to generate responses. No customer data is stored by the AI provider beyond what is needed to process each request.

Data retention:

• Conversation data is automatically deleted after 90 days.
• Analytics events are retained for 12 months.
• All shop data is permanently deleted following app uninstallation.

Your rights:

The app complies with GDPR and CCPA requirements. Customers have the right to request access to, correction of, or deletion of their personal data. Shopify's standard data request and redaction webhooks are fully supported.

A full Privacy Policy and Terms of Service are accessible from within the app.

10. Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Does the chat widget appear on all pages?

A: By default, the widget appears on product pages only. On the Professional plan and above, you can also enable it on collection pages. The widget does not appear on other pages (home page, cart, checkout, etc.).

Q: Do I need to train the assistant or upload any data?

A: No. The assistant automatically reads your product information, store policies, and active discounts directly from Shopify. There is no training step or data upload required.

Q: How do I improve the quality of the assistant's answers?

A: The assistant's answers are only as good as your store data. To improve quality:

• Write detailed product descriptions.
• Populate product metafields (sizing, materials, care instructions, etc.) in Shopify.
• Set up your store policies under Shopify Settings > Policies (refund, shipping, privacy, terms of service).
• Add alt-text to your product images.

Q: Can the assistant share discount codes with customers?

A: Yes. The assistant automatically knows about your active discounts and promotional codes. When a customer asks about promotions, the assistant will share applicable codes.

Q: What happens when I reach my monthly conversation limit?

A: The widget stops responding to new conversations for the remainder of the billing period. Existing active conversations are not interrupted. A usage warning appears on your Dashboard when you reach 90% of your limit. Upgrading your plan restores access immediately.

Q: Can the assistant answer in different languages?

A: On the free and Growth plans, the assistant responds in the default language you have configured. On Professional and Enterprise plans, the assistant can automatically detect the customer's browser language and respond in that language. Ten languages are supported.

Q: What is "smart model routing"?

A: On paid plans, the assistant intelligently selects the best AI model for each question. Simple, straightforward questions use a fast model for quick replies, while more complex questions use a more capable model for higher-quality answers. On the free plan, all questions use the fast model.

Q: Does the widget work on mobile?

A: Yes. The chat widget is fully responsive and adapts to mobile screen sizes automatically.

Q: What happens to my data if I uninstall the app?

A: All your data (settings, conversations, analytics, and cached store data) is permanently deleted following uninstallation.

11. Troubleshooting

The chat widget does not appear on my product pages

1. Check that the widget is enabled: go to Online Store > Themes > Customize, navigate to a product page template, and confirm the RMS Shop Assistant block is present and visible.
2. If you recently installed the app, try refreshing the product page or clearing your browser cache.
3. Ensure the "Enable on product pages" setting is turned on in both the app Settings and the theme editor block settings.

The assistant gives incorrect or vague answers

1. Review and improve your product descriptions — the assistant uses them directly.
2. Set up your store policies in Shopify Settings > Policies. The assistant reads these to answer shipping, return, and privacy questions.
3. Populate product metafields with sizing, materials, and care instruction details.

Customers are not seeing escalation options

1. Escalation requires a Growth plan or higher. Verify your current plan on the Billing page.
2. Check the escalation threshold in Settings — the customer must exchange at least this many messages before escalation is offered.

I am not receiving escalation email notifications

1. Check that an escalation notification email is configured in Settings.
2. Check your spam/junk folder.
3. Ensure you are on a paid plan — escalation notifications require the Growth plan or higher.

I changed my plan but the features have not updated

1. Refresh the page.
2. If the Shopify billing approval page did not load, try selecting the plan again.
3. Verify the plan change in your Shopify admin under Settings > Billing.

The widget appears but shows no greeting

1. Check that "Auto-greet visitors" is enabled in Settings.
2. Review the auto-greet delay — the widget waits for this duration before greeting. Try reducing it.
3. Verify that your welcome message is not empty in Settings.

12. Support

Need help? Here is how to reach us:

• Email: info@reedmace.net
• Support: Contact us
• Priority support: Available on Professional and Enterprise plans for faster response times.

We are committed to helping your store provide better customer support. If you have feature requests, questions, or need help with setup, do not hesitate to reach out.

RMS Shop Assistant is developed by RMS. All billing is processed securely through Shopify's built-in billing system.