This is the short version for merchants. Each step links to the full documentation if you want the detail. Your Zubby dashboard runs at app.zubbyai.com; opening the app from Shopify admin takes you there.
1. Before you start
- Use a Shopify staff account with the Apps and channels permission on the store.
- For an existing connection, verify the authorized Shopify store and current scopes. New installations are not available yet.
- If you can, try it on a development store or during a quiet period first.
2. Connect your store
For existing connected stores, the historical installation mechanism uses the Shopify approval screen. New Shopify connections remain coming soon; do not interpret these steps as an available new install. Shopify shows its standard approval screen listing what Zubby can read and change: catalog, orders, customers, store pages and policies, shipping, inventory, discounts, fulfillments, product content, and order edits. Approve it and you land back in Zubby with the store connected, then create or sign in to your Zubby account. See Install the app for what each permission is for.
3. Check the catalog sync
The first import starts on its own. Watch progress in the onboarding wizard or under Catalog, then open a few products and compare price, stock, and variants with Shopify. Search readiness for the AI can keep updating after the import says it is done. If a product is in Catalog but the AI cannot find it, follow Products not becoming searchable.
4. Preview the widget on a test theme
Nothing appears on your storefront until you switch the widget on in your theme; Shopify does not let apps do it for you. Use a development store or an unpublished theme first. From the Zubby setup step click Open theme editor, switch on Zubby Chat Widget under App embeds, and save the unpublished theme. Open its preview and the launcher appears. Details are in Add an AI chat widget to your Shopify theme.
5. Make it sound like your store
- Settings → AI: pick a tone, choose which conversion flows to use, and review the order actions. Cancel, modify, and refund are off by default; address changes are on. See AI setup and behavior.
- Widget Designer: match colors, launcher, and copy to your brand. See Customize your AI chat widget.
- Knowledge: your Shopify pages and policies are imported. Add anything shoppers ask that is not written down yet, such as sizing, warranty, or delivery times. See Train your AI chatbot on store policies.
6. Test before launch
In the development store or unpublished-theme preview, ask the questions your shoppers ask:
- A specific product, a vague need (“a gift for a runner”), and a comparison.
- Sizing, shipping, and returns. Check the answers match your policies.
- “Where is my order?” using a real test order.
- “Can I talk to a person?” Then find the ticket in Inbox on the Tickets tab.
If an answer is wrong, fix the source (the product, the knowledge base, or a rule) rather than rewording the question. How the AI works explains where to look.
7. Publish after checks, then watch the first week
Once the checks pass, enable the app embed on the published theme. Read conversations in the Inbox, check the questions the AI could not answer, and keep adding knowledge. AI-attributed revenue on Overview is last-touch attribution, not proof of lift; to measure lift, use the incrementality holdout described in Analytics.