How to Add an AI Assistant to WordPress
Add Niwa to your existing WordPress site. Connect your AI account, use your website content, configure customer chat and test product or booking help.
To add an AI assistant to WordPress with Niwa, install the Niwa AI plugin, activate your licence, connect your supported AI account and index your website content. Set your business rules, enable the public chat and test the questions customers will ask. Niwa works on an existing WordPress site, so you can keep your current website.
Once configured, Niwa uses your business information to answer questions and help customers take the next step. For a store, that might mean comparing two products and choosing an available size. For a service business, it can mean explaining a service and booking a time from your availability. Customers can complete connected booking and sales workflows directly in the website chat or on WhatsApp.
Choose the first customer task
Start with a task you already know well. If customers regularly ask about delivery, prepare your delivery policy. If they need help choosing products, make sure your descriptions, prices and variations are accurate. For appointments, prepare your services, durations and working hours.
Write down several real customer questions and the correct answers. You will use them to check the setup before launch.
An AI-powered website uses an assistant to help people after the site goes live. A website built with AI describes how its design, code or content was created. You can add Niwa to a WordPress site that was originally built entirely by people.
1. Prepare your WordPress site
Have these ready:
- WordPress administrator access and permission to install plugins.
- A current backup and, if available, a staging copy for testing.
- Your Niwa AI ZIP package and licence details.
- The supported AI account you want Niwa to use.
- Current product, service and policy information.
Check the installation requirements against your hosting. If another chat widget is already installed, decide which one should appear to visitors so the two do not overlap.
2. Install Niwa and activate your licence
In WordPress, open Plugins → Add Plugin → Upload Plugin. Choose niwa-ai.zip, keep it zipped, and select Install Now → Activate Plugin. WordPress supports uploading plugin ZIP packages through this screen. WordPress plugin installation documentation.
Open Niwa AI in the WordPress sidebar and enter the licence key from your Niwa email. Complete email confirmation if the activation screen requests it, then check the licence status under Niwa AI → Account.
The Niwa setup handbook shows these screens and the controls used in the following steps.
3. Connect your AI account
Niwa lets you use your own supported AI subscription. On that connection, Niwa adds no extra AI usage charges and imposes no usage limits of its own. The AI provider's account eligibility, available models and usage allowance still apply.
For the supported ChatGPT subscription route, open Niwa AI → Main Settings → Authentication. Choose Codex OAuth, save the authentication settings and select Connect Codex OAuth. Complete the verification shown by your installation, then return to Niwa and check that it says Connected.
Reload the settings, choose an available Chat Model and save. The selected connection mode determines which account Niwa uses.
If you prefer an API connection, choose an OpenAI API key or OpenRouter. Usage on that route follows the provider's API billing terms. Check the account's billing and available allowance before connecting.
4. Connect your content and business rules
Run Run Full Index + Embeddings in Main Settings and follow the progress. Indexing makes your site information searchable for the assistant.
When a visitor asks a question, Niwa can retrieve relevant information and use it to prepare the answer. This is often called a knowledge base or retrieval-augmented generation. You are connecting the assistant to your content rather than training a new model from scratch.
Review your source material before relying on it. Replace expired offers, correct conflicting policies and fill in missing product details. A clear answer about delivery needs a clear delivery policy to draw from.
In Frontend Agent Rules, add your company information, policies, tone and route to human support. For example:
Answer from our product information and published policies. If a detail is missing, explain what you cannot confirm and direct the customer to our contact page. Ask a follow-up question when you need to clarify which product or service they mean.
Keep private owner instructions in the separate admin settings. Customers should receive help with their purchase or appointment; staff access controls determine who can manage the website.
Use WooCommerce records for product questions
A product description explains features such as material or fit. Prices, available sizes and stock belong to the relevant WooCommerce product and variation records.
Niwa can use those catalog details to compare products, show product cards and help a shopper choose a variation. On the website, the supported product-card flow can add the chosen item to the cart. Niwa capabilities.
For example, a shopper might ask which of two work clogs suits their needs, compare the described features, then choose a size. Check that the displayed price and selected variation match the actual store record.
5. Set up the public chat
Open Niwa AI → UI Settings, turn on Enable flyout chat and save. Choose the interface language, greeting, theme and launcher position.
A useful greeting tells visitors what they can ask:
Hi, I'm the store's AI assistant. I can help you compare products, check available options and find delivery information. You can also contact our team for help with an order.
Review page visibility and device positioning. On mobile, the launcher should leave checkout controls, navigation and consent buttons accessible.
For a multilingual site, check the interface labels and conversation language separately. Ask a question and a follow-up in each language you plan to offer. Also confirm that the policies used in the answer apply to that customer's market.
Help customers on WhatsApp too
Connect your business WhatsApp account and configure customer access so incoming messages reach Niwa's customer-facing assistant. Customers can ask about products, delivery or services using the information connected to your WordPress site. Niwa WhatsApp workflow.
For a service business, Niwa can show availability, collect the required customer details and complete a booking directly in the WhatsApp conversation. The saved appointment records the selected service and time. Shops can use the same business context to help customers choose products and complete connected sales workflows. Set up your services, team availability and time zone before offering slots.
The setup handbook documents WhatsApp pairing under Personal Assistant → Setup & Access → WhatsApp Web. Customer access and owner access have separate roles, so a customer conversation does not grant permission to edit the site.
6. Test a complete customer conversation
Open the public website in a private browser window and use the same chat your customers will see. Check it on desktop and mobile.
Use your prepared questions and verify the result:
| Test | Expected result |
|---|---|
| Ask about a published policy | The answer includes the actual conditions. |
| Ask for a detail your site does not contain | Niwa explains what it cannot confirm and gives a useful next step. |
| Ask about an unavailable size | The answer distinguishes that variation from available options. |
| Select a product and add it to the cart | The correct item, variation and quantity appear in the cart. |
| Book a test appointment on the website | The chosen service, time and customer details appear in the booking record. |
| Complete a test booking on WhatsApp | The conversation confirms the chosen service and time, and the appointment appears in the booking record. |
| Ask a follow-up in another launch language | The reply remains accurate and understandable. |
For a simple product test, imagine your store has a blue work clog in sizes 38 and 39, with size 39 unavailable. Ask, "Do you have the blue pair in size 39?" Then ask about the available size. Check the answer against WooCommerce and verify the cart if you choose to add it.
For bookings, complete a test using contact details you control. Check the saved appointment and your configured confirmation. These are setup checks you can run on your own site.
Review data handling as part of setup. Niwa stores working records through WordPress and sends relevant messages and context to the connected AI provider. Review the provider's data settings and access to local conversation records. Niwa privacy and website safety.
7. Launch and keep your information current
Launch the customer workflows you have checked. When a policy, service or product changes, update its source record and ask Niwa a question about the changed detail. Confirm that the answer reflects the new information.
Review customer questions regularly. If people keep asking something your site does not explain, add that information to the relevant page or product record and check the resulting answer.
Common setup questions
Do I need a new website to use Niwa?
No. You can install the standalone Niwa AI plugin on your existing WordPress site. A new website or migration is a separate option if you need broader website work.
Do I have to pay for API tokens?
You can connect your own supported AI subscription. Niwa adds no extra AI usage charges or Niwa-imposed usage limits on that connection; your provider's allowance applies. If you choose an API-key connection instead, usage follows that provider's API billing terms.
Why is the widget visible but not answering?
Check the active connection, selected chat model, provider allowance and indexing progress. Save the settings on the screen you changed, then test again in a private browser window.
What should I do if an answer is wrong?
Check the information behind it. Correct old policies, incomplete product descriptions or conflicting records, confirm the knowledge update and repeat the question. For changing details such as stock, compare the answer with the relevant product variation.
Install Niwa or get help with your WordPress setup
Already have a WordPress site? Follow the Niwa installation guide to add the standalone plugin and configure the first customer task.
Niwa Business is USD 150 for a custom WordPress website or migration, hosting, maintenance and AI tools adapted to your business. Discuss the Niwa Business offer to plan your website or migration.
Include your website URL and the task you want Niwa to handle first, such as helping customers choose products or book appointments.
