Social Intents connects your website chat widget to Slack so your team can respond to visitors directly from Slack channels. Below we walk through the full setup process, from authorizing the Slack app to receiving your first live chat.
Requisitos previos
- A Slack workspace where you have permission to install apps
- A website where you want to add live chat
Step 1: Start the Connection
There are two ways to begin:
Option A: From the Social Intents Website
Sign Up or Log In
Go to socialintents.com and start a free trial. During signup, on the Add Live Chat Agents step, click Add to Slack.
Option B: From Your Dashboard
Navigate to Integrations
Log in to your Social Intents account. Go to My Widgets, select a widget, and find the Slack integration option.
Step 2: Authorize Social Intents in Slack
Grant Permissions
Clicking the Slack connection button opens the Slack OAuth authorization screen. Review the permissions Social Intents needs and click Allow. The app requests permission to:
- Post messages to channels
- Create channels for individual chat conversations
- Read channel membership for agent identification
- Access user profile information (name, email, photo) for agent details
Select a Channel
After authorization, choose the Slack channel where you want incoming chat notifications to appear. You can select an existing channel or create a new one like #live-chat.
Step 3: Install the Chat Widget
Copy the Code Snippet
After connecting Slack, go to your widget settings and find the Install Your Code Snippet section. Copy the JavaScript snippet:
<script src="https://www.socialintents.com/api/chat/socialintents.1.4.js#YOUR_WIDGET_KEY" async="async"></script>Add It to Your Website
Paste the snippet before the closing </body> tag on every page where you want live chat. WordPress users can use the Live Chat by Social Intents plugin instead.
Step 4: Test the Connection
Send a Test Chat
Open your website and click the chat widget. Send a message. A notification should appear in your configured Slack channel within seconds. Click to join the chat and reply to the visitor.
How Chat Routing Works in Slack
When a visitor starts a chat, Social Intents creates a dedicated Slack channel for that conversation. The channel name is based on the visitor's name (or a generated identifier). All messages for that specific chat flow through this dedicated channel, keeping conversations organized and separate from your other Slack discussions.
When the chat ends, the dedicated channel is archived automatically.
Your default notification channel (the one you selected during setup) receives the initial chat request notification, so agents know a new conversation has started.
What Gets Stored
After authorization, Social Intents stores:
- Bot token - Used to post messages and create channels
- User token - Used for user-level operations like listing channels
- Team ID - Identifies your Slack workspace
- Default channel - Where chat notifications are posted
Tokens are stored securely and are only used for chat operations. Social Intents does not read your other Slack messages or channels.
Preguntas frecuentes
Can I connect multiple Slack workspaces?
Each widget connects to one Slack workspace. If you need to connect to multiple workspaces, create separate widgets for each one.
What Slack plan do I need?
Social Intents works with all Slack plans, including Free, Pro, Business+, and Enterprise Grid.
Can I disconnect and reconnect Slack?
Yes. You can revoke the Social Intents app from your Slack workspace settings and reconnect it at any time. Your widget settings and chat history are preserved.