Full setup guide, 6 steps
1
Create your free Tidio account
Go to tidio.com and click "Start free." Enter your email and choose a password. No credit card required.
You'll be asked a few questions during setup. Answer:
- Business type: pick the closest match to your industry
- Goal: "Generate leads" if you want the chatbot to capture contact info, "Customer service" if you mainly want to answer questions
- Team size: Solo or small team is fine
💡 Tip: During setup you'll be prompted to enter your website URL. Do this, Tidio uses it to auto-generate your first chatbot messages based on your site content.
2
Install the chat widget on your website
After creating your account, Tidio shows you an installation screen. If you use WordPress, click "Install Tidio Plugin" and follow the prompts. For all other platforms, copy the code snippet provided.
For WordPress: Plugins → Add New → search "Tidio Live Chat" → Install Now → Activate. Then in the WordPress sidebar, click "Tidio Chat" and connect with your account email.
For other platforms: The code snippet looks like this:
<script src="//code.tidio.co/YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY.js" async></script>
Paste it just before the </body> tag on your website. See the platform guide above for exact instructions per platform.
💡 Test it: After installation, visit your website in a new browser tab. You should see the Tidio chat bubble appear in the bottom right corner within a few seconds.
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Screenshot: Tidio chat widget appearing in bottomright corner of a small business website
3
Customize your chat widget appearance
In the Tidio dashboard, go to Channels → Live Chat → Customize. Here you can:
- Set your brand color (use your main business color)
- Upload your business logo or a photo of yourself
- Add your business name as the "operator name"
- Write a greeting message that appears when the widget opens
A good greeting message for a service business: "Hi there! 👋 I'm [Name] from [Business Name]. What can I help you with today?"
💡 Why appearance matters: A chat widget that looks like your brand (not a generic blue box) gets 2-3× more engagement. Visitors trust it more when it matches your site's look and feel.
4
Train Lyro AI on your business content
This is the step that makes Tidio powerful. Go to Lyro AI → Data Sources → Add Source. You have two options:
Option A (URL scan): Enter your website URL and let Lyro scan your FAQ and service pages. It automatically extracts Q&A content. Best if you have a well-written FAQ page.
Option B (Manual Q&A): Enter questions and answers directly. This is more time-consuming but gives you full control. Start with your 10-15 most common questions.
Here are example Q&A pairs to enter for a typical service business:
Q: What are your hours?
A: We're open Monday–Friday 8am–6pm and Saturdays 9am–4pm. Emergency service available 24/7 for existing customers.
Q: How do I book an appointment?
A: You can book online at [your booking link], call us at [phone], or I can connect you with our team right now. What works best for you?
Q: What do you charge?
A: Pricing depends on the service. [Brief description of your pricing structure]. I can get you an exact quote, can you tell me what you're looking for?
Q: What areas do you serve?
A: We serve [your city/region]. If you're not sure if we cover your area, drop your zip code and I'll check for you.
Q: How quickly can you come out?
A: For non-emergency work, we typically schedule within 2-3 business days. Emergency slots are often available same-day. Want me to check availability?
💡 Aim for 15-25 Q&A pairs covering your most common questions. This gives Lyro enough knowledge to handle the majority of chat inquiries without human intervention.
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Screenshot: Lyro AI data source setup adding Q&A pairs in Tidio dashboard
5
Set up lead capture automation
A lead capture automation asks visitors for their name and email before connecting them to you. This way, even if you're not available to respond immediately, you have their contact info.
Go to Automation → Create Automation → Templates → Collect Visitors Info. Tidio has a pre-built template for this. Customize the messages:
- "Happy to help! Could I get your name first?"
- "And your email address so we can follow up if we get disconnected?"
- "Thanks, [Name]! Let me connect you with our team."
All collected leads automatically appear in your Tidio contacts list and can be exported to your CRM or email marketing tool.
💡 Integration tip: Connect Tidio to
ActiveCampaign or
HubSpot to automatically add chat leads to your CRM. Go to Tidio → Integrations to connect.
6
Download the mobile app and test everything
Download the Tidio app on your phone (iOS or Android, search "Tidio" in the App Store or Google Play). Log in with your account. Now you can respond to chats from anywhere.
Before going live, open your website in a private/incognito browser window and test the experience:
- Does the chat widget appear?
- Does Lyro respond correctly to your most common questions?
- Does the lead capture flow ask for name and email?
- Do you receive a notification on your phone when someone starts a chat?
If any answers are wrong, go back to Lyro's Data Sources and update the relevant Q&A pair.
💡 You're live! Your website now captures and responds to visitors 24/7. Check your Tidio dashboard each morning to review overnight chats and respond to any that needed human follow-up.