Gorilla AI Chatbot Documentation
Everything you need to install, configure, and get the most out of the Gorilla AI Chatbot on your WooCommerce store. Work top to bottom for a first install, or jump to a section from the sidebar.
Requirements
- WordPress 6.0 or later
- WooCommerce (any recent version)
- PHP 7.4 or later
- An Anthropic API key (see below)
The plugin works with any WordPress theme or page builder — Elementor, Divi, Bricks, Kadence, Astra, Flatsome, and everything else. The chat widget uses shadow DOM isolation, so your theme’s CSS won’t interfere with it and it won’t interfere with your theme.
Installation
- Upload and activate the pluginIn your WordPress admin, go to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin. Choose the zip from your purchase, click Install Now, then Activate.
- Enter your Anthropic API keyGo to AI Chatbot → General and paste your API key into the field. No key yet? See the next section.
- Set your team emailOn the same page, enter the address where shopper escalation messages should land — this is where “Email the Team” messages go.
- Write your brand voiceOn the Voice tab, describe how the chatbot should sound in a few sentences, and add store info so the AI knows what you sell.
- Test itThe plugin starts in Testing mode — only logged-in admins see the chatbot. Visit your storefront, click the bubble, and ask about a product.
- Go liveHappy with it? Go to AI Chatbot → General and switch from Testing to Live. The chatbot becomes visible to all shoppers.
Getting an Anthropic API key
The plugin calls Anthropic’s Claude API directly from your site. You pay Anthropic at their published rates — there’s no markup or middleman fee from us.
- Create an accountGo to console.anthropic.com and sign up.
- Add paymentAdd a payment method and load at least $5 of credit — the minimum for API access, and enough for thousands of conversations.
- Create an API keyGo to API Keys in the Anthropic console and create a new key with a name you’ll recognize, like “My Store Chatbot.”
- Paste it into the pluginCopy the key (it starts with sk-ant-) into AI Chatbot → General → Anthropic API Key and save.
General settings
Found at AI Chatbot → General. These control the core behavior of the plugin.
Master switch for the chat widget. When unchecked, the bubble is hidden from all visitors regardless of other settings.
Testing: only logged-in administrators can see the chat bubble — use this while configuring voice, policies, and appearance. Live: all visitors can see the chatbot (subject to “Who Can Chat” below). Switch to Live once you’re confident in the setup.
Your key from Anthropic’s console, starting with sk-ant-. Stored in your WordPress database and only sent to Anthropic’s API — never to us or any third party.
Where escalation emails go when a shopper taps “Email the Team.” Use a monitored support inbox — not a personal address you check once a week.
The fallback shipping timeline used when a product has no per-product override. Individual products can override this in the “AI Chatbot: Shipping Lead Time” metabox on the product edit screen.
How long to keep chat transcripts before a nightly cleanup deletes them. Shorter retention keeps the database small and is better for shopper privacy; longer gives you more history to learn from.
When off, the bubble is hidden on cart, checkout, order-received, and account pages. This is intentional — interrupting shoppers mid-purchase hurts conversion. Only enable it with a specific reason.
Everyone: all visitors, including guests. Logged-in users only: only signed-in customers see the bubble — the strongest protection against bot abuse, and it reduces API costs.
The chatbot stops responding when estimated API costs hit this amount for the day; shoppers see a friendly message plus the email escalation form. Costs are estimated at Claude Haiku rates. Set to 0 to disable. The settings page shows today’s spend.
When enabled, every product link the chatbot shows includes UTM parameters (source, medium, campaign) so you can measure chatbot-driven revenue in GA4. Defaults are customizable.
Voice settings
Found at AI Chatbot → Voice. This is where you shape the chatbot’s personality.
Up to 10 messages shown randomly when a shopper opens the chat. Write them in your brand voice — rotating greetings keep things feeling alive for returning visitors. Leave extra slots blank; only filled ones are used.
A few sentences describing how the chatbot should sound. Be specific: “Rugged, anti-corporate, casual language, never uses buzzwords like ‘leverage’ or ‘synergy'” is far more useful than “friendly.” The AI follows this in every conversation.
Background context about your store — what you sell, what makes you different, your history. Keep it under 200 words; it’s included in every conversation’s system prompt so the AI has business context even for general questions.
Appearance settings
Found at AI Chatbot → Appearance. Customize how the widget looks on your storefront.
Upload a custom image for the floating button — square (1:1), at least 256×256px, transparent PNG recommended. Your logo, a mascot, anything on-brand.
The text at the top of the open chat panel. Keep it short and branded — “Ask the Team,” “Chat with Us,” or your store name.
The primary color for the bubble button, send button, and link underlines. Use your store’s main brand color.
Colors for the “Email the Team” form inside the chat panel. Pick a combination that contrasts with the main chat area so shoppers know they’ve switched to the email form.
Where the floating bubble sits — bottom-right or bottom-left corner.
The button text that opens the email form. Make it yours — “Talk to a Human,” “Contact Support,” whatever fits.
Order settings
Found at AI Chatbot → Orders. Controls how shoppers look up order status through the chatbot.
Shoppers provide their order number and the billing email on the order — both must match. Works for guest checkouts and logged-in customers alike, and it’s secure because the shopper needs two pieces of information only the buyer would have.
Only authenticated customers can look up their own orders; the chatbot matches the logged-in user to their account’s orders. More restrictive — good if your store requires accounts.
Order lookups off entirely. The chatbot directs shoppers to contact your team for order questions.
Policies
Found at AI Chatbot → Policies: six text fields for your store’s key policies — Returns, Refunds, Shipping, Privacy, Contact Info, and FAQ/Other. The chatbot references these when shoppers ask common questions.
Keep each brief and factual: “30-day returns on all unworn items. Buyer pays return shipping. Refunds processed within 5 business days of receiving the return.” The chatbot references this exact wording.
License
Found at AI Chatbot → License. Subscription statuses you may see:
- Free Trial — the trial is active; no license key needed yet.
- Active — your paid license is valid and the chatbot is fully operational.
- Past Due — a payment failed, but the chatbot keeps working while the payment provider retries.
- Canceled / Invalid — the license is no longer valid; the chatbot is disabled on your storefront.
- Not Activated — no license entered yet.
To activate, paste the license key from your purchase confirmation email and click Activate. Each license has an activation limit — solo licenses cover one site. Moving to a different site? Deactivate the old one first to free the slot.
Conversations & flagged responses
Conversations browser
Found at AI Chatbot → Conversations. Every chat is logged here — click into any conversation for the full transcript: every message, every product suggested, every tool call behind the scenes. This is how you learn what shoppers actually ask and where the chatbot shines or stumbles.
Flagged responses
Found at AI Chatbot → Flagged. Shoppers can flag any response (“Wrong info,” “Didn’t answer my question,” “Other”); flags appear here with a preview, reason, and link to the full conversation. The menu shows a red count badge for unread flags.
Per-product shipping lead time
Every product edit screen has an “AI Chatbot: Shipping Lead Time” metabox. Enter a custom timeline like “7–10 business days” for made-to-order or drop-shipped items; leave blank to use the global default.
Going live
Before switching from Testing to Live, run this checklist:
- API key is set and the Anthropic account has credit
- Brand voice is written — five minutes here beats a generic bot
- Store info gives context on what you sell
- Returns and shipping policies are entered at minimum
- Team email goes to an inbox someone actually monitors
- Test conversations tried: products, orders, shipping, policies
- Daily spending cap set for your expected traffic
- Mode switched from Testing to Live, settings saved
Troubleshooting
The chat bubble doesn’t appear on my storefront
Check in order: (1) You’re in Testing mode and not logged in as an admin — log in or switch to Live. (2) “Who Can Chat” is set to logged-in only and you’re browsing as a guest. (3) You’re on a cart, checkout, or account page, where the chatbot hides by default. (4) Your license has expired or isn’t activated — check the License tab.
The chatbot says “I couldn’t connect” or shows an error
Check: (1) your Anthropic API key is valid and the account has credit; (2) your site can make outbound HTTPS requests — some managed hosts block them by default; (3) no security plugin is blocking requests to api.anthropic.com.
“Session expired. Please refresh the page.”
Usually a CDN or caching layer serving a stale session. Exclude REST API endpoints from caching in your caching plugin or host. The plugin sends no-cache headers, but aggressive CDNs sometimes override them. A refresh always fixes it for the shopper.
Product cards aren’t showing — just text names
Usually prompt drift where the AI skipped product markers — rephrasing the question more specifically helps. If it’s consistent, confirm the products are published and visible in the catalog (not draft or hidden).
Order lookups are failing
Check the Orders tab setting. Email match requires the exact billing email on the order; logged-in-only requires authentication; disabled means lookups are intentionally off.
Flagged responses seem wrong
Open the flagged conversation and read it in context. Ask: what context would the AI have needed? It’s usually a missing detail in Store Info, Brand Voice, or a Policy field. Update it and the AI uses the new context immediately.
“We’ve reached our daily chat limit”
Your Daily Spending Cap was hit for the day. Shoppers can still reach your team via the email form. Happening regularly? Raise the cap in General settings, and compare against your actual Anthropic console spend.
My license won’t activate
Check: (1) the key is copied exactly from your purchase email, no stray spaces; (2) your site can reach the licensing server; (3) you haven’t used all activation slots — solo licenses are one site. Deactivate the old site first if you’re moving.
