Installing and Using the Intercom Messenger App

With the HelpDocs Intercom Messenger app installed your customers and your support team can harness powerful self-service capabilities right inside the Messenger.

Installing the HelpDocs Intercom Messenger App

Before adding searchable cards on the Home screen or sending article cards to customers you'll need to connect the HelpDocs app to Intercom. It's super easy and shouldn't take more than a few minutes.

1. In HelpDocs, head to Settings > Integrations and click the Intercom Messenger App tile
2. Click Connect Intercom
3. Follow the instructions in Intercom to grant permissions

You can also start from the Intercom App Store: search for HelpDocs, click Install Now, then click Connect and follow the instructions.

Once you're connected, choose which type of card you'd like to add:

1. Add a Searchable Card to the Messenger Home
2. Add a Specific Article Card to the Messenger

Add a Searchable Card to the Messenger Home

Empower customers to help themselves before they get in touch with your support team. With the searchable card customers can search your HelpDocs Knowledge Base without leaving the Intercom widget.

1. In Intercom, head to Settings > Channels > Messenger > Widget
2. Open Customize Home with apps and choose Visitors or Users
3. Click + to add an app
   1. Select HelpDocs from the list
   2. Click Add a searchable widget
4. Hit Save and set live

Add a Specific Article Card to the Messenger Home

Point visitors or customers to specific articles that might help them succeed with your product.

1. In Intercom, head to Settings > Channels > Messenger > Widget
2. Open Customize Home with apps and choose Visitors or Users
3. Click + to add an app
   1. Select HelpDocs from the list
   2. Search for the article
   3. Click the article you want
4. Hit Save and set live

Share Articles to Customers from the Composer

Helping out a customer but need to point them towards a specific article? We've got good news: you can search for it and send it to them in a lovely little card. It'll include the short version and a button to the article.

Within the composer click the Add a Messenger App button

1. Select HelpDocs
2. Search for the article you want to send
3. Select it and hit Send when you're ready 🤩

Insert Article Cards into Outbound Messages

You can insert lovely little article cards into your auto messages, great for campaigns to educate customers on using your software.

When in the text editor click the + button to add a new element

1. Select Insert App
2. Choose HelpDocs
3. Search for an article
4. Select the article you want to include

Customize Strings Inside the App

There are four strings of text within the HelpDocs Intercom Messenger app. You can change them all in Settings > Languages > Help center text. The Intercom section shows up once the app is connected. Here's where you can find the matching strings:

Searchable widget card

1. Intercom -> Knowledge Base
2. Search -> Help Me With...
3. Search -> No articles found

Individual article card

4. Intercom -> Read More

Showing Extra Content to Agents and Logged In Users

By default users in the Intercom Messenger App only have access to public articles. That's articles that are Published and aren't assigned to any permission groups.

If you use Permissioning to show different articles to logged in users of your app you can use that with the Intercom Messenger App too. These extra articles will be available when users are identified (i.e. logged in) to your Intercom Messenger rather than anonymous users or leads. They'll also be available to your support team who can send them individually to any customer.

Head to Settings > Integrations

1. Click the Intercom Messenger App tile
2. Select any user groups you'd like to be available to your logged in users from the Logged In User Permission Groups dropdown
3. Hit Save changes

Best Practices for Intercom Messenger App