Managing chats

Last updated: July 28, 2026

Managing chats

Manage all your customer and order-specific communications directly within Installer.com's chat features.

Access your global chats

The Chats section is a centralized inbox for all your conversations. You can also access and manage chats directly from the order list.

Each chat group in the list displays the associated order's name and ID, so you can identify conversations at a glance. Unread message notification badges are black.

Use the My chats dropdown to switch between different chat views or accounts.

Filter your conversations using the All, Unread, and Flagged tabs.

Find specific conversations with the Search chats field.

Click Unread messages in order list to view messages associated with specific orders.

Chat within an order

Communicate about a specific order from its dedicated chat.

  1. Click Orders in the sidebar.

  2. Select an order from the list to open its details page.

  3. Click the Chat tab to view or start conversations related to that order.

Customers can upload files directly within the chat. Reply times are tracked for messages within the chat. On mobile devices, you can drag the chat drawer to navigate or close it, and message scrolling has been improved.

In the chat header, the Copy Order ID button copies the order's unique identifier to your clipboard. You can also see active user presence in the chat header, indicating who is currently viewing the chat.

To enhance stability, chat components now include error boundaries. This prevents unexpected issues from crashing the chat and instead displays a user-friendly error message, ensuring a smoother experience.

A few things to know about how order chats work:

  • Customer participants do not see read receipts for messages.

  • The organization that created the order has write access to the associated chat.

  • Chat participants are determined by the current workflow actor for the order.

  • New chat message SMS notifications include the sender's company name and are sent from the order operator's sender ID.

AI-powered chat features

Installer.com includes AI features to support your chats:

AI Chat Summary gives you a concise summary of the conversation. The summary is truncated by default. Click Read more to view the full text or Show less to collapse it.

AI Suggestions and Rewrite buttons offer suggestions or rewrite your messages. On smaller screens, these buttons are hidden to keep the interface clean.

Mark a chat as solved

Mark a conversation as solved when it's complete and needs no further action. The Mark as solved button appears in the chat header once all participants have read the latest messages. Clicking it closes the chat, removes it from your Unread filter, and moves it to a Solved state. This keeps your inbox organized.

Use chat message templates

Use predefined templates to streamline your communication.

  1. In the chat input field, click the Templates icon (a document or message icon).

  2. Select the template you want from the list.

  3. The template's content populates the input field. Edit it before sending, if needed.

Adjust message sort order

Control the display order of messages in the chat. Messages are indexed reliably, so they always display in the correct chronological order no matter how you sort them.

  1. In the chat interface, find the sort order control (an icon with arrows, or text like "Newest first" / "Oldest first").

  2. Click the control to toggle between ascending (oldest first) and descending (newest first) order.

Edit chat messages

Edit a chat message within 5 minutes of sending it.

  1. Hover over the message you want to edit.

  2. Click the Edit icon (pencil icon).

  3. Make your changes, then press Enter or click outside the message to save.

After 5 minutes, the editing window expires and the message can no longer be edited. A tooltip explains the time limit.

Need help? Contact Installer.com support.