Why use the plugin
On WordPress you can either paste the chat code into your theme or install the QuickDesk plugin. The plugin does two things the pasted code cannot.
There is no key to copy. You approve the connection once and the plugin collects what it needs on its own, so nothing sensitive passes through a clipboard or an email.
People already signed in to your site are recognised in chat. They never retype their name and email, and their earlier conversations follow them between devices. Visitors who are not signed in see the same chat as before.
Install it
Download the plugin from the Get the code panel next to your site in Settings, then Sites and widget.
- In WordPress go to Plugins, then Add New, then Upload Plugin.
- Choose the file you downloaded, click Install Now, then Activate.
- Go to Settings, then QuickDesk, and click Connect to QuickDesk.
- Approve the connection when we ask. You land back in WordPress with chat live on the site.
Until you connect a workspace the plugin does nothing at all. It adds no code to your pages and sends nothing anywhere.
Why it is not in the WordPress directory yet
This is the official QuickDesk plugin. It installs by upload because it is still going through review for the WordPress plugin directory. Nothing about how it works changes once it is listed, and sites installed this way keep working.
Turn off recognising signed-in users
Connecting stores a key for your workspace on your own server. Anyone who can read your WordPress files or database could use it to pose as a visitor in chat, so treat it like any other credential.
If you would rather not do that, clear the "Recognise logged-in users" tick box on the QuickDesk settings screen. Chat keeps working and visitors introduce themselves in the usual way. You can also disconnect at any time, which removes the chat widget and forgets the stored key.
If chat does not appear
Check that the QuickDesk settings screen says the site is connected, and that the address of your site matches one of the allowed addresses on the site in QuickDesk. Clearing any caching plugin usually settles the rest.
You can still use the pasted code instead. It is under "Or paste the code instead" in the same panel you downloaded the plugin from, and installing it that way is not worse, just more manual.