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
QuickDesk is a listed plugin in the official WordPress plugin directory, so there is nothing to download.
- In WordPress go to Plugins, then Add New Plugin, and search for QuickDesk.
- Press 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.
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 HTML method instead. Open "Or paste the code instead" in the same WordPress tab, install a trusted header-and-footer tool such as WPCode, and paste the supplied snippet into its site-wide Footer box. It shows the same styled widget, but it cannot securely recognise people signed in to WordPress.