Set up and run AI Parts Finder

What the AI Parts Finder does

AI Parts Finder adds a chat-style search box to your storefront. Customers describe the part they need in plain English — a model number, a symptom like “my pilot light won’t stay lit,” or a description — and the AI searches your own product catalog and replies with the matching product and a direct link to buy it.

1. Installing the app

1. Install from the App Store

   Add AI Parts Finder from the Shopify App Store (or your install link) and approve the permission request — the app asks only to read your products.

2. Choose a plan

   Pick a plan to start your 14-day free trial. Every plan includes the same finder; tiers differ by catalog size and monthly search volume. Shopify handles billing — the charge appears on your regular Shopify invoice, and you can change or cancel anytime.

3. Land on the dashboard

   After approving the plan you arrive at the app dashboard, where you can configure the widget and see customer searches.

2. Adding the finder to your storefront

The finder is a theme block you place with Shopify’s theme editor — no code.

1. Open the theme editor

   In your Shopify admin go to Online Store → Themes → Customize.

2. Add the block

   Navigate to the page where you want the finder (home page, a dedicated “Parts Finder” page, a collection page — any page works). Click Add section or Add block, open the Apps tab, and choose AI Parts Finder.

3. Save

   Click Save in the theme editor. The widget is now live — it works on desktop and mobile, supports follow-up questions, remembers the conversation while a shopper browses (for 30 minutes), and has a Start over button in the header.

3. Settings & appearance

Open the app (Apps → Arcturus AI Parts Finder) and go to Settings.

Widget configuration

Appearance

Style the widget to match your brand with a live preview — no theme editing needed:

• Accent color — paints the header, your customers’ message bubbles, and the send button. Choose Theme editor setting to keep the block’s color, or Custom to control it here.
• Header text, message text, assistant bubble background & text, widget background — five more colors, each with a picker.
• Corner radius, widget height, and text size — simple presets.
• Input placeholder — the hint text inside the message box.
• Reset appearance to defaults puts everything back in one click.

Changes apply to your storefront within about a minute of saving. Only valid colors are ever sent to your storefront.

4. Customer-service instructions

Under AI behavior, the Customer-service instructions box is how your assistant talks to customers. It comes prefilled with a ready-to-use customer-service agent — warm tone, leads with the answer, asks a clarifying question when a detail is missing, explains why a part fits, and handles out-of-stock and no-match gracefully.

You don’t have to touch it — it works out of the box. Edit it to match your store’s voice, policies, or specialties, for example:

• “We’re a steam-heat specialist — mention our one-pipe vs. two-pipe guide.”
• “Always mention our 30-day return policy.”
• “Prefer in-stock items; note lead time for special orders.”

5. The dashboard

The app home screen shows, at a glance:

• Widget status — your Enabled/Disabled setting, with a link to Settings.
• Usage this month — searches used vs. your plan’s monthly allowance, with a color-coded meter, plus your all-time total. Resets on the 1st of each month.
• Recent queries — the last 10 customer searches with how many catalog matches each found, response time, and date. Export query log (CSV) downloads the last 90 days for a spreadsheet.
• No-match searches — searches where nothing in your catalog matched. This is your demand signal: parts customers wanted that you don’t list (or list under names they don’t use). Review it weekly.
• Plan — your current plan, with a Manage plan button.
• Setup checklist — install, add the widget, first search received, customize text.

Customer queries are logged for these analytics and automatically deleted after 90 days. They are not linked to customer accounts.

6. Billing & plans

Each plan includes a monthly search allowance (Starter 1,000 · Growth 5,000 · Pro 20,000 · Enterprise unlimited). When a store reaches its allowance, the finder politely asks shoppers to contact the store directly until the 1st of the next month — upgrade anytime for a higher allowance. Your dashboard’s usage meter shows where you stand.

• View or change plan: Dashboard → Manage plan, or Shopify admin → Settings → Apps and sales channels.
• Free trial: 14 days on every plan; you’re only charged after the trial.
• Cancel: uninstalling the app cancels the subscription automatically, or cancel from the plan page. When the subscription ends, the widget stops answering, so remove the block from your theme too.

7. Test your setup (5 minutes)

1. Open the storefront page with the widget (use an incognito window to see it as a customer).
2. Ask about a product you know you stock, by name — expect a recommendation with a clickable link.
3. Ask a symptom-style question (“my furnace igniter clicks but won’t light”) — expect a relevant match or an honest “contact the store.”
4. Ask a follow-up (“which is cheapest?”) — the finder remembers the conversation.
5. Click Start over — the chat resets.
6. Check the app dashboard — your test queries appear under Recent queries.

FAQ & troubleshooting

Still stuck? Contact support — a real person replies within one business day.