Test your chatbot before going live

You have two ways to try the bot without touching your website: a shareable demo page and a preview panel inside the dashboard.

Messages from both count towards your monthly message limit. Background work the bot does while answering does not.

The demo page

Every chatbot has a public demo URL that includes a private key.

1. Go to Settings → General settings
2. Find the Demo page box
3. Click Copy link to share it, or Open demo to try it yourself

The link works without a login, so anyone you send it to can chat with your bot. If a link leaks, contact support to have the key rotated.

Use it for client sign-off, for colleagues who have no Mikabot account, and for testing on a real phone.

The admin preview

Configuration screens carry a live preview of the widget. Change a response or a colour, save, then talk to the preview on the same screen.

Conversations started from a dashboard page are tagged [admin preview] in the notes of Chat conversations, so you can tell your own tests apart from real visitors.

To preview in another language, set Settings → Appearance → Test Language. It only affects the preview, never your visitors.

A test script

Run these in every active language:

1. A product question in your own words — something for a dark room rather than a product name. Checks that search works on intent, not keywords.
2. A product question using a brand name — checks brand handling.
3. A question you cannot answer — an item you do not sell. The bot should say so and offer an alternative rather than invent one.
4. “I want to talk to someone” — should return your contact details. See Human handoff.
5. “Where is my order?” — should point at your order process. A live order lookup only works if Ecommerce → Order status is connected.
6. An annoyed message — should trigger the frustrated-user answer.
7. A question about your company — checks the website info response.
8. Leave an email address or phone number — confirms transcript forwarding works, if you enabled it.

What to check in each answer

• Is the product correctly priced, and does its stock status match your shop?
• Do the links open the right pages?
• Are there placeholders left visible, like {email}? That means a field in Site info is empty.
• Does the tone match your brand?

Before you install the widget

• All eight test questions answer sensibly in every active language
• Settings → General settings → Active is switched on — new chatbots are created inactive
• Your product feed imported and the counts look right
• Someone other than you has tried the demo link

Then continue with Install the widget.