When a visitor starts a chat, it lands in your Live Chat Inbox as an open, unassigned conversation. Before you can reply, you claim it — that's how CornerSpot makes sure only one agent owns each conversation. This guide shows you how to claim a chat and send your first reply.
How to claim and reply to a live chat in CornerSpot
Open a conversation from the Live Chat Inbox at /dashboard/chat/inbox by clicking its row — you land on the conversation view at /dashboard/chat/inbox/{conversationId}.
1. Open the conversation — it starts Unassigned
An open conversation that no one has picked up shows an Unassigned label in the header and a Claim button. The reply box stays locked until you claim it.
2. Click “Claim” to take ownership
Click Claim in the conversation header. Claiming is first-come-first-served, so if a teammate claims it first, it becomes theirs — only one agent ever ends up owning a conversation.
3. The header updates and the reply box unlocks
Once you claim it, the header switches from Unassigned to “Assigned to {your name},” and the composer becomes editable so you can start typing.
4. Type your reply
Make sure you're on the Reply tab (replies are what the visitor receives, unlike an internal note), then type your message in the box.
5. Send it
Click Send — or use the keyboard shortcut shown right on the button (Ctrl+Enter, or ⌘+Enter on a Mac). Your reply is delivered to the visitor in real time.
Good to know
- You must claim before you can reply. Until a conversation is claimed, the composer is disabled and shows “Claim this conversation to reply.”
- Claiming is first-come-first-served. Only one agent ends up owning each conversation, so there's no double-handling.
- You'll see the visitor typing. While the visitor is composing a message, a live typing indicator appears in the thread so you know a reply is on the way.
- Replies are visitor-facing. Anything you send on the Reply tab is delivered to the visitor in real time — use an Internal note instead for teammate-only context.