URL Unfurling
The ChatBotKit AI widget offers a powerful URL unfurling feature that enables chatbots to share rich link previews in conversations. When the bot suggests a URL, the widget automatically detects it and renders an appropriate preview based on the link's meta information. This can include:
- Ecommerce product details like title, description, price, and image
- Article previews with title, description, thumbnail, and source
- Image previews
- General link previews including title, description, and domain
URL unfurling enhances the chat experience by providing useful context and visual elements for links shared by the bot, making the interaction more engaging and informative.
How It Works
When a chatbot responds with a message that includes a URL, the ChatBotKit widget:
- Automatically detects the URL in the bot's response
- Fetches the URL's meta information
- Determines the appropriate unfurled view based on the meta data (ecommerce, article, image, general link, etc.)
- Renders the rich URL preview in the chat UI
The unfurling process is fully automated - simply include the desired URL in the bot's response and the widget handles the rest.
Supported Meta Information
The ChatBotKit widget can extract various meta information to provide the most relevant unfurled view:
- Ecommerce: title, description, price, currency, rating, image, availability
- Article: title, description, thumbnail image, source name, publish date
- Image: image URL, alt text
- General: title, description, domain name
Benefits
URL unfurling brings numerous benefits to chatbot interactions:
- Provides instant context about shared links
- Supports multiple rich data types like ecommerce and articles
- Keeps users engaged in the conversation without navigating away
- Delivers an app-like, visual chat experience
- Increases trust and click-through rates by previewing link content