Ask AI in the Finalsite Enrollment Parent Portal: Setup

Setting up Ask AI in the Finalsite Enrollment Parent Portal takes two parts: configure your enrollment chatbot in Ask AI, then paste its script into EMS. Both steps are covered here.

Before you begin: This feature requires active Finalsite Enrollment and Ask AI subscriptions. 

• If your school already uses Ask AI on its website, the setup is self-service. Follow the steps below.
• If your school does not currently use Ask AI, contact your Client Success Manager (CSM) or Finalsite Support to get started.

In this Article

• Step 1: Set up your Finalsite Enrollment chatbot in Ask AI
  • Add a new chatbot
  • Configure appearance and messaging
  • Add Knowledge Sources
• Step 2: Add the script to EMS
• Step 3. Test and launch
• What Parents will see

Step 1: Set up your Finalsite Enrollment chatbot in Ask AI

All chatbot configuration happens in Ask AI; EMS just displays it. Complete the following in your Ask AI admin dashboard before touching EMS settings.

Add a new chatbot

Create a dedicated chatbot for Finalsite Enrollment under the drop-down menu in the top right of the Ask AI dashboard. Keeping it separate from your website chatbot lets you track enrollment-specific questions and tailor the knowledge sources to what families need in the Parent Portal.

When creating a new chatbot for the Parent Portal:

• Copy appearance settings: Use the Use appearance settings from other chatbot menu in the Add a new chatbot window to carry over appearance settings from an existing chatbot.
• Shared knowledge sources carry over automatically: Any knowledge sources already marked Shared across your organization will be visible in the new chatbot right away, giving you a starting point.
• Add enrollment-specific sources: From there, add any admissions- and enrollment-specific knowledge sources unique to the Parent Portal chatbot.

See Ask AI Home: Monitor performance and profile to learn more.

Configure appearance and messaging

Under the Appearance tab, customize how the chat widget looks and what it says:

• Appearance: Colors, logo, widget size
• Position: Where the widget appears on the page (bottom-right by default; you can adjust this)
• Messaging: Welcome message, suggested questions, offline messaging

See Ask AI Manage: Configure settings and knowledge base to learn more.

Add knowledge sources

Under the Knowledge tab, add the content Ask AI will use to answer families' questions. Common sources include:

• Your school’s website link
• Uploaded documents (enrollment guides, tuition schedules, etc.)
• Recommended: Add Finalsite Enrollment’s Parent Portal Help Center link as a knowledge source. This gives parents direct answers to common "how do I…" portal navigation questions.

See Ask AI Manage: Configure settings and knowledge base to learn more.

Allow a few minutes after adding sources for them to be indexed before testing.

Step 2: Add the script to EMS

1. On the Test & Launch page in Ask AI, copy the provided script.
2. In your EMS admin site, navigate to Settings > Portal > Parent Portal Content > Custom Script.
3. Paste the script from Ask AI.
4. Save your changes.

Step 3. Test and launch

Before parents can see the chatbot, use Test Mode to preview it:

1. In Ask AI, Test Mode is on by default on the Test & Launch page, so the widget is visible to you in preview but not to parents.
2. Test with common enrollment questions to verify the chatbot answers correctly and that knowledge sources work.
3. Make any adjustments to knowledge, appearance, or messaging as needed.
4. When you're ready to go live, turn Test Mode off on the Test & Launch page.

See Ask AI Manage: Configure settings and knowledge base to learn more.

The Ask AI widget will now appear in the Parent Portal for logged-in parents and guardians.

What parents will see

Once set up, a chat widget appears in the bottom-right corner of the Parent Portal when a parent is logged in. Parents can type questions and receive instant answers based on your school's approved knowledge sources.

The widget's position is adjustable. Go to the Appearance section in your Ask AI admin dashboard to change it. 

See Ask AI Manage: Configure settings and knowledge base to learn more.