You have control over your Chat Status and how you receive Chat Alerts. Your Chat Status determines whether customers can send you messages, while your alert settings control how you're notified when new messages arrive.
Jump to a section: Chat Status | Online Presence | Chat Alert Settings
You can manage your Chat Status and Alert settings in two places:
- From the navigation menu on the left side of any NiteFlirt page
- In Account > Availability
Chat Status
Your Chat Status controls whether customers can reach you through Chat and how your Chat Card appears to customers.
Choose the status that works best for you:
| Chat Status | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Available | You're ready to Chat. Customers can send you messages and your Chat Card appears with your available Chat options. |
| Away | Customers can still send you messages, but they'll see a notice letting them know you're currently Away and may not respond right away. |
| Off | Chat is fully turned off. Customers cannot send you new Chat messages, and you cannot send them new messages -- including through existing conversations. |
Need to fully disconnect from Chat?
Set your Chat Status to Off. Unlike Away, which still allows customers to message you, setting your Chat Status to Off makes you completely unavailable until you're ready to return.
Online Presence
Online Presence lets customers know when you're active on NiteFlirt. This setting is turned On by default.
When Online Presence is on, customers may see an online indicator when you're active on the site. Your Online Presence is separate from your Chat Status, so you can control whether customers see that you're online independently from whether you're available to Chat.
If you'd prefer not to show when you're active, switch the Online Presence toggle to Off.
Good to know: Turning Online Presence off only hides your online indicator. It does not change your Chat Status or prevent customers from sending you messages when your Chat Status allows them.
Chat Alert Settings
Chat Alert Settings help you stay on top of new messages. Manage your on-site and SMS alerts, Quiet Hours, and notification preferences in Account > Availability.
On-site Alerts
When you're actively on the site and a customer sends you a Chat message, you'll hear an audio alert and see a notification in the top-right corner of any NiteFlirt page you're on.
Use the On-site pop ups toggle to turn them off at any time.
Browser note: Due to the way Safari handles notifications, Safari won’t allow sounds to play without very recent browser interaction. If you're using Safari and let the browser go idle, you may not hear audio alerts. Chrome works more consistently for sound notifications.
SMS Alerts
When SMS Alerts are enabled, SMS alerts are sent only if you’ve been inactive on the site for 30 minutes or more. This helps avoid interruptions while you're actively using NiteFlirt. Once you reply to a message, SMS alerts will stop within about a minute.
Quiet Hours
If you want to avoid Chat Alerts during certain times, use the Quiet Hours option.
When Quiet Hours are enabled, the "online" indicator will not appear on your Chat Card, even if you're set to Available and active on the site.
Understanding SMS Status Icons:
Each phone number in your account displays an icon to show whether it’s set up to receive SMS Chat alerts.
These indicators help you quickly confirm which numbers are enabled for Chat alerts, and whether any additional setup, like verification, is needed. Click the tool-tip next to Phone Numbers to see what each icon means.
For the fastest and most reliable notifications, we recommend installing our PWA (Progressive Web App), which can send push notifications for new Chats even when you're not actively browsing.
Your Chat Status lets you decide whether you're ready to Chat, want to step Away while still receiving messages, or want to turn Chat off completely. Your Chat Alert settings give you additional control over how you're notified when messages come in.
If you need help adjusting your Chat settings, Submit a Support Request. We’re happy to help.