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Fine-Tuning & Continual Learning

Store owners frequently ask: "How do I make the AI smarter? Does it read our store policies automatically, or do we have to train it?"

Out of the box, ShopGuide automatically indexes your entire Shopify product catalog—titles, descriptions, variants, pricing, inventory levels, and tags. But to make your assistant an elite brand ambassador that speaks with your tone and knows your unique business policies, ShopGuide provides a 4-step Continual Learning hierarchy.

The 4-Step Fine-Tuning Hierarchy​

Rather than treating AI training as an intimidating technical project, ShopGuide structures fine-tuning in order of fastest commercial payoff:

flowchart TD
    Step1["1. Set the rules it follows every time<br/>(Your instructions to the AI)"] --> Step2["2. Correct real answers with thumbs up/down<br/>(One-click transcript feedback rules)"]
    Step2 --> Step3["3. Give it the facts it doesn't have<br/>(Knowledge Base, PDFs, FAQs, Q&A pairs)"]
    Step3 --> Step4["4. Ask Sidekick how it's going<br/>(Continuous auditing of unresolved questions)"]

Step 1: Set the Rules It Follows Every Time​

Located under Settings → AI Behavior (or the Training page), this section defines the core operating instructions for your assistant.

Your Instructions to the AI (Custom System Prompt)​

This is where you tell the AI who it is and how to conduct itself. Customers never see this raw text—it is the guiding directive injected into every conversational turn:

  • Brand Tone: Specify whether your voice is casual, enthusiastic, minimalist, or clinically professional.
  • Store Policies & Thresholds: Declare hard rules such as "Free shipping applies on all US domestic orders over $50" or "Never recommend international shipping for perishable goods."
  • Upselling & Cross-Selling Behavior: Instruct the AI when to suggest complementary accessories or bundle upgrades.
Instructions vs. Launch Messages
  • Your instructions to the AI are internal operational rules that shape the assistant's thinking.
  • Launch Messages (configured on the Essentials tab) are the visible greeting phrases and button chips shown to customers when the chat opens.

Step 2: Correct Real Answers with Thumbs Up or Down​

The fastest way to eliminate mistakes is to correct real conversations as they occur.

  1. In your Shopify Admin, navigate to ShopGuide → Chats.
  2. Click on any conversation transcript to review the customer's questions and the AI's responses.
  3. Beside any AI message, click the Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down icon.
  4. If you click Thumbs Down, a composer modal appears asking: "What should the AI have done instead?"
  5. Write your instruction in plain English (e.g., "When customers ask about our wool sweaters, mention they are dry-clean only").
  6. Click Save Rule.

ShopGuide instantly saves this feedback and incorporates the rule into live customer conversations. There is no waiting for overnight model retraining—the correction takes effect immediately.

Step 3: Give It Facts It Doesn't Have (Knowledge Base)​

When customers ask questions that cannot be answered from product descriptions alone (such as warranty policies, sizing charts, material sourcing, or dosage instructions), feed them into the Knowledge Base.

Located under ShopGuide → Test your Guide (or via the link in Extras), the Knowledge Base supports multiple content formats:

Supported Knowledge Formats​

  • Custom Q&A Pairs: Write specific question-and-answer pairs for recurring customer inquiries.
  • Policy Documents & Text: Paste full return policies, shipping FAQ pages, or company background stories.
  • PDF & CSV Document Uploads: Upload technical spec sheets, certification documents, ingredient glossaries, or wholesale terms.

The Live Testing Playground​

Before publishing new knowledge to your live storefront, use the built-in Test Assistant sandbox on the Training page.

  • Ask the exact questions your shoppers ask.
  • Inspect the retrieved knowledge sources to confirm the AI cites the correct policy.
  • Verify tone and formatting in a safe staging environment.

Step 4: Audit Unanswered Questions with Sidekick​

Continuous improvement requires knowing what you don't know.

ShopGuide automatically categorizes every unresolved customer inquiry into the Knowledge Gaps list (accessible in Chats and via Shopify Sidekick). High-frequency knowledge gaps highlight:

  • Missing products that customers expect you to carry.
  • Ambiguous product descriptions that leave customers confused.
  • Unlisted shipping destinations or payment methods.

By reviewing your Knowledge Gaps once a week and adding the missing answers to Step 3, your AI assistant compounds in intelligence every month.