Adding Knowledge Sources (Documents, URLs, and Policies)

Knowledge Sources are the foundation of your AI Agent's understanding. These are the documents, web pages, and policies the agent draws from when answering customer questions. The more relevant knowledge you provide, the better your agent performs.

Go to AI Agent → Knowledge Base to manage your sources.

What's Already There When You Start

TxtCart automatically pulls in content from your Shopify store when you install the app:

Shopify Policies (shipping, returns/refunds, contact info, privacy, terms of service) are ingested automatically and ready to use right away. No action needed.
Shopify Pages (FAQ pages, About Us, sizing guides, etc.) are discovered automatically and added as Pending sources. You'll see these in your Knowledge Base and can approve the ones you want the AI to use.
Onboarding Facts - During onboarding, if your store is missing a Shopify policy (for example, you don't have a shipping policy page set up), TxtCart asks you to provide the key details (shipping carrier, delivery times, return window, support email). These answers are saved as Facts in your knowledge base so the AI can still answer those questions. If you later add the actual Shopify policy, you should archive the corresponding onboarding fact manually to avoid conflicting information.

As you add Knowledge Sources, TxtCart may also auto-extract Guidelines from your documents. For example, if your return policy document contains a rule like "All returns must include original packaging," it might be suggested as a guideline. These show up in the Guidelines tab as Pending Review for you to approve or dismiss.

This means your AI Agent has a head start before you add anything manually. Check your Knowledge Base tab to review what was pulled in and approve any pending content.

Types of Knowledge Sources

1. Shopify Policy Your store's built-in Shopify policy pages. These are auto-ingested at install and stay synced with your Shopify admin. You'll find them already active in your Knowledge Base.

2. Shopify Page Pages from your Shopify store (FAQ, About Us, sizing guides, etc.). These are discovered automatically at install and show as Pending until you approve them. You can also add Shopify Pages manually at any time.

3. External Page Link any public URL outside your Shopify store. Good for blog posts, help center articles, or content hosted elsewhere.

4. Google Doc Link a public Google Doc. Great for living documents like FAQs or style guides that your team updates regularly. You can enable auto-sync so the AI always has the latest version.

5. File Upload Upload PDF, Word (.docx), or plain text files directly. Good for internal documents like brand guidelines, product specs, or training materials.

Reviewing Pending Sources

When TxtCart discovers your Shopify Pages at install, they're added as Pending so you can decide which ones are useful for the AI. To review them:

Filter your Knowledge Base by Pending status
Review each source to see if it contains content relevant to customer questions
Click Approve on the ones you want the AI to use
Archive any that aren't relevant (e.g., a "Coming Soon" placeholder page)

Guidelines can also be auto-extracted from your documents during ingestion. These show up in the Guidelines tab as Pending Review for you to approve or dismiss.

How to Add a Source Manually

Click Add Source in the Knowledge Base tab
Choose your source type (Shopify Page, External Page, Google Doc, or File Upload)
Provide the link, select the page, or upload your file
Give it a descriptive title
Choose a category:
- Policy: Return policies, shipping policies, terms of service
- FAQ: Frequently asked questions, help content
- General: Product info, brand story, anything else
Click Save

The source will show as Processing while the AI ingests and indexes the content. Once it switches to Active, it's ready for use.

Auto-Sync

For Google Docs and External Pages, you can enable auto-sync. When turned on, the AI periodically re-ingests the source (every 24 hours by default) to pick up any changes. This is useful for documents that get updated frequently, like a FAQ page or a shipping policy that changes seasonally.

If a sync fails (for example, if a Google Doc is made private or a URL goes down), the source will show an error status. The last successfully synced version remains active until the issue is fixed.

Source Statuses

Status	What It Means
Processing	The AI is reading and indexing the content. Takes a few moments.
Active	Ready to use. The AI can draw from this source in conversations.
Failed	Something went wrong during ingestion. Check that the link is accessible or the file is valid.
Pending	Discovered automatically and waiting for your approval before the AI can use it.
Archived	Removed from active use. The AI will not reference archived sources.

What to Add Beyond the Auto-Populated Content

Your Shopify Policies and Pages give the AI a strong starting point. To fill in the gaps:

Review and approve your pending Shopify Pages (the most important first step)
Add an FAQ document if you have one outside of Shopify (Google Doc, external URL, or file)
Add product guides or sizing charts if relevant to your products
Add any content your support team references frequently that isn't already on your Shopify store

Check the Content Health section at the top of the Knowledge Base tab to see coverage metrics and identify gaps.

Tips for Better Results

Keep documents focused. A 2-page shipping policy works better than a 50-page employee handbook. The AI can pull from multiple sources, so smaller, focused documents perform better than large catch-all files.
Use descriptive titles. "Shipping Policy - Updated March 2026" is better than "Document1.pdf". Titles help you manage your knowledge base and help the AI understand what each source covers.
Review stale content. The Content Health section flags sources that haven't been updated in 30+ days. If your policies or product info has changed, update the source or replace it.
Don't duplicate information across sources. If your return policy is in both a Shopify Policy and an uploaded PDF, the AI may pull conflicting information. Pick one authoritative source for each topic.