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Add animations to help articles

Embed a ready-made animated illustration in a help article from the Animation picker, preview it live, and know which animations work in your help center.

Last updated 1 min readPreview

On this page

Animations show a flow instead of describing it. The editor has a picker with Hushdesk's ready-made animated illustrations that you can drop into any article.

Before you start

  • Who can do this: owners, admins and agents.
  • Plan: all plans.
  • Good to know: the animations show Hushdesk screens (the chat widget, the inbox, order tracking). For your own store's screens, use pictures.

Step by step

  1. Open an article in Settings > Help center.
  2. Place the cursor where the animation should go.
  3. Press Animation in the toolbar.
  4. Search the list ("Search animations") and pick one. A live preview shows it.
  5. Insert it, then press Save draft.

What happens next

The animation appears in the article as a block. Readers see it play in the article and in Preview. When an animation id is not known to the help center, the block is removed when you save, so a published article never shows a broken spot.

Tips

  • One animation per main step is plenty. Put it after the numbered steps it illustrates.
  • Use the chat widget animations in articles such as "How to chat with us".
  • Combine an animation with a Click path so readers see both where to click and what happens.

Troubleshooting

The Animation button is missing

The picker appears only when there are animations ready to show on your server. Use pictures or a video in the meantime.

For your own moving demos, use Video with a YouTube or Vimeo link instead of an animation.

Frequently asked questions

What are animations in Hushdesk help articles?

Short animated illustrations that show a flow step by step, such as a chat widget opening, an order being tracked or a ticket being assigned. You insert them from the Animation button in the editor. They are drawn in the page itself, so they load fast and stay sharp on every screen.

Can I upload my own animation or GIF?

Not as an animation. The Animation picker offers Hushdesk's ready-made illustrations only. You can add your own GIF with the Picture button, but it is converted to a still WebP picture. For your own moving demos, upload a screen recording to YouTube or Vimeo and embed it with Video.

Why are some animations missing from the picker?

The picker lists only animations that are ready to show. Others are still being made and appear later. If an article already contains an animation id that is not ready, the help center leaves that spot empty instead of showing something broken.

Do animations slow down my help center?

No noticeable slow-down. Animations are drawn with the page's own code, not as large video files, and they hold still on the finished frame for readers who turn on reduced motion. Keep to one or two per article anyway, so the steps stay the focus and the page stays easy to scan on a phone.

Can customers see Hushdesk branding in the animations?

The animations illustrate Hushdesk's own screens, such as the inbox, the chat widget and order tracking. They suit help articles about chatting with your store or tracking an order. For steps inside your own store, use your own screenshots with the Picture button.

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