Your First Build
This is a conversation, not a coding task. Tell the Website Assistant what you want in ordinary language and it handles the Website Builder details for you. If you use Codex with a local project open, name the ShopStable Website Assistant connector in your first message so it does not mistake your local files for the website you want to edit.
Start with a no-change tour
If you have not already done this from the installation guide, copy this into a new conversation:
Use the ShopStable Website Assistant connector for this request. Do not inspect, search, or modify local files, code, or websites on my computer.
Call the ShopStable list_businesses tool first. I want to work on the [business name] website stored in ShopStable. List every page, tell me which one is the home page, and show me which pages are in the navigation. Do not make any changes yet.
Before you send the prompt, add ShopStable to the conversation from + → More or mention it with @. The assistant first confirms the exact business it will work on. If your connection has access to more than one business, it asks you to choose. It then reads your draft and gives you a link to Workspace → Website Builder so you can follow along.
You can safely ask for this tour. It does not change your website. A correct response names the ShopStable business and lists its pages; it does not search your local files. If Codex starts inspecting a local project, use the correction prompt in Installing the Connector.
Choose your starting path
Once you know what is already there, choose one of these paths.
Moving your current website over
Copy this prompt and replace the address:
I want to move my current website to ShopStable: https://example.com. Map the whole site first, show me every page you find, and propose the first batch before you copy or change anything.
The assistant maps your whole site first, then shows you the complete site map and a plan before touching anything.
You'll be asked two things up front:
- Which pages, in what order. Work happens in confirmed batches of 5 to 15 pages, so you approve each chunk.
- The import mode. Faithful copy recreates your pages as closely as the builder allows. Keep my brand, modernize the rest keeps your colors, type, and content but proposes upgrades where your old site used dated patterns.
While it works, the assistant:
- builds your homepage hero first, from the first capture, so you see your own brand materialize within minutes;
- binds content ShopStable already knows to live data — hours, locations, services, social links, and your contact form become live components, so updating them once in your workspace updates the site;
- carries each old page's address and search snippet over, and records a redirect so your old links keep working after launch — your Google results survive the move;
- flags low-resolution images and offers replacements or asks you for originals;
- is honest about gaps: if your old site has something the builder can't express yet, you get a plain-language note, never a silent approximation.
If your old site blocks automated visitors, ShopStable asks you to confirm in your workspace that it is your site before capturing. The assistant cannot make that confirmation for you.
Starting from scratch
No website yet? Copy this prompt:
I want to create a website for my [business name] from scratch. Ask me the questions you need, use the services and locations already in ShopStable, then show me a proposed page plan before you build anything.
The assistant asks briefly what the business does, who it serves, and which pages you need. It combines that with the services, locations, hours, and social profiles already in ShopStable, then proposes a page plan before creating sections. If your business profile is filled in, the starting point is already much stronger.
Give the first approved job
After you approve a plan, keep the request small and specific. For example:
Start with the Home page. Build a clear hero for [what we do], then add a short services section and a contact section. Show me the desktop and phone preview before you move on.
The assistant saves a session checkpoint before its first change. It creates and updates one section at a time, so you can watch the work appear in the editor and change direction at any point.
Watching it build
Open your editor (Workspace → Website Builder) while the assistant works. It hands you the link. You'll see:
- sections appearing on the canvas one at a time, with a presence banner showing what the assistant is doing;
- Follow mode, a toggle that makes your canvas ride along, section by section;
- your own edits always win: change anything mid-build and the assistant works around you, never over you.
After each page, expect the mobile reveal — a screenshot of how it looks on a phone, unprompted. Everything the builder makes is mobile-first.
Safety net
Before its first change of every session, the assistant saves a checkpoint automatically. Say "go back to how it was" at any time and the whole session rolls back. You can also ask it to "save this as before-the-redesign" before trying something bold.
Next: Working With Your Pages · Watching Live and Publishing