AI CHATBOTS AND CONVERSATIONAL MARKETING: BUILDING CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS AT SCALE
Keywords:
AI chatbots; conversational marketing; customer relationships; trust; privacy; service recoveryAbstract
AI chatbots are now everywhere in customer communication. They answer questions, guide purchases, and increasingly represent the “voice” of brands in real time. This article looks at what that shift means for conversational marketing and customer relationships, especially at scale. Using a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) of studies from 2018 to 2026, the paper identifies patterns in what researchers agree on and where debates remain. The findings suggest that chatbots are most useful when they improve responsiveness, reduce customer effort, and keep interaction open at any time. However, the literature also shows that scaling conversation is easier than scaling trust. Relationship outcomes are strongly shaped by customer perceptions of tone, fairness, privacy boundaries, and transparency, especially in service recovery situations where emotions run high. Evidence also highlights risks linked to over-humanisation, data discomfort, and confident but incorrect AI responses, particularly in high-stakes service settings. Overall, chatbots can support stronger relationships, but loyalty depends on responsible design, clear boundaries, and human support when needed. This review explains when chatbots help conversational marketing and when they weaken it.
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