Chatbots have become common in digital customer service contexts across many industries. While many companies choose to humanize their customer service chatbots (e.g., giving them names and avatars), little is known about how anthropomorphism influences customer responses to chatbots in service settings. Across five studies, including an analysis of a large real-world dataset from an international telecommunications company and four experiments, the authors find that when customers enter a chatbot-led service interaction in an angry emotional state, chatbot anthropomorphism has a negative effect on customer satisfaction, overall firm evaluation, and subsequent purchase intentions. However, this is not the case for customers in non-angry emotional states. The authors uncover the underlying mechanism driving this negative effect (expectancy violations caused by inflated pre-encounter expectations of chatbot efficacy) and offer practical implications for managers. These findings suggest it is important to both carefully design chatbots and consider the emotional context in which they are used, particularly in customer service interactions that involve resolving problems or handling complaints.

The Web is a constantly evolving, complex system, with important implications for both marketers and consumers. In this paper, we contend that over the next five to ten years society will see a shift in the nature of the Web, as consumers, firms and regulators become increasingly concerned about privacy. In particular, we predict that, as a result of this privacy-focus, various information sharing and protection practices currently found on the Dark Web will be increasingly adapted in the overall Web, and in the process, firms will lose much of their ability to fuel a modern marketing machinery that relies on abundant, rich, and timely consumer data. In this type of controlled information-sharing environment, we foresee the emersion of two distinct types of consumers: (1) those generally willing to share their information with marketers (Buffs), and (2) those who generally deny access to their personal information (Ghosts). We argue that one way marketers can navigate this new environment is by effectively designing and deploying conversational agents (CAs), often referred to as "chatbots." In particular, we propose that CAs may be used to understand and engage both types of consumers, while providing personalization, and serving both as a form of differentiation and as an important strategic asset for the firm-one capable of eliciting self-disclosure of otherwise private consumer information.

Although the value gained from partnership formation (through alliances) or through the firm's position in a network has received significant research attention, little is known about the risks that can accompany this increasing reliance on partners. The authors investigate the change in firm idiosyncratic and systematic risks after the announcement of marketing alliances and analyze whether the density of the firm's network of alliance partners moderates the risk exposure, demonstrated through investors' expectations of a firm's risk or the equity risk of a firm. The results indicate that marketing alliances reduce firm risk, so long as the alliance is a novel connection between the partnering firms. Furthermore, at high levels, the interconnectedness of partners or density of a firm's network can cause idiosyncratic risk to increase, and the density of a partner's network can also result in increases in systematic risk of a firm after alliance formation.

This article investigates how engaging in a merger moderates the joint impact of a firm's achievement of dual goals of customer satisfaction and firm efficiency on a firm's long-term financial performance. Many prominent firms grow through mergers. Recent examples in the services context include the merger between Toronto-Dominion Bank and Canada Trust, and the merger between Continental and United Airlines. Our results show that joint achievement of customer satisfaction and efficiency is beneficial in merger contexts, but not in nonmerger contexts. We investigate the moderating role of mergers using a longitudinal panel of 429 observations across multiple firms and industries. These results suggest that merging firms should not take a myopic perspective of only wresting efficiencies (as the finance literature suggests). Rather, merging firms should focus on simultaneously improving customer satisfaction and improving efficiency to maximize long-term firm value.

Marketers are adopting increasingly sophisticated ways to engage with customers throughout their journeys. We extend prior perspectives on the customer journey by introducing the role of digital signals that consumers emit throughout their activities. We argue that the ability to detect and act on consumer digital signals is a source of competitive advantage for firms. Technology enables firms to collect, interpret, and act on these signals to better manage the customer journey. While some consumers’ desire for privacy can restrict the opportunities technology provides marketers, other consumers’ desire for personalization can encourage the use of technology to inform marketing efforts. We posit that this difference in consumers’ willingness to emit observable signals may hinge on the strength of their relationship with the firm. We next discuss factors that may shift consumer preferences and consequently affect the technology-enabled opportunities available to firms. We conclude with a research agenda that focuses on consumers, firms, and regulators.