Hey, PiErre! The Role of AI-Enabled Chatbots in Geographical Brand Management

This research aims to investigate the role AI-enabled chatbots play in branding activities, with a focus on quality food products. By adopting grounded theory methodologies for data collection and analysis applied to the exemplar case of the chatbot built by the Parmigiano Reggiano Consortium, this study reveals the role AI chatbots can play in geographical brand management, demonstrating the potential chatbots have in building brand knowledge by conveying a geographical brand’s distinctive attributes, values, heritage and personality, and illustrating the AI-enabled chatbot’s ability to enhance hybrid brand experiences by increasing the hybrid dimension of relationships with the brand. Our work proposes an AI branding framework that shows the role that AI plays in building strong brands in the context of rapid technological innovation. This study has significant managerial implications, as it demonstrates how AI-enabled chatbots can be a valuable ally for brand managers to reinforce symbolic meaning and experiential value.