TOWARD A HIERARCHICAL ARCHITECTURE OF AI-ENABLED MARKETING CAPABILITY IN SMES: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORY-DEVELOPMENT AGENDA
Abstract
This study develops a taxonomy of AI-Enabled Marketing Capability (AIMC) in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and proposes a future research agenda for capability-based digital marketing research. Using the PRISMA 2020 protocol and the taxonomy development procedure of Nickerson et al. (2013), this systematic literature review synthesizes 42 peer-reviewed articles indexed in Scopus and Web of Science published between 2019 and 2025. The findings identify eight AIMC dimensions organized into four hierarchical tiers: Core, Contextual, Peripheral, and Contested dimensions. The study clarifies the distinction between AI tool adoption and AIMC as an organizational capability and integrates Dynamic Capability Theory, Resource-Based View, and Augmentation Theory into a coherent theoretical framework. The review further proposes a conceptual pathway linking AIMC, Digital Platform Capability, Digital Marketing Performance, and Market Turbulence. This study contributes to the literature by providing a reproducible taxonomy, reducing conceptual ambiguity, and offering a theory-development agenda for future empirical research, particularly in SME and Islamic digital economy contexts.
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