Live chat that HUMANS answer during business hours: genuinely converts. It catches the fence-sitters who won't call. Chat that opens with a bot, uninvited popups, and 'we'll email you back' chat: mostly friction wearing a helpful mask.
AI chatbots in 2026 are better than their reputation IF scoped honestly: answering hours/services/pricing-range questions from your real content, then handing off to a human or a form. Scoped dishonestly (pretending to be human, improvising answers), they manufacture the exact distrust that loses leads.
The decision test: staffing. If someone can answer chats in minutes during posted hours, add it. If not, a prominent phone number, a short form, and the missed-call text-back pattern outperform an abandoned widget.