Virtual influencer marketing: an empirical investigation of the critical factors influencing user engagement with virtual influencers

Purpose This study aims to examine the influence of specific influencer attributes (sociability, identity disclosure and number of followees) and a key post-level factor (emoticon use), along with their interactions, on user engagement with virtual influencers on social media. Design/methodology/approach Using a data set of 1,852 posts from 173 virtual influencers, this study applies manual coding and text-mining techniques to extract influencer and post attributes for empirical analysis. Findings Results reveal that sociability and emoticon use increase user engagement, whereas identity disclosure has a negative effect. Moreover, the positive impacts of sociability and emoticon use are weakened when virtual influencers follow a large number of accounts. Research limitations/implications This study is based on data from virtual influencers in China. Future studies could consider other types of virtual influencers and contexts in other countries. Practical implications Marketers are advised to prioritize building a virtual influencer's sociability and using emoticons to drive user engagement. They should also strategically manage followee count to avoid diluting a virtual influencer' impact. Crucially, creators should avoid excessive identity disclosure to sustain user engagement. Originality/value Grounded in the parasocial relationship theory, this research advances virtual influencer marketing literature by examining how influencer- and post-level factors, along with their interplay, drive user engagement with virtual influencers.