Why Do You Engage the Brand Meta‐Human in Social Media? The Mixed Method Research on the Mechanism of Similarity Effect on Customer Brand Engagement

ABSTRACT With the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, meta‐humans are increasingly utilized as brand endorsers in social media marketing. While prior studies have highlighted the effectiveness of meta‐human endorsements, limited attention has been given to the role of customer‐perceived similarity in driving brand engagement or the underlying psychological mechanisms from interpersonal perception. Grounded in the similarity‐attraction theory, this study investigates the impact of meta‐human‐customer similarity on brand engagement. A mixed‐methods approach was employed, combining qualitative research using grounded theory and an empirical online survey. The findings reveal that similarity enhances customer brand engagement through customers' interpersonal perception. Specifically, meta‐human‐customer external (e.g., gender, age, appearance) and internal (e.g., values, attitudes, interests) similarities contribute to customers' cognitive, affective, and behavioral engagement mediated by customers' interpersonal perception (para‐social interaction, self‐expansion, and fear of missing‐out). These insights provide valuable theoretical and practical implications for researchers and practitioners in understanding and leveraging meta‐human brand endorsements in social media marketing.