Escaping reality, engaging audiences: How virtual background shapes engagement with virtual influencers

Virtual influencers have recently emerged as a viable alternative to human influencers for engaging audiences on social media. However, little research has investigated how different elements of virtual influencers' posts shape engagement. Drawing on uses and gratifications theory, this research explores one such element: namely, the influencers' post background (virtual vs real). Although virtual influencers are usually depicted in real backgrounds, we show across four studies (N = 938) that construing the background as virtual (vs. real) actually leads to higher social media engagement (Study 1) because it generates greater feelings of reality detachment (Study 2) that, in turn, increase users’ enjoyment (Study 3). Finally, more (vs. less) curious people are more (vs. less) likely to experience the feelings of reality detachment generated by the virtual background (Study 4). These findings shed light on how reality detachment drives user responses to virtual influencer content, which can aid virtual influencer creators and companies in more effectively designing social media content.