Assessing the Drivers Influencing Value Co-Creation in the Metaverse for E-Commerce Ecosystems

This study investigates the drivers of value co-creation (VC) in metaverse environments for e-commerce ecosystems. VC represents collaborative engagement between businesses and tech-savvy customers who shape virtual worlds through their interactions. The metaverse powered by augmented reality, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, internet of things, and blockchain technologies enables e-commerce entities to develop interactive marketing campaigns, immersive brand experiences, and streamlined product prototyping while fostering emotional customer connections. Quantitative analysis of data from 310 e-commerce customers yielded two significant findings: (1) customer knowledge in the metaverse encompasses individual needs, behaviours, motivations, preferences, immersive shopping practices, and brand attitudes, and (2) VC capabilities in the metaverse are defined by customers' communication, collaboration, and analytical skills. This research contributes to understanding how customer-centric factors drive value co-creation processes within emerging virtual commercial environments.