The Impact of Virtual Reality Experience Factors on Sustainable Marketing Campaign Performance: The Role of Immersion, Interaction, Emotion and Educational Content

Abstract:

While virtual reality (VR) is recognized as a promising tool in sustainable marketing, there remains a lack of understanding about how specific elements of VR experiences impact campaign effectiveness. This study develops and tests an integrated model evaluating the influence of four key factors: immersion, interactivity, emotional engagement, and educational content on sustainable marketing campaign effectiveness. Applying structural equation modeling (SEM) to data from 745 participants who experienced sustainability-focused VR applications, results confirm the positive impact of all four factors. Notably, interactivity had the strongest influence (β = 0.329, p < .001), followed by educational content (β = 0.318, p < .001), emotional engagement (β = 0.303, p < .001), and immersion (β = 0.287, p < .001). The model explains 78.2 % of variance in campaign effectiveness, providing practical design guidelines for marketers to optimize VR experiences and narrow the attitude-behavior gap in sustainability contexts.