The rapid evolution of digital technologies has made it essential for brands to understand the psychological mechanisms and evolving needs for driving customer interaction. Grounded in the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) framework and Self-Determination Theory, this study explores how social media marketing and gamification trigger cognitive-affective processes (customer experience, customer engagement, psychological ownership) among customers, ultimately influencing value co-creation. This study is crucial as it explores how marketing stimuli shape customers’ cognition in creating value co-creation, specifically for e-commerce cosmetic brands on social media. Data were collected from 344 respondents, who are active followers of such brands on social media and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modelling. The finding highlights that both social media marketing activities and gamification elements positively influence customer experience, which in turn fosters customer engagement and value co-creation. Moreover, the mediation results highlight that psychological ownership partially mediates the relationship between customer experience and customer engagement, reinforcing its function as a critical organismic state in the SOR framework. In addition, the findings further establish customer engagement as a significant mediator between customer experience and value co-creation. The model explains a substantial proportion of variance (R2 = 0.706) and standardized root mean squared residue (SRMR) value of 0.059, confirming model fitness. The research not only advances theoretical knowledge on the process leading to value co-creation but also contributes as a diagnostic lens to evaluate whether experiential initiatives are merely generating interaction or genuinely fostering co-creation. This understanding of digital marketing effectiveness provides key insights for e-commerce brands seeking to enhance customer relationships and drive business outcomes on social media.
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