Businesses are increasingly recognizing the value of integrating customers as partners and volunteers in their value chains through online communities. While consumer motivation in this context is often viewed in generic terms, there is a lack of exploration into personalized, theory-based motivation. Moreover, research on engagement behaviour in the context of online communities has yet to establish a comprehensive theoretical framework that incorporates personality and incentives. To address these research gaps, we conducted twelve in-depth semi-structured interviews with active users of online communities. Our goal was to delve into the underlying motives and incentives related to different forms of engagement behaviour. The results of our investigation revealed ten distinct motives and incentives influencing engagement behaviour, with variations based on the specific type of engagement. In conclusion, we propose a theoretical framework that incorporates motives and incentives and contributes to a deeper understanding of online customer engagement dynamics.