Are you wondering what UGC strategy is and how you might be able to use it in your business?
In the world of business and marketing, trends come and go, so it’s not always easy to determine which strategies might be worth investing in. UGC—user-generated content, however, is one strategy that has consistently worked well when implemented correctly across platforms like Instagram and other social media platforms. UGC content refers to various types of content created by social media users, including video content, visual content, and more, about a product or service. This can include different types of UGC, such as Instagram posts, media content, and even social media posts on other social media channels.
In this article, we’ll dive into what UGC strategy is, how businesses can create UGC, and how content creation driven by your audience can benefit your marketing campaign. We will also explore how to use UGC for content marketing and leverage social proof for your brand’s success. Whether you’re running an influencer marketing campaign or just encouraging customers to share content, a strong UGC approach can amplify your marketing efforts and help build connections. With the right UGC strategy, you can boost your presence, enhance social listening, and create an impactful UGC campaign.
What is User Generated Content?
User-generated content is content that is created around a brand or its products or services by the users of its products or services.
In mainstream content marketing, businesses typically create their content by themselves, allowing for complete control over content ideas and delivery.
However, this process can be costly and may require significant amounts of resources. On the other hand, user-generated content is typically free.
As Gary Hemming, Owner & Finance Director at ABC Finance, puts it, “User-generated content gives businesses a chance to build authentic connections with their customers without the heavy financial burden of traditional marketing. It’s a win-win strategy that leverages trust and creativity for free.”
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to making the most of user-generated content if you decide to try this strategy. However, with the tips we’ll share, you’ll have a better understanding of how to make it work for your business.
What are the types of User-Generated Content?
User-Generated Content (UGC) comes in many forms, each offering unique ways to engage with your audience and build brand trust. UGC is content created by customers, followers, or fans of a brand, and it can be shared across various platforms like Instagram. This content helps brands build connections with their audience in an authentic way. Here are some examples of UGC that you can use to strengthen your marketing efforts:
- Social Media Posts: Customers sharing photos or videos of your product on platforms like Instagram.
- Reviews and Testimonials: Honest feedback from users, often found on e-commerce sites or Google reviews.
- Hashtag Campaigns: Branded hashtags encouraging users to share their content using the hashtag.
- Video Content: Users creating short videos, unboxing products, or sharing their experience with a brand.
- Blog Posts or Articles: Written content by customers or influencers discussing their experience with your product or service.
By using these types of UGC, brands can tap into the power of real customer experiences to promote their products.
What are the benefits of User-Generated Content? Should You Use it to Promote Your Business?
Still not sure if UGC is right for your business? Here are some of the potential benefits you may be missing out on already:
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Increased Conversions
Some studies have shown that up to 50% of millennials trust UGC more than any other type of content, including professionally created content. Additionally, according to EnTribe, about 82% of consumers are likely to purchase from brands that use UGC.
These studies show that UGC offers by far the greatest prospect, when compared with other content sources, of driving conversions when incorporated into your marketing.
According to Rain Yang, Founder & CEO of WoodenAve, “Consumers today crave authenticity. UGC not only builds trust but also bridges the gap between brands and their audiences. When customers see real people using your product, it speaks louder than any polished ad campaign.”
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Free Content
Creating most forms of content can be expensive. Even if you do it all by yourself, you still need to devote tons of time and effort to creating high-quality content in any form. UGC can sometimes bridge this gap by providing you with free yet highly effective content.
As covered in this report on Gen-Z social media usage, social media platforms are being increasingly driven by influencer culture, with as many as 31% of all influencers on instagram being Gen-Z. This means with the right motivation, you may be able to get your users to create mutually beneficial free content.
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Organic Insights
All businesses can make better decisions with more predictable outcomes when they have access to higher-quality insights from users. Encouraging your users to create content around your brand is an excellent way to drive organic conversations that may lead to such insights.
In explaining how this works, Gavin Yi, Founder and CEO of Yijin Hardware, says: “UGC provides an organic way to gather valuable customer insights. When people share their genuine experiences, they reveal pain points and opportunities that businesses can leverage to improve both their products and services.”
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Improved Brand Loyalty
Customer-centric content is an excellent way to keep your users front and center in your marketing, typically resulting in increased brand loyalty. There are few better ways to achieve this than by leveraging their content.
For Grant Aldrich, Founder of Online Degree, UGC content is about much more than just marketing. As he puts it, “A well-executed UGC campaign, like branded hashtags, empowers customers to be part of the brand story. It’s not just marketing—it’s community building.”
How to Use User-Generated Content Effectively
Just as with any other strategy, proper implementation is typically the key to gaining optimal results from UGC. Here are some of the easiest-to-implement tips we’d recommend to help you achieve this:
1. Create a Branded Hashtag
Branded hashtags are a great way to make your business stand out on social media while building a community of loyal supporters.
Encourage users to create content using your branded hashtag, and when they do, be sure to share their content in turn. This will help to boost engagement, but more importantly, you might motivate your users to share more content.
If you’re in construction, for example, and looking to use UGC as part of your contractor marketing strategy, for instance, you could create hashtags around your completed projects, and get your previous clients to share images of work you did for them.
In addition to sharing or boosting user generated content as we advise above, you can also leverage user generated content by repurposing it to form part of your own content. For instance you can collate and share user generated content on visually oriented platforms like Instagram and TikTok to create relatable, engaging content that resonates with your audience.
3. Use UGC in Your Ads
User-generated content also makes excellent material for paid ads. While you might want to focus on staying on brand and passing across your message, user-generated content is more relatable and more convincing than any other content type. Be sure to avoid overusing any one piece of user-generated content; however, over time, this may start to have the reverse effect.
Jarret Austin, Owner of Bankruptcy Canada, sheds some light on what makes UGC so effective, saying:
“The beauty of UGC in advertising lies in its relatability. People trust content from fellow consumers more than from brands, which makes UGC a powerful tool for generating authentic, persuasive ads.”
4. Make UGC Shoppable
Making user-generated content shoppable means that you should create a seamless link between user-generated content and your product or service pages. Given how popular UGC is and the trust it stimulates in potential leads, it can be a powerful tool for conversion.
“Integrating UGC into shoppable content is the future of e-commerce.” Says Reyansh Mestry, Head of Marketing at TopSource Worldwide. By turning customer experiences into purchasing opportunities, businesses can streamline the buyer journey and boost conversions.”
5. Add UGC to Personalized Emails
Another channel where UGC integration is a must-have, is your email marketing. If you already follow email marketing best practices like sending out personalized emails, then incorporating some UGC can potentially create exponential results. Remember to make this content shoppable too. To improve your ability to write effective emails, you can try using Writecream’s AI business email draft generator.
Leveraging User-Generated Content With LinkedIn
We’ve discussed some of the various ways you can use user-generated content into your marketing strategy in general. But some of the tips we’ve discussed so far may not be completely applicable for every type of business.
User-generated content (UGC) typically lends itself best to B2C (business-to-consumer) marketing and is often most easily adapted for social media content, especially on image or video-oriented social channels. For B2B (business-to-business) businesses, however, it can be slightly more complex to manage, as the kind of content you’re looking for might differ from traditional customer content.
If you run a B2B business, you most likely have LinkedIn as the centerpiece of your marketing strategies, so you may wonder how to make UGC work there. One approach is to focus on user-generated content examples like testimonials, case studies, or even reviews. This can be considered a piece of UGC that adds credibility to your business. Using a social listening tool can also help you find UGC and see what your audience is already saying about your product or service. This way, you can get user-generated content more organically.
While user-generated content isn’t always as visual in the B2B space, you can still benefit from its authenticity. In fact, one of the benefits of user-generated content is that it builds trust with potential clients. You can also integrate user-generated content by encouraging your customers or partners to share user-generated content about their positive experiences. This kind of user-created content can be an excellent marketing asset.
To get started, explore the complete guide to user-generated content to understand the different types of UGC that might fit your business. Whether you’re working with a user-generated content platform or directly engaging with customers, UGC allows you to tap into authentic voices. Ultimately, the kind of content you’re creating will depend on the content you’re aiming to highlight, but with the right approach, you can turn UGC into an effective UGC strategy for your business. Here are some of the best tips to try:
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Invite Users to Participate in Conversations
Amplify conversations around your brand simply by inviting your followers to comment on your posts and updates. Each meaningful comment is a form of user-generated content that will be seen by many more people. You can also share and engage with these comments to boost them to your own audience.
You may even consider sending personalized invitations to offer insights on certain posts or conversations using these LinkedIn outreach personalization tools.
According to Albert Kim, VP of Talent at Checkr, “LinkedIn offers a unique space for UGC, especially in the B2B world. Encouraging conversations and sharing real success stories can establish your brand as a thought leader, fostering deeper professional relationships.”
If you don’t have the time to write replies or find yourself unsure of how to respond, you can try helpful tools like Writecream’s AI post comment generator.
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Use Social Listening Effectively
Social listening is a powerful tool to help you find content and understand what people are saying about your brand. With a good idea of the sort of conversations that are already taking place around your brand, you can lean in by taking part in relevant conversations or by adding UGC to your strategy. Highlighting or curating the best user content for use in other ways can be highly effective. For example, an insightful comment on a LinkedIn conversation can be curated and repurposed into marketing content or even a social content ad.
This approach helps you find UGC that aligns with your brand message. Examples of user-generated content such as UGC images or content created by customers can be shared across platforms, providing authentic engagement. Content on social media that resonates with your audience can also be reposted to maintain engagement. Additionally, UGC is a cost-effective way to create brand awareness since user-generated content is considered more trustworthy by other customers.
Whether you’re creating user-generated content through campaigns or encouraging customers to share their content, UGC allows you to generate organic interactions. Content can be used in various ways—whether it’s for brand-specific content, social content, or targeted ads. Post UGC from your customers and let them drive engagement. The type of UGC content you choose to share, such as photos, reviews, or testimonials, will depend on what best represents your brand. By leveraging user-generated content marketing, you can build a strong connection with your audience and expand your reach. User-generated content is an essential tool for today’s businesses, offering versatile and impactful marketing content.
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Run a Contest
Contests are a popular tactic that works on pretty much every form of social media, including LinkedIn. In addition to their ability to help generate engagement, they can also be a clever way to encourage users to post content that is content related to your brand. These contests provide a great opportunity for users to engage with user-generated content and contribute to brand-specific content created by them. This is an effective way to gather the content you need for your campaigns while also boosting interactions.
By running a contest, you can tap into the power of UGC to increase brand awareness and collect content to promote their products or services. However, avoid being tempted to fake your user-generated posts as authenticity is key to building trust. The value of user-generated content lies in its authenticity, which makes it a powerful tool for businesses. UGC is used across different platforms because it resonates well with audiences, driving engagement and building credibility. The type of user-generated content you choose will depend on the platform where UGC comes into play, such as social media posts, reviews, or videos.
When running a contest, ensure you clearly communicate exactly what kind of content you want from participants. This helps in gathering relevant and brand-specific content that aligns with your goals. There are many types of UGC available, including videos, images, and testimonials, so you can choose what best fits your strategy. Make the most of UGC by using the content to support your marketing goals and get started with UGC campaigns that help build relationships with your audience.
Ultimately, user-generated content is a great way to involve your customers and let them create the content to drive your brand’s message. Whether you are looking for content to promote their products or using UGC to increase brand awareness, integrating UGC in your marketing can be a game-changer. User-generated content is used effectively by many brands to boost their marketing efforts, and contests are an easy way to gather this valuable content.
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Run a Poll
LinkedIn polls can be an underrated and overlooked source of UGC. Polls allows you to conduct small scale studies to gain some insights into the thought process of your users. You can publish the results in numerous forms including images, videos, or even in detailed case studies.
In addition to these tips, B2B owners may find these strategies for navigating B2B markets helpful.
Getting Started
User generated content is an immensely powerful tool that all businesses can use. The tips we’ve shared in this article will get you off to a great start, however, there is no one size fits all formula when it comes to UGC. This makes it important to keep an open mind as you approach the implementation of your UGC strategy. If you enjoyed reading this article, we invite you to learn more about growing your brand online from our guide to leveraging social media for business growth.
