5 Ways User-Generated Content Can Enhance Your Marketing Strategy
User-generated content (UGC) - which is content in any format, created by people as opposed to brands and shared online, has been around since the dawn of the internet in the 90s, originally in the form of customer reviews and ratings. Though it's in the present age of social media where it’s really started to pick up steam, grow in impact and become an invaluable aspect of social media marketing strategy which all brands and businesses can use.
In this article SocialDay will outline further what UGC is, the ways it can enhance your marketing strategy, how you can get more UGC for your brand, and how you can encourage your brand community to be more active in sharing images. Keep reading to find out more and level-up your marketing strategy.
Most people will be familiar with UGC in its visual format, popular with brands on platforms like Instagram, and according to Stackla, something that brands have been taking notice of since 2005.
An example of effective visual UGC can be seen on the Instagram accounts of brands like MADE.COM, RevolutionRace and Depop, who use it as the bulk of their content. Arguably it’s one of the core components to their marketing strategy.
These businesses use customer images to grow sales and engagement both online and offline. And it looks impressive, right? But are there any other benefits? And how can marketing managers of smaller businesses start implementing UGC as part of their strategy?
5 ways user-generated content can enhance your marketing strategy
1. It creates trust among your community
According to BusinessWire social media users are 2.4 times more likely to view user-generated content as authentic.
When consumers are seeing people they know, people they follow and admire, or people who remind them of themselves in the consumers of a brand, it builds trust.
Likewise existing members of a brand community who see themselves in its content will feel increasingly supportive and loyal to the brand, wanting to stick around and keep following.
The curated sense of familiarity that UGC provides is powerful.
2. It makes your community more likely to purchase products
This curated sense of familiarity also makes consumers more likely to choose a brand for a purchase over a less-trusted competitor, who may seem faceless by comparison.
Within a brand community on social media, FOMO and consumer envy are powerful motivating factors for purchases. UGC feeds this by harnessing brand desire.
Content showcasing customers enjoying a product makes others want to try it for themselves. Existing fans already want to be first to sample a new release so they’re likely to make more than one purchase, especially if the new releases are well-advertised.
3. It varies your content
No matter how creative you are in your approach to online marketing it can be easy to stick with a style of content that performs the best. What works, works and new strategies carry a risk of falling flat, but it can start to feel a bit same-y.
Incorporating high quality UGC into your posts mixes up your brand’s feed in a way that’s both exciting to you as a marketer and your brand’s followers as consumers.
This largely negates the risk of a post failing. It also prevents the content becoming overly corporate, because UGC makes it more personable.
4. It expands your community and network
When a brand shares content from a customer’s account, it’s not only shared with the brand’s community but usually the customer’s as well.
If as a customer, you enjoy a product enough to make a post about it online and then the brand it came from shares it, it feels hugely flattering!
UGC especially increases brand reach and attracts more users to a brand community when it comes from content creators with a sizable platform of engaged admirers themselves.
It’s worth noting that UGC in the form of posts or even online reviews, can improve your SEO rankings and make your brand more discoverable on search engines, which is another method for expansion.
5. It’s cost-effective
Rather than outsourcing people to design content for your products i.e. paying for a photographer and the studio space and the other team members needed for a merchandise shoot. UGC allows your brand to utilise a dedicated community.
Brand community members are usually willing to participate in content creation featuring a product, either for free, or for a much lower fee than required for a professional outfit.
How can you get more user-generated content?
You can get more UGC to feature for your brand by simply asking your community and clearly communicating what kind of content you’re looking for. Many brands struggle when they aren’t specific enough with what they’re asking their followers for. An example of a great content call is this post from Starbucks UK’s Instagram over the festive season:
Another way of gaining more UGC is collaboration. By having your brand collaborate with online creators you can usher in the start of a professional network of people who know the ins and outs of what makes a good post and are just a DM away. So keep an eye out for creators who you think would gel well with your brand.
A third way of getting more UGC is by utilising social listening tools offered by platforms like Hootsuite or Stackla - which is a UGC dedicated platform. This makes the task of trawling through multiple platforms for UGC more efficient. Social listening tools work by monitoring conversations, keywords, mentions and hashtags related to your brand. This way finding great UGC doesn’t become a time-consuming chore.
Fourthly, you can organically inspire more UGC if you identify customer trends as they’re happening and quickly get on board. Examples of this are often seen on Twitter, as seen in this timely tweet by Innocent Smoothies about The Great British Bake Off final.
Finally, by developing a long term strategy where UGC can be used across a broad range of channels like websites/online stores/ads/newsletters, you communicate to consumers that you’re a UGC brand and they’re more likely to feel inspired to create their own content so that they can take part in the community.
How can brands encourage their communities to be active in sharing content?
Brands can encourage their communities to be active in sharing content by hosting contests and giveaways more often. As part of the terms and conditions you can ask people to share pictures of a product or a brand-themed tweet.
A technique popular with independent retailers on sales platforms like Etsy, is to pack or showcase merchandise with extra care. This shows gratitude and appreciation for your customers’ investment in your brand. Write a thank you note and ask customers to share it online if they like.
Hosting online or in-person events is a great way of getting real-time UGC. Here’s an example from the Digital Women community at SocialDay’s 2021 festival:
Lastly, creating a branded hashtag and using calls to action in order to circulate it is an effective way of building a UGC library for your brand. Does #ALSIceBucketChallenge ring a bell?
Key takeaway for brands
UGC is a widely accessible and easy-to-use tool to boost your social media marketing strategy, all you have to do is get creative and ask.
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