Close to 90% of people believe in word-of-mouth marketing, which starkly contrasts the conventional marketing methods deployed by businesses globally. However, word-of-mouth has transformed into User-Generated Content (UGC) in the digital age. But what is UGC? How effective is it? And how do you implement UGC marketing for your business?
Don’t worry, as these questions will be answered in our blog today. From the definition to the types, uses, and benefits, here’s everything you need to know to get up to speed on User Generated Content.
Understanding what UGC really is
UGC, an abbreviation for User-Generated Content, is any form of content (video, audio, photograph, text, etc.) uploaded to social media by users. While it seems just like any other post on various social media channels, it differs regarding the message being delivered. More often than not, UGC promotes either a product or a service from a company.
This type of content is highly successful as it isn’t strictly sponsored and is generally perceived to be true. Social media influencers nowadays prefer UGC marketing over other marketing methods as it reinforces their brand identity on the platform while enabling dividends in the form of money, offers, and discounts.
Close to 40% of online shoppers believe that UGC is crucial for making purchasing decisions. This number not only exceeds the number of people making decisions based on a company’s product ad but also exceeds product comparison content pieces. The latter methods, while great at times, cannot overpower a simple product review that is honest in its approach.
The benefits of UGC for your business
Now that we’ve covered “what is UGC” and understood its growing popularity in digital circles, it’s time we understood the benefits associated with UGC. Listed below are some of the major ones:
- It helps boost brand authority
Perhaps the biggest benefit of UGC stems from the fact that it provides genuine value to the end users. Think of it this way: A customer who is happy with your product will surely let others know about it as a simple word-of-mouth promotion. Now, if you just convert this into a social media post with genuine intent, you’ll have a slew of engagement from other users.
The age of influencer marketing isn’t dead by any means, but it has surely lost its touch over the last few years. This is because influencers often promote products and services based on their deals more than the product’s actual value.
- It is highly cost-effective
Regardless of honesty, hiring an influencer can be quite costly if you’re running a tight budget on your content marketing campaigns. The budget often depends on the type of influencer you wish to have onboard. Micro-influencers charge between $10 to $100 per post, while mega-influencers charge over $10,000.
With UGC, you maintain the brand value that the content generates and cut down on excessive expenditure on hiring influencers to get the job done. Another benefit of choosing UGC marketing over influencer marketing is that influencers find it hard to spread their sphere of influence if deemed unreliable by the public. General users, however, enjoy a little more immunity as they come from the same cohort as everyone else and hence can become trustworthy.
- It helps spread brand loyalty
If given the chance to be a part of something bigger, the common person will surely enjoy every bit of the opportunity. This is why UGC helps brands maintain and even grow their brand loyalty. By welcoming public participation, they influence people’s minds into believing that they’re actively participating in the growth of the brand they hold dear.
This comes off as a genuine feeling and helps the user share their views on the product. By merely conducting 3 to 4 online public events, big brands gain the leverage to establish their presence in the minds of the common folk, as public participation is often celebrated.
- UGC content marketing establishes faith in media
Social media is often a great tool to socialize with people from all walks of life; however, it has its fair share of issues that can be very detrimental. Controversies can be found scattered throughout every comment section, blog post, video, etc. In such a situation, everyday users often find it hard to believe in a particular subject matter.
Having opinions is natural; however, not all opinions are treated equally in the digital space. And more often than not, opinions can be twisted out of context and used to harm your message. That’s why faith in media has dropped significantly over the last few years. Close to 29% of adults in the US have lost faith in media and have reduced their use of their favorite social channels as well.
- It is way easier for brands to pull it off
UGC creation is perhaps one of the easiest things for a brand to pull off. Businesses can generate content assets based on a simple template given to their users. This creates a plethora of opportunities for creators, as they can then utilize their brains to create more creative content pieces.
This helps businesses optimize their marketing budgets as they don’t have to create content from scratch. All they need to do is list the things they’re looking for and share them with the netizens.
Types of UGC
From text to videos and audio files, your business can leverage many types of UGC. This section of the blog will shed some light on the types of UGC you need to know:
Videos
Videos are the most popular form of UGC in today’s digital world. You can convey your experience of the product to the people and share your ideas for improvement. Close to 85% of the people in the US watch videos when browsing social media and the internet in general.
One of the best ways to utilize UGC videos is by creating user testimonials and product reviews. Brands, more often than not, utilize their workforce to great success for product promotions. And it works; here’s how: Imagine you’ve worked on a product and helped it grow from the ground up. While the end users might have their opinions on the product itself, they don’t know the intricacies of it.
In this case, using an employee’s perspective can be highly beneficial, as they know how the product works and its features that might be hidden in one form or another. Brands like Coca-Cola, Starbucks, BMW, and many others utilize this exact technique to push UGC, a blend of employee-generated and user-generated content.
Photos
It is as self-explanatory as it can be; another popular UGC type is pictures. Clicking pictures is almost a part of the human culture now. Everyone clicks pictures with the things that interest them, which extends to animals, nature, and other people. However, when it comes to products, brands have a different way of promoting products through pictures.
A product showcase from a brand may look like a top-notch presentation with all the gimmicks attached. However, the end user won’t present it in the same light. They’ll simply tell you the pros and cons of the product and conclude with their take on it. For obvious reasons, the latter sounds and feels more genuine as it contains no flashy messaging. The user’s agenda is always different from the brand’s.
Blogs
Blogging and branding go hand in hand. As of 2022, more than 600 million active blogs were scattered across 1.9 billion websites on the internet. Certainly, that figure has increased quite a bit over the last couple of years. Every brand utilizes blogs to showcase their product lineup and the intent behind creating the product. Think of it as a brand’s way of telling a story.
Blogging has become way more accessible than it has ever been. Platforms like WordPress, Medium, Tumblr, Wix, etc., have made it way easier for people to share their ideas through blogs. In fact, 9 out of 10 marketers still believe that blogs fulfill their content marketing needs.
Every brand has its blog lineup, which, once again, can be a little biased towards the product in question. However, users will generally not think of a product that way. They’ll base their opinions on how the product has been valuable to them, greatly reducing inherent bias. Of course, bias can never be eliminated, but it can surely be reduced.
Successful UGC examples
Of course, there are quite a few successful examples of brands pulling off UGC marketing strategies with flying colors. Let’s take a look at some of the prominent ones of the decade so far:
- Coca-Cola: Share a Coke campaign
The soft drink giant Coca-Cola, back in 2011, started a very creative campaign called Share a Coke. The aim was to promote unity and friendship by sharing the famed beverage bottle with your friends and family. This campaign’s genius was in allowing the everyday user to become a part of the famous Coke bottle. The bottles and cans came with a given region’s most popular first names. This would then be purchased by the people and shared online via social media posts.
By the end of it, there were 1.5 billion personalized Coke bottles and 100 million social media posts from across the globe. All Coca-Cola did was put a famous first name on every bottle and can. The success of this campaign rested not only on Coca-Cola’s creative marketing idea but also on its ability to bank on it through UGC. After all, at the end of the day, UGC gave the beverage giant an edge over its competition.
- Apple: Shot on iPhone campaign
Apple is no stranger to quirky marketing campaigns. The tech manufacturer has, at times, gone above and beyond to disrupt the market and the industry. So, it is no stranger to assume that they’ve tried UGC for themselves, and boy, it worked for them! Back in the 2010s, smartphone cameras weren’t known for their exceptional picture quality the way they’re known today.
Apple, the innovators they are, decided to disrupt the market yet again through their flawless camera and image resolution processing technology. In 2014, their #ShotoniPhone campaign took the internet by storm. iPhone users, whether casual or professional, all took to social media to share their experience with the device and its amazing picture-clicking capabilities.
With over 16 million posts and over 70 million impressions, sharing the #ShotoniPhone on Instagram alone highlighted the campaign’s success. It was so successful that meme makers started using it as a closing joke in their vines.
- LEGO: LEGO Ideas campaign
Having a Lord of the Rings-styled Lego set is no less than a dream for many people today. It is, without a doubt, one of the most entertaining products that kids and adults across the globe enjoy. Understanding how people can get creative with their Lego sets, the brick-making behemoth ran a quirky UGC campaign inviting people to share their builds.
Step one: The user has to create their own unique Lego build.
Step two: They have to share it online, tag Lego, and share the #LEGOIdeas hashtag.
Step three: They have to gather 10,000 or more supporters for their Lego build.
Once the requirements were met, the Lego board would review the creation and decide whether it would be sold as a set worldwide. As of May 2023, the Lego board came across 71 record-breaking creations with tens of thousands of supporters through UGC marketing.
Tips to utilize UGC for your content marketing needs
To say that content marketing is a diverse field would be an understatement. Content marketing encompasses not only a company’s idea of how a product should be advertised but also the possible improvements that can be made to it. If handled correctly, UGC marketing can work wonders for your content marketing strategy. Here’s how you can include UGC and improve upon the existing content marketing strategy:
Provide a template if you have one
As mentioned in previous sections, having a template makes your job as a brand a lot easier. How? Well, providing a template to the end user reduces the chances of errors. Errors pertaining to the tone of the content, demographic friendliness, length, etc., can be mitigated if the brand provides the end user with a template to follow.
A template doesn’t have to be detailed to the bone. All you need is a set of simple-to-follow guidelines, such as the tone, length of the post, hashtags to be used, etc. You can host an event through your broadcast channel or community and share a template of your choice for people to experiment with. Social circles, especially communities, are very helpful in these regards.
Credit where it is due
Some brands make the mistake of undermining the end user’s online presence by posting UGC without giving them credit. Do not make this mistake if you’re about to host a UGC campaign for your business. Giving credit to the creator of a post isn’t just a matter of professional courtesy; it might mean a lot to the end user.
When on social media, mention their names or even tag them in a post, comment, or story with a thank-you note. You can even send users a personalized thank-you note to their DMs to make their day. Everyone wants to feel special, and rightfully so. Your brand taking the first step will not only make you look friendly but also boost brand loyalty in the eyes of the users.
Seek permission, always
Another crucial aspect of UGC marketing is seeking permission from users. Yes, users are using your product as the talking point in their newest video, but you shouldn’t upload or share them without their consent. At times, users might create content but might not feel comfortable sharing it with the broader audience.
Certain brands have products that suit a more incognito lifestyle; hence, the UGC around it isn’t really public but is made specifically for people with shared interests. However, the latter is a rare case as, for the most part, brands seek permission, and users do not have an issue giving it.
Plan out before the rollout
Every campaign needs a solid plan, and UGC is no different. Before starting off with the template or the requirement, ask yourself what you are looking for in the UGC marketing campaign. Identify your target audience, who you should reach out to, and who should participate. Answering these questions will form the basis of your UGC campaign.
Once identified, the next step is to chart out the channels, demographics, style, and everything else that you need to get the ball rolling. Remember, a successful campaign is a planned one. Sure, everything might not go as planned; however, planning all the steps in advance is better than thinking on your feet at every opportunity.
Consult with experts; it doesn’t hurt
Consulting with a team of expert marketers has never been regarded as a bad practice. In fact, businesses of all scales often seek assistance from marketing agencies for one thing or the other. Whether it is streamlining your business requirements, planning the campaigns, or posting on different channels, a marketing agency’s expertise comes in handy in more ways than one.
Handling a UGC marketing campaign can sometimes be a little tricky, demanding a second opinion. This is where you’ll most likely need it. We at Digital Champ understand the need for marketing expertise. Whether it is UGC campaigns, growth marketing, outreach marketing, or simply performance auditing, our team of experts covers a diverse range of operations related to the marketing domain.
And that’s about it
UGC marketing opens up new avenues for brands to explore and exploit. Adhering to the basics and optimizing campaigns is a recipe for long-term success. We hope this blog has helped you by answering the ever-lingering question of “what is UGC” and how to plan and run a UGC marketing campaign. By simply empowering the end user, you’ll be doing your brand a big favor, as you’ll never know how it’ll pay dividends.