If you want people to pay more for the products you are offering, try promoting the same with UGC or user-generated content. Studies show that UGC holds more impact on the buying decisions of the consumers than search engine results and promotional emails.
User-generated content is powerful enough to influence several important performance metrics, but both negatively and positively. This is why it is necessary to know the right way of earning UGC and using it as well.
First Things First: What is UGC or User-Generated Content?
From the marketing point of view, UGC, which is also called consumer-generated content, is content relevant to your brand created by individuals who are not official representatives of your business.
UGC can be anything from a review or social media update to a podcast or a video. If it is related to your brand but is not created by any of your affiliates or employees, it is user-generated content.
User-generated content has a major impact on social mea platforms and is highly effective because people are able to trust it. Unfortunately, for buyers online, advertisers and marketers are untrustworthy.
That’s because they can position products and services in the best light. They generally omit the details that might harm the buying decisions of the consumer.
User-generated content is effective and impactful because it does not come from marketers or advertisers. It creates an authentic buying experience for the consumers. UGC generally entails Instagram photos, product reviews, and unboxing videos that serve as unfiltered ways of evaluating offers that increase shoppers’ confidence.
Why Use User-Generated Content?
UGC or user-generated content basically includes assets made by fans, customers, influencers, or followers. Videos, images, testimonials, blog articles, ratings, reviews, and social posts are all different varieties of UGC.
Dissimilar to the content created by marketing teams, UGC comes from sources without any vested interest. Of course, UGC promotes a brand in the same way as content generated by marketers does.
But the fact that it comes from the consumers themselves increases the chances of other consumers trusting and engaging with the same. Studies have confirmed that 92%of the individuals have higher chances of trusting recommendations from other buyers over certain branded content.
There are others who trust information coming from UGC even before trusting information available through articles or websites. Users are in no way ignorant. They know when they are being marketed to, and they can even sense the sales pitch used by companies.
This is the reason why more and more businesses are looking for ways to capitalize on user-generated content. But what are the steps to getting started with UGC? How can businesses start reaping the advantages of this approach?
Let’s dive in:
Determine the Objective of Your UGC Campaign
The effectiveness of UGC on your business will completely depend on the type of planning you do and how you will be using it. If you are looking to enhance brand awareness, hashtag campaigns will be highly effective in creating buzz about your service or product.
If you are working on boosting conversions, campaigns soliciting customer reviews will help you earn the social proof you require for making a sale. Keep in mind that the main objective of a UGC campaign is to generate content that the customers use to inform their purchase decisions. So, there’s something more than just beautiful pictures required in your campaign.
Before even starting with creating hashtags and content calling, ensure you know what you are looking to accomplish with the user-generated content you have in hand.
Choose the Social Networks You Consider Most Impactful for Your Content
It is important for you to know not just the location of your target audience on the social media sites but where the potential advocates have the majority of the influence. Naturally, Instagram is perfect for sharing videos, but you must confirm whether this is where you can find your target audience.
You must consider your goals and your target audience when choosing the social network for UGC marketing. Selecting the right social network thoughtfully and coming up with a social environment not just for delivering content but also for engaging with the customers there will help you stand out from the crowd.
It will also help you in nurturing long-term and healthy relations.
Consult the Legal Specialists
Now, you might be wondering why this is required? Coming up with a UGC marketing campaign is straightforward from a legal point of view. The rules associated with giveaways and contests are generally complex based on the medium of collection and location.
There are rights surrounding the use of consumer-generated content, and therefore it is wise to consult legal specialists before using this form of content in marketing.
Inform the Audience about the Type of Content You Require
You never know, but consumers really wish brands could inform them about the type of content they want. After all, as a business, if you do not tell the audiences to participate in user-generated content, how will they know about it?
Your advocates require proper guidance no matter whether you have asked them for their thoughts or images. Be very clear with the rules and regulations of your brand towards the use of UGC.
You can ask them to use InVideo, an online video creation tool, if they are making videos to be used by your brand. There are innumerable ways of encouraging UGC- social media contests and campaign hashtags.
Just with the use of a single hashtag, you will be able to create focused interest while guiding the audiences towards creating content inspired by the campaign you are running.
Final Thoughts
Never ever indulge in over-selling your products and services. Show them and let the other customers speak about the same. Always put in your best efforts in encouraging professional content creators, shoppers, industry experts, and influencers to bring forward their opinions regarding your products and services in their very own style and words. This is what UGC is all about!
