What is User Generated Content?

What is User Generated Content?

Imagine this: Your customers are so satisfied and enamoured with your products or services that they are the ones advertising them.

How? It is very easy: talking about them.

That’s right, through photographs, videos, comments, posts, hashtags, sharing a post or in any other way that users can make their experience visible to other users in social platforms, forums, or blogs.

And this is called: User Generated Content (UGC). In summary, it is all content that mentions your products or services, as well as your brand, company, or business, but that was not directly generated by you or your associates, but by your users or followers.

Do you remember social proof? This psychological phenomenon refers to the way we are influenced by the opinions and behaviours of others, especially when facing the unknown. This is particularly important in User Generated Content.

If people notice half the Internet is talking, in any way, of your product or service, it is more likely that they will feel encouraged to try it or, at least, they will be curious. What is it that everyone is talking about? There must be something good since everyone is going crazy with this product or service, isn’t?

On the other hand, there is no doubt that user generated content will increase the trust and credibility towards your products, services, brand, company, or business.

Think about it, as user, will you believe more in a positive iPhone 11 review made by another user who thought it was such a good product that they decided to share it with others, or in a positive review by Apple? The brand will never misspeak of their own products, right?

Then, what are the benefits of User Generated Content?

1. Saving: It is a content that requires no time, effort or money investment by your brand, company, or business.
2. Loyalty: The fact that users constantly interact with your brand and vice versa generates a sense of community and commitment between brand and customer. They show you interest and you to them, which encourages loyalty.
3. Feedback: Through the UGC you can get all types of opinions on the products or services you offer, which can help you know what is working and what to modify.
4. More ideas: With the content generated by users, you can discover subjects or issues related to your brand, product, or service that you haven’t considered or noticed. You can also find new ideas to address user and connect with them.

Lastly, some advice to integrate the UGC to your Marketing Digital strategies.

1. Provide the best possible visibility to the content. In your social networks, websites, blogs, etc.
2. Interact with users and the content they generate. Answer and share the messages, comments, photographs, and videos sent. Create a community. Make them feel close to you.
3. Add call to actions enticing users to generate content for your brand. For example, contests where they must share photographs, experiences, or videos with your brand. Always provide a space for users to express themselves.
4. Create a hashtag for your brand. That way you can monitor posts mentioning you, and users can tag you.

What are you waiting for to start using the User Generated Content in your Digital Marketing strategies?