UGC (User-generated content) is the best way to build trust among your target audience. Because it makes you stand out in the crowded market.
When hundreds of people say their products are the best, your content features your customers saying the same for you. This makes your users feel like they are part of your story. Plus, UGC influences 79% of consumers’ buying decisions.
However, simply collecting and using any user content isn’t enough. You need a well-thought-out strategy to encourage, manage, and utilize UGC in a way that benefits your brand and your audience.
The following are the ten advanced strategies that I use to effectively generate and utilize user-generated content.
User-generated content is more than just free marketing. It’s a way of knowing how people see, trust, and connect with your brand.
Today’s consumers are smart. They trust people more than ads. And UGC gives them proof that real people are using and loving your products.
Studies show that content created by users converts better than normal content. In fact, Everyone Social says UGC can increase conversion rates by up to 29%. Simply because people trust peer recommendations more than polished ads.
Not only people, but Google loves fresh, unique, and relevant content in UGC. That’s why using UGC on your website, blogs, and social media gives you consistent content updates that help with your SERP rankings.
Finally, instead of always producing content from scratch, UGC helps fill in the gaps. It reduces your need for in-house production and keeps giving you new customer stories.
These digital marketing strategies, when applied correctly, work wonders. I am explaining them with proper examples so you can understand and apply them in your workflow. Here they go
People do not even bother reading the content fully if they do not like it. According to Ahrefs, 73% of people just skim over blog posts. Only 27% fully read them.
So if you want them to not only read your content but also engage with it and create UGC for you, the first step is to produce original, relatable, and shareable content that gets a response.
It could be funny, emotional, educational, or controversial, just make it strong enough to trigger a reaction.
You can use AI for that, but avoid AI similarity; it makes your content less readable and harder to rank on SERPs. In fact, 62% of consumers do not like to engage with AI content (says DesignRush).
So, use a sophisticated AI detector like ai-detector.info and find your AI score before uploading to any platform. It gives an AI score and highlights the parts that are likely to be generated by AI. Humanize the part that this tool highlights and try to keep your AI score as low as possible. Ideally, 0%.
If you expect people to create content about your brand, you have to be constantly visible and engaging with your followers. Nobody wants to interact with a brand that appears once in a while, drops a campaign, and disappears.
Look at successful brands that work on user-generated content; they don’t just post and wait for their audience to respond. They comment, reply, and start conversations that keep their audience engaged.
Take Wendy’s for example. Their audience keeps creating content for them because they know they’ll get a reaction. This is what you need to do—stay active, collaborate with your audience, and make your brand feel alive.
Always include CTAs (calls to action) in your content. Just like every YouTuber says, “Like, share, and subscribe to my channel.” Because people won’t create content for your brand unless they know why it matters.
So clearly communicate what type of content you’re looking for from them and how it benefits both your audience and your brand.
The best way to do this is to give shoutouts to the UGCs you’ve already received. When people see how others are getting recognized, they will want to be a part of it too.
Like if you sell skincare products, ask customers to share their before-and-after results using your brand’s hashtag.
Keep this in mind: whenever a person takes some time to create content for your brand, show your appreciation. Nobody likes to be ignored, and if you don’t acknowledge contributors, they will not post for you again.
A simple shoutout, a comment, or even featuring them in your content will do it. Sephora even sends surprise gifts to its top Beauty Insider community members with exclusive products and early access to launches.
Remember, engagement gets you more engagement. If people see that your brand actually cares about its audience, they will be more motivated to create content for you.
Keep this in mind: whenever a person takes some time to create content for your brand, show your appreciation. Nobody likes to be ignored, and if you don’t acknowledge contributors, they will not post for you again.
A simple shoutout, a comment, or even featuring them in your content will do it. Sephora even sends surprise gifts to its top Beauty Insider community members with exclusive products and early access to launches.
Remember, engagement gets you more engagement. If people see that your brand actually cares about its audience, they will be more motivated to create content for you.
If someone creates outstanding content for you, treat them like a star. Share their work in your official posts, put them in your stories, and even feature them on your website.
This encourages others to follow them. When customers see other people being treated like celebrities, they become more invested in your brand and want to be a part of it.
Microverse even maintains a dedicated success stories section on its website to publish detailed stories of graduates who landed remote jobs at international companies.
You can also share your customer experiences like a story. It will engage your audiences better. AI tools can help you with that. Like the story generator. It can write stories on any topic you give it.
Just type what you want at story-generator.com and select the mode, creativity level, and length. It will create it in seconds. Then you just have to tweak it according to your brand’s voice and post it.
There is no rule to use the UGC in the same form as you get it. You can modify it to make it work for you across different platforms. Even rewrite it to set the tone and make it more readable. Using the wordchanger.net tool is the best way to do that.
With this AI-powered word changer, you can change the tone of any content by just clicking on one of them. Plus, it makes content simpler, more readable, and removes all grammar issues automatically.
Feature these rewritten customer testimonials on your website to build trust. Use UGC images in email marketing campaigns. You can even use them for visual content marketing by making YouTube videos and TikTok shorts on them.
The key is to spread the word so that your audience sees real user experiences, no matter what platform they use.
The best way to get user-generated content is to make a strong brand community. It makes people feel like they belong to the brand. They will create content naturally without even being asked.
The secret is to engage in conversations beyond just selling products. Start Facebook groups, host Twitter spaces, and create communities on Web 2.0 platforms, like Quora, Reddit, and Medium.
Just like Peloton has built a loyal fitness community by encouraging users to share their workout progress. Build that sense of belonging for your brand, too.
For that, you need to share exclusive content for your followers only. Like upcoming products, employee stories, personal experiences, and even jingles at public events. But make sure your grammar is spot on everywhere. It is important for your brand image. Because Tidio says that around 97.2% of people judge a company by its grammar mistakes.
That is why I myself use a grammar checker on every post right after I am done writing it. And I recommend you do that as well. I use the one at checker-plagiarism.com for this. Because it not only highlights my grammar mistakes, but also recommends clarity and readability issues.
This way, you show your readers that you care about these things and give attention to detail.
In my experience, a hashtag makes it easier for users to participate in UGC campaigns. Plus, it helps you track submissions. The more catchy and relevant it is, the better.
Think of Coca-Cola’s #ShareACoke and Starbucks’ #RedCupContest. These hashtags became movements, driving massive user participation. When people see others using your hashtag, they will want to join in too.
You can create your own hashtags or use trendy ones. Easier if you ask AI about them. Quillza.com has a very efficient chatbot. You can ask anything. About campaign strategy, target audience, hashtags, anything.
Then promote your UGC hashtags in your bio, packaging, and every campaign. Plus, encourage users to tag their content every time they post something related to you.
Influencers are experts at creating content that gets UGC. So, do not just pay them for promotional posts; involve them in your campaigns. If you can collaborate with brands or influencers to create content for you, their followers will definitely follow them.
For example, a beauty brand can partner with a makeup influencer to start a challenge. They can ask followers to recreate a look using the brand’s products.
Now let’s have a look at some brands that have actually improved their growth by successfully implementing these strategies in their marketing.
American Eagle’s lingerie brand, Aerie. It launched a no-Photoshop policy and encouraged users to share unfiltered, untouched images of themselves wearing Aerie products.
With this campaign, they gave a social message of body positivity and featured real people instead of models on their social media handles. This strategy boosted Aerie’s sales by 32% in a single quarter.
The second one is Warby Parker, an eyewear brand. It encouraged users to post photos and videos of themselves using its virtual try-on app to get feedback from friends. This proved to be a brilliant way to spread the word. The fun and useful UGC created by this campaign improved the online presence and conversion rates of the company. Especially among younger, social-media-savvy customers.
User-generated content is not a trend on social media; it’s a long-term strategy to grow your brand. It has always been influential and will stay like that.
The UGC strategies I have discussed above will turn your audience into loyal brand advocates who will create content for you without being asked.
So start applying these advanced strategies today, and watch your brand’s reach, trust, and influence grow like never before.
Start with the customers that actually engage with you. Offer them incentives like shoutouts or small discounts in exchange for reviews, photos, or stories. Then promote these across your channels to attract more contributions.
Only if you have permission. Always ask for rights to use customer-created content. A simple DM or comment asking for approval is enough. But for larger campaigns, consider written consent.
Yes, if not monitored properly. Negative or inappropriate content can definitely backfire. That’s why, always moderate UGC submissions before sharing them.
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