Want to expand on the content created by your digital marketing team? It’s time to harness the energy of consumers. User-generated content (UGC) is any type of content – images, videos, reviews, comments, podcasts, etc. – created about your product or service by individual people rather than your company. By integrating the following elements throughout your UGC strategy, you’ll connect with the power of a growing fanbase resulting in increased brand loyalty and noticeable results for your company.
Lead with Authenticity
86% of consumers say authenticity plays an important role when it comes to making purchasing decisions. The ultimate goal of creating a sense of authenticity through UGC is developing trust with your audience. For example, sharing a follower’s photo on Instagram fosters authenticity because the image isn’t coming from a company that has a financial interest in the post. Are consumers more likely to trust what a company says, or what a fellow consumer says? UGC plays to the consumer’s trust in a way company-generated content may not always do effectively.
Create Brand Desire
How deeply consumers want your product is measured by brand desire, and by creating a sense of want and longing through content, desire increases. Let’s say a beachwear company posts a follower’s vacation photo from an exotic location. Other followers view the experience as more accessible than if the company had hired a professional model and crew for a photo shoot. Fear of missing out kicks in and brand desire increases. By putting a consumer in the driver’s seat, other consumers relate more, want the same experience, and most importantly, believe it’s attainable.
Practice Inclusivity
By practicing inclusivity in your UGC content, you acknowledge the entirety of your diverse audience. Consider followers who have been underrepresented in the past, whose images haven’t been seen, and whose voices haven’t been heard. If one of the main goals of UGC is to create a more authentic image for your brand, this can extend your reach and open your company to an entirely new audience. Accurately representing and celebrating your audience is a key part of a successful and meaningful UGC strategy and opens the door for a more inclusive future.
Consumers are 2.4 times more likely to view user-generated content as authentic compared to content created by brands.
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