User Generated Content (UGC)

UGC refers to the content not created or published by the brand itself but is instead shared by fans, followers and customers themselves. This content ranges from customer reviews to articles and stories featuring recent purchases as well as hashtags #️⃣ and mentions used. UGC helps to strengthen social proof, which is, the idea that people copy the actions of others in order to mimic behaviors in situations that they may not have encountered before. They take cues from those around them to make sure they fit in and act like everyone else expects them to behave. In marketing, social proof refers to the actions of examining reviews, recommendations, and how others have used a product before making a decision.

UGC is a well known tool for reaching new clients. Indeed, a data report from Stackla shows that 60% of customers agree that they are more likely to make a purchase after seeing UGC on Instagram. Additionally, brands using visual UGC report a 136% increase in conversions 📈, showing the impact of using images and testimonials from real customers in sales strategy.

Find influencers who are already posting on your brand

Brands can leverage UGC as a way to identify influencers to promote their brand: people somewhere on the internet, in a web ecosystem overflowing with social media, who are already talking, tagging and posting on the products / services of the brand 🗣. People who organically promote your brand are the perfect candidates for loyalty programs, ambassador campaigns, and influencer marketing, allowing you a deeper reach.

More and more brands are realizing the positive impact of UGCs and are implementing their own UGC strategy to encourage and select certain types of content. But, note that even without a formal strategy, brands can tap into the natural UGC to reveal those potential influencers🕵🏼.

Customers are the best influencers

Using UGC is a great way to find authentic influencers, because you recruit people who are already fans of your brand: they already know and love your products ❤️. They are therefore in a good position to promote your brand online and can use their authentic customer experience to create engaging and compelling content to convert buyers. The combination of the strong engagement of UGC content and the broad reach of influencers is the key to success 🔑.

Create a personalized approach

The most useful part of identifying influencers through UGC is finding out important information such as their favorite products, most recent purchases, average spend, etc. This information is essential for creating personalized awareness messages 💬 and delivering the right rewards to your most valuable customers. By taking a closer look 👀 at their branded posts, you’ll find the right way to approach them to work with you, giving a touch of personalization that leads to new partnerships 🤝. 

Launch an online UGC campaign

One of the best ways to start identifying influencers with user-generated content is to start your own UGC campaign. This gives you the flexibility to narrow down the type of campaign you’re looking for, whether it’s a general or a seasonal campaign. Having influencers use a brand tag or hashtag when launching your campaign makes it easy to track🕵🏼 the content posted.

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