When brands post content about their products or services, you can be sure it has already been subjected to multiple rounds of edits and approvals. When a customer posts a raw, unfiltered opinion about the same product or service, it comes across as more genuine, spontaneous and relatable.
This type of content is known as user-generated content (UGC). If you’ve ever purchased a product, snapped a photo and shared it on social with the brand tagged, you’ve created UGC.
But how effective is UGC? Over 85% of consumers trust brands that showcase user content more, while only 12% are likely to buy products endorsed by influencers. This means UGC is more influential and persuasive in driving purchasing decisions.
In this guide, we’ll show how UGC content can benefit your brand and how to use it effectively in your marketing strategy. We’ll also discuss:
• What Is UGC Content?
• Who Creates User Generated Content?
• Organic vs. Paid User-Generated Content
• Should Consumers Be Worried About Paid UGC?
• Why User-Generated Content Is More Powerful Than Standard Ads
• Other Glowing Benefits of UGC
• Types of User-Generated Content
• How To Encourage User-Generated Content: 7 Tips
• 9 Best Practices When Launching a User Generated Content Strategy
• Gain Consumer Confidence With Authentic, Trustworthy Content
• User-Generated Content FAQs
What Is User Generated Content?
User-generated content (UGC) or consumer-generated content is brand-specific content created by individuals rather than brands, often in response to their experiences with a product or service.
Unlike branded content, user-generated content showcases genuine opinions, emotions and experiences that other consumers are likelier to trust and relate to.
Featuring UGC in your digital marketing strategy shows that people trust your brand enough to talk about it organically. In fact, 97% of business-to-business (B2B) customers cited testimonials and peer recommendations – both types of UGC – as the most reliable type of content (Demand Gen Report).
Now that you know what is UGC content, let’s find out the people responsible for creating such content.
Who Creates User Generated Content?
UGC content is created by people who have actually used the product or service and, therefore, have first-hand experience to share with others. This could be:
• Social media followers
• Brand advocates
• Customers
• Influencers or bloggers
What about UGC Creators? UGC creators produce content that imitates the style of traditional UGC – unscripted and almost amateur in its production quality.
Compared to influencer partnerships, UGC creators have more control over whether or not to post the content on their channels. However, some UGC deals may have extra conditions that require them to post the content.
In addition, UGC creators are becoming a profession in their own right, with many companies and brands seeking talented content creators with whom to collaborate. A quick search on freelance platforms like Fiverr or Upwork will show UGC creators available for hire.
A professional UGC creator offers packages that include filming, editing and script-writing services:
Source: Upwork
The emergence of this new breed of content creators has divided user-generated content into two categories: Organic UGC and Paid UGC.
Organic vs. Paid User-Generated Content
The introduction of paid user-generated content poses a dilemma for consumers: How can you distinguish between authentic content created by consumers and sponsored UGC? Let’s break it down.
Organic UGC
Organic user-generated content is created voluntarily without any monetary incentives or brand involvement. This type of content is unscripted, making it more authentic and trustworthy in the eyes of consumers.
Ongoing relationships with loyal customers and brand advocates often result in the creation of organic user-generated content. These individuals have a genuine connection to the brand and are passionate about sharing their experiences with others.
But this isn’t to say that first-time users can’t create organic UGC. New customers who are impressed with their experience can also create organic user-generated content, often observed with content creators on platforms such as TikTok, YouTube and Instagram.
Let’s say a consumer buys a newly released lip product from brand X after seeing their Instagram ads. They try the product and love it so much that they post a photo on their Instagram feed, tag brand X and rave about its quality. This would be an example of organic UGC.
This type of content can be a powerful tool for building brand awareness and establishing trust with potential customers.
Paid UGC
Paid user-generated content, on the other hand, involves some form of compensation or incentive to encourage individuals to create content about a specific product or service.
Again, you can hire professional UGC creators from platforms like Upwork and Fiverr to produce content for you. Still, for brands with a solid following, creators typically reach out to the brand themselves. Either way, the content is usually pre-approved by the brand before posting.
Paid UGC can be a useful tool for brands looking to increase their reach and create high-quality content. However, since the creators are being paid to promote the brand’s products or services, it may not always come across as authentic or trustworthy.
To summarize:
| Paid UGC | |
| • Created genuinely, without any financial incentives or rewards • Shared by consumers who have had a positive experience with the product/service • Not endorsed or sponsored by the brand in any way | • Sponsored by brands that pay creators for content creation and publishing • Used to promote specific products, services or messaging • May not necessarily reflect the creator’s true opinion or experience with the brand/product/service |
Should Consumers Be Worried About Paid UGC?
Paid user-generated content can blur the lines between genuine consumer opinions and sponsored posts, making it difficult for consumers to trust the brands completely.
Bazaarvoice, a provider of user-generated content and social commerce solutions, surveyed over 8,000 global shoppers and 400 brands (Campaign Asia).
The study revealed widespread concern among consumers regarding fake UGC, with a majority expressing worries about false videos (68%), counterfeit images (68%), fabricated social media content (69%) and bogus questions and answers (66%).
Source: Campaign Asia
To boost trust in UGC, 70% prefer an industry-leading third-party authenticator over websites verifying their content (47%). This could mean adding a trustworthy symbol like a lock or checkmark to indicate that each rating has been verified by an independent third party (73%). Likewise, 66% trust similar signals for social media content and 60% for influencer content.
| Pro Tip: For brands looking to incorporate UGC into their marketing strategies, Tim Clarke, senior reputation manager at Thrive Internet Marketing Agency, suggests having a real person manually review and approve UGC before it goes live on the brand’s website or social media channels. This adds a layer of trust for consumers and allows brands to ensure that the content aligns with their brand values and guidelines. |
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Why User-Generated Content Is More Powerful Than Standard Ads
When a friend, family member or peer recommends a product or service, you’re likelier to take their word for it than if it came from the brand itself. This is because people tend to trust each other more than companies.
And besides, no one wants to click on stock images when more authentic and interesting content is available online.
Below, you’ll find some noteworthy statistics about the power of user-generated content:
• Around 81% of eCommerce marketers believe that user-generated visual content (UGC) has a bigger impact on reaching customers than professionally taken photos or influencer content (Source: Nostro).
• In visual content, marketers say user-generated content (UGC) builds the most customer trust at 33%, followed by professional content (24%) and influencer content (18%) (Source: Nostro).
• After reading a positive review about a company, 50% of consumers immediately visit its website as their next action (Source: HubSpot).
UGC lets you share stories from real people who’ve used your product or service, which hits home with potential customers way more than any static advertisement.
Users prefer seeing real people enjoying your products in their special way, not just a perfectly photoshopped model or a highly scripted influencer’s endorsement.
Other Glowing Benefits of UGC
With an abundance of information available online, consumers often experience decision fatigue and frequently seek recommendations or reviews from others before making a purchase.
By integrating user-generated content (UGC) into their marketing strategy, brands can address this issue by providing authentic and relatable content that assists consumers in making confident decisions.
Here are other benefits of UGC:
Build Trust and Credibility
User-generated content lets consumers see genuine individuals sharing their experiences with a brand or product.
Clarke explains that UGC is an effective way to build trust online and is more trusted than advertising or content produced by the brand to promote its services.
Mitigate a Reputational Crisis
According to Clarke, positive UGC content helps counteract negative online content and gradually regain customer trust. If companies effectively use UGC from the start, they will have an established bank of positive content to alleviate any potential crisis.
Increase Engagement and Conversions
UGC boosts engagement and conversions throughout the buyer’s journey. When real people share their positive experiences, they ignite an emotional reaction in prospective buyers, which can encourage them to take action.
Here’s a sample framework of how user-generated content helps with the five stages of the conversion journey:
| UGC can help increase brand awareness by reaching a wider audience through shares, likes and comments. | |
| Potential customers are more likely to become interested in your product or service when they see real people using and recommending it. | |
| UGC provides social proof and credibility, helping consumers feel more confident in their potential purchases. | |
| Seeing real people enjoying a product or service can create an emotional connection and motivate consumers to purchase. | |
| Through UGC, brands can highlight special promotions or deals, providing an extra incentive for consumers to make the final purchase. |
Serves as Social Proof
Social proof is a shortcut for decision-making. Many people need evidence that potential customers have had positive experiences with a brand before committing to a product or service.
Why is this the case? Humans often rely on the thoughts and actions of others to guide their behavior, especially when they lack information or feel uncertain. Social proof provides cognitive ease to consumers. Making decisions based on the actions of others requires less mental effort than conducting an in-depth analysis.
Customer testimonials and reviews are the ultimate type of UGC for providing social proof. A study by Podium shows that 91% of consumers claim local branch reviews affect their views of big brands.
Source: BrightLocal
The chart above shows that the percentage of consumers consistently reading online reviews has remained steady over the last three years (75% in 2024 vs. 76% in 2023). Meanwhile, only 3% of consumers say they ‘never’ read online reviews.
Boosts Brand Awareness
The virality of user-generated content can significantly boost brand awareness. When people share their experiences with a product or service, they are essentially promoting your brand to their network of friends and family.
If simple word-of-mouth recommendations from a small circle of friends can have a big impact on consumer behavior, just imagine the potential reach and influence of user-generated content on social media platforms with millions or even billions of users.
The beauty industry, for example, has capitalized on this through the use of user-generated content on platforms like TikTok and Instagram. These are often unpaid collaborations, but they generate massive awareness and sales for featured brands.
e.l.f. Cosmetics made quite a splash with their #EyesLipsFace campaign on TikTok in 2019. The brand wanted to create a TikTok UGC campaign that would attract the attention of Gen Z, so they commissioned a 15-second song and launched the #EyesLipsFace challenge. TikTok users had to get creative and create their interpretation of the song’s beat.
Source: TikTok
It became one of the most viral campaigns on TikTok, amassing over 7 billion views and inspiring over 5 million user-generated videos. Even celebrities like Jessica Alba, Reese Witherspoon and Ellen joined the challenge.
Cost-Effective Marketing
User-generated content is often free or comes at a minimal cost compared to influencer marketing, which can cost millions of dollars. Additionally, user-generated content has a longer lifespan as it can be shared and reshared by both the brand and consumers, leading to ongoing exposure and reach without requiring additional investment.
For smaller brands, UGC is a cheaper and more manageable alternative to ad campaigns and paid influencer partnerships for building brand awareness. Moreover, UGC often has a higher return on investment (ROI) as consumers see it as more reliable.
Types of User-Generated Content
UGC comes in many forms and can be shared on various platforms. The most commonly used types of UGC include:
1. Reviews and Ratings
About 95% of customers read reviews before buying, and 58% are willing to pay more for products with positive reviews (GlobeNewswire). Positive customer ratings and reviews generate buzz around your brand, boost social proof and provide important insights for brands to improve their products or services.
You can gather reviews from various platforms, such as review websites like Yelp and Google Business Profile, eCommerce websites like Amazon and Etsy or on social media platforms like Facebook.
Clarke advised being cautious about spam or fake user-generated content:
“You also have to make sure that the reviews and testimonials are actually positive, not just the scores are positive. There is some risk in the UGC quality control, but it’s still worth the effort and challenges at the end of the day,” Clarke added.
2. Images and Videos
Visual content is the next best thing to trying out a product or service yourself – consumers can see the product in action before deciding to purchase. Platforms like Instagram and TikTok are popular for sharing visual UGC as they allow for easy sharing and resharing of content.
Gym Shark, for example, reposts images and videos of influencers wearing its athletic wear on its Instagram page. This allows consumers to see how the product fits and performs in real-life settings.
Source: Gym Shark
3. Social Media Mentions and Tags
Encouraging customers to tag your brand or use a specific hashtag greatly increases UGC’s reach. Starbucks’ #whatsyourname campaign is a perfect example of this. The campaign focused on producing short videos sharing stories behind their chosen names.
Watch the full #whatsyourname campaign here.
Customers who participated in the campaign by sharing personal stories and photos with Starbucks drinks and mermaid cookies boosted engagement through discussions, mentions, responses, likes, shares and views.
The campaign reached 135.8 million views on social media within four days, with publications like USA Today describing it as “A Starbucks ad that matters.”
Source: Medium
4. Branded Selfies
Branded selfies are a form of visual UGC where customers share a selfie with the brand’s product or logo on their online platforms. This allows the brand to tap into the consumers’ networks and increase brand awareness.
The Cancer Research UK’s No Makeup Selfie campaign went viral in 2014 and is a prime example of how branded selfies can generate widespread awareness. The campaign encouraged women to post pictures without makeup, use the hashtag #NoMakeupSelfie and donate to charity.
Over £8 million was raised within six days, and even celebrities joined in, further boosting awareness for the campaign.
Source: The Guardian
5. Blog Posts
Bloggers can also include mentions or reviews of your brand or product in their blog posts. These can be standalone product reviews or a quick mention within a broader post. You can use these mentions by sharing them on social media or your website to increase your brand’s reach.
Byrdie, a popular beauty and wellness blog, reviews various skincare products in their posts with direct links to where readers can purchase them. Sometimes, they even let their employees test the products and provide honest reviews so readers get an unbiased opinion.
Source: Byrdie
Blogs are a powerful platform for UGC, allowing for more in-depth, detailed reviews and feedback on your products or services. Also, blogs are often shared and read by a niche audience, making it easier for brands to reach their target market.
6. Live Streams/Podcasts Snippets
Podcast hosts and live streamers sometimes mention a brand or product they love. If the podcast has a sizable following, this can drive traffic to your website or social media profiles.
You can also ask permission to reshare podcast snippets or live stream them on your social media platforms to show users that industry experts or their favorite personalities have endorsed your brand.
On TikTok, you can often see podcast and live stream snippets shared and reposted by fans. This type of UGC provides instant credibility and ongoing exposure for your brand.
7. Forum Discussions
Online forums like Reddit allow people to ask questions and share their experiences with a brand. Brands can use these discussions to gather feedback, address concerns and respond to negative and positive reviews.
In this Reddit post about Monday.com, a project management tool, the original poster (OP) shared the pros and cons of using the tool and asked for other users’ opinions.
Source: Reddit
The thread quickly became a discussion between Monday.com users.
Source: Reddit
This is an opportunity for the brand to address any concerns or issues mentioned and showcase its strong customer support. The brand can also share this discussion on its social media platforms to highlight its customers’ positive experiences.
8. Contest Entries
A UGC contest encourages users to create social media content about a brand for a chance to win a prize. Brands often use hashtags and tag their social media page to make tracking entries easier.
Nissan leveraged a branded hashtag challenge on TikTok, capitalizing on the platform’s trend-driven nature, to promote its new car, the JUKE, ahead of its launch. The contest invited users to create original car commercial voiceovers for a chance to be featured in a JUKE commercial on TV.
Source: Insense
The campaign successfully built anticipation for the car’s release, attracting nearly 34k video entries and millions of viewers. The high level of participation and the eager anticipation for the JUKE TV commercials to show the winning entries generated buzz around Nissan’s launch.
9. Comments
The comment section is a goldmine for consumer opinions and discussions about your brand or product. Brands can encourage customers to leave comments by responding to their comments, asking for feedback or posing questions.
Glassdoor’s Facebook post features interview tips from its audience, sourced from its Interview Tips Bowl series on social media.
Source: Sprout Social
These remarks serve a dual purpose: they demonstrate active user engagement with your brand and provide insightful audience feedback.
How To Encourage User-Generated Content: 7 Tips
While you can’t control what users say about your brand, you can encourage them to create UGC through various methods. Here are some ways to boost user-generated content:
1. Host a Contest or Giveaway
Host contests or challenges to rouse excitement within your community. Define a theme or topic related to your brand, product or service, then encourage users to actively participate and contribute their own content. Whether they share their favorite moments using your product or create fun videos, contests spark engagement.
2. Offer Discounts or Rewards for Reviews
Offering a discount or reward for leaving a review can encourage customers to share their thoughts and experiences with your brand. This can also help increase the number of reviews on your website or social media profiles while providing more UGC for potential customers to reference.
3. Create Dedicated Spaces for Sharing
Make it easy for users to contribute by setting up a dedicated page on your website or blog. This space allows users to share their photos, videos or articles about your brand. The more accessible and user-friendly this platform is, the more likely people will participate.
Airbnb’s Community Center is a perfect example of a dedicated space for sharing. It allows users to connect with other hosts, share tips and experiences and even feature their listings.
4. Collaborate With Influencers or Brand Ambassadors
Partnering with influencers who align with your brand can help reach a wider audience and encourage them to create content about your brand. These collaborations often result in high-quality UGC shared on various social media platforms.
5. Ask for Feedback and Reviews
Authentic feedback from real customers speaks volumes. Be bold and ask your customers for their thoughts and experiences with your brand. You can do this through email surveys, social media polls or in-store feedback forms. This encourages UGC and shows that your brand values customer opinions.
6. Use Branded Hashtags and Taglines
Creating a catchy and memorable hashtag or tagline like Nike’s #JustDoIt or Coca-Cola’s #ShareACoke can encourage users to share their experiences with your brand and use the designated hashtag. This also helps with tracking and curating user-generated content.
7. Ego-Bait Your Customers
Ego-baiting is a tactic that involves flattering or praising your audience to encourage them to share their experiences with your brand. This can be done through reposting positive reviews, featuring customer photos on social media or highlighting their success stories.
Let users know that their content matters! By showcasing their posts, you encourage more UGC and demonstrate that people are loyal to your brand. It’s a win-win situation.
9 Best Practices When Launching a User Generated Content Strategy
If you’ve tried implementing a user generated content strategy and found it didn’t work as expected, you might not have been following best practices.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when launching a user generated content marketing strategy:
1. Set Campaign Goals
Before you even start collecting UGC, it’s essential to have a clear goal in mind. Whether it’s increasing brand awareness, improving customer trust or driving sales, having a specific purpose will help you measure the success of your campaign.
2. Be Authentic
Don’t manipulate user-generated content to fit your brand’s narrative. Fake or overly curated content can be spotted a mile away and can damage your brand’s reputation. Embrace the authenticity of user-generated content, even if it’s not always perfectly polished.
3. Be Selective
Not all user-generated content is suitable for your brand. Make sure to curate and select content that aligns with your values and resonates with your target audience. This way, you can maintain a consistent brand image and avoid controversies.
4. Repost on Relevant Channels
Identify the user generated content platform where your audience is most active and where potential supporters wield the most influence. For instance, TikTok is popular among Gen Z, while older demographics widely use Facebook.
Consult your data to determine where you should focus your UGC efforts and decide what types of UGC perform best on each platform. For reference, here’s the top-performing content on some popular social media platforms:
• Facebook: Share videos and stories on Facebook to boost engagement and possibly go viral. The platform’s algorithm makes organic reach challenging, but consider using user-generated ad content.
• X: Despite its limited character count, X (previously Twitter) is excellent for sharing images. For events, create a live X feed for real-time coverage and easily reshare user-generated content using hashtags.
• Instagram: A hub for visual sharing, Instagram is key for UGC. Learn to regram, use Instagram Explore, and discover content with hashtags. Showcase products in action, repost Story mentions and create Highlights to display customer UGC and encourage further sharing.
• TikTok: Overflowing with UGC, TikTok values authentic videos over polished content. Engage with users in comments, ask them to share their videos and credit them on your page.
• LinkedIn: As a professional network, only share UGC relevant to your brand’s goals on LinkedIn. Focus on high-quality content that reflects your brand professionally.
According to Clarke, review widgets are also a smart way to get UGC, specifically customer reviews and testimonials, on your website:
“They can use review widgets on their website to show off the most recent reviews without updating them manually. This is much better than static website testimonials or other types of advertising,” said Clarke.
5. Give Credit Where It’s Due
Give proper credit and attribution to the original creator of the content. This shows respect for their work and helps build relationships with your customers. People are more likely to continue creating content for your brand if they feel appreciated.
6. Ask for Permission
Consent is crucial when using user-generated content. Always ask permission from the original creator before sharing their content, especially if you plan to use it in your social media marketing efforts.
You can ask for permission by contacting the content creator directly via private message or comment, clearly stating your interest in using their content and how you plan to use it. If they agree, keep a record of their consent in case any issues arise.
7. Keep Your Audience Engaged
Don’t just collect UGC and let it sit on your website or social media profiles. Engage with your audience by responding to comments, reposting their content and thanking them for their contributions. This helps build a sense of community around your brand and encourages others to join in.
8. Give Users Creative Freedom
When encouraging users to create content, provide them with creative freedom and avoid imposing too many restrictions. Allowing users to express themselves uniquely can lead to more diverse and authentic content that users are more likely to engage with.
9. Monitor and Moderate
Track all user-generated content about your brand to address negative feedback and protect your brand’s image. A dedicated team monitoring UGC is crucial for larger brands.
Gain Consumer Confidence With Authentic, Trustworthy Content
Trust is essential in any relationship, including the one between a business and its customers.
With so many options available to consumers online, building trust makes all the difference in whether they choose your brand over a competitor.
With the rise of social media and online reviews, consumers now have more access to information about products and services before making a purchase decision. This has made it crucial for businesses to establish strong trust with customers.
Thrive, a leading digital marketing agency, has a powerhouse team of content marketing experts and social media strategists who can help businesses harness the power of user-generated content to build credibility and trust with their target audience.
We use the positive experiences of your happy customers, including reviews, testimonials and social media posts, to develop genuine and reliable content that connects with your potential customers. Here are a few ways we can assist in building consumer confidence in your brand:
• Highlight Positive Reviews and Testimonials: Positive reviews from satisfied customers build trust with potential customers. We use these reviews to showcase the real experiences of your happy customers.
• Share User-Generated Social Media Posts: User-generated content on platforms like Instagram, Facebook and X boosts your brand’s authenticity. We leverage your followers’ posts to create social proof and build trust with your audience.
• Create Informative and Valuable Content: Providing relevant information through blogs, videos or infographics establishes your brand as an industry authority. Our content team creates high-quality content that users find useful.
• Be Transparent and Honest: Customers appreciate honesty from businesses. We help you develop authentic messaging that reflects your brand’s values, making it easier for consumers to connect with your brand.
• Harness the Power of Video: Create impactful video testimonials featuring your satisfied customers. Give potential customers a glimpse of what your brand offers, complete with stunning drone footage and eye-catching graphics.
Make your next UGC content marketing campaign a hit – speak with a Thrive expert today.
User-Generated Content FAQs
WHAT IS USER GENERATED CONTENT MARKETING?
User-generated content marketing leverages user-created content to promote a brand or product. Much like word-of-mouth marketing, it relies on recommendations and endorsements from real users to attract new customers.
IS USER-GENERATED CONTENT A COSTLY INVESTMENT?
A: UGC is typically a cost-effective marketing strategy compared to creating branded content. While some expenses may be associated with incentivizing UGC or managing UGC campaigns, the overall investment is usually lower than traditional marketing efforts.
DO YOU HAVE TO GET PERMISSION FOR USER-GENERATED CONTENT?
Yes, it’s important to obtain permission before using user-generated content for commercial purposes. This helps ensure legal compliance and respect for the creators’ rights. Permission can be obtained through consent, service agreements or by utilizing a user generated content platform with built-in permissions.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT WAYS TO SHARE UGC?
There are several user generated content platforms that you can leverage in your campaign: • Social Media Platforms: Share UGC content as part of your marketing campaign.
• Websites and Blogs: Feature UGC on your website or blog to showcase customer experiences.
• Email Marketing: Incorporate UGC into email campaigns to engage subscribers.
• Offline Channels: Display UGC in physical locations such as stores or events.
• User Galleries: Create dedicated sections on your website or app to showcase user generated content from customers.
HOW CAN I ENCOURAGE USERS TO CREATE CONTENT FOR MY BRAND?
Encouraging users to create content can be achieved through various methods, such as hosting contests or challenges, offering rewards or incentives, providing tools or resources for content creation and actively engaging with and acknowledging user contributions.
WHAT STEPS SHOULD I TAKE TO ENSURE THE AUTHENTICITY OF USER-GENERATED CONTENT?
Establish clear guidelines for content creation, moderate submissions to filter out inappropriate or irrelevant content and verify the legitimacy of user generated content before sharing.
HOW DO I LEVERAGE A USER GENERATED CONTENT STRATEGY?
UGC can be integrated into your marketing strategy by featuring it on your website, social media platforms, marketing materials and email campaigns. Ensure you have permission to use the user’s content and give proper credit.
HOW DO I MONITOR AND MANAGE UGC?
Implementing a successful user generated content strategy involves setting clear guidelines for the type of content users can submit, using moderation tools or services to filter and approve content and consistently tracking the performance of your user generated content marketing campaign.
HOW CAN UGC HELP WITH SEO?
A user generated content strategy attracts search engines and improves indexing frequency. It incorporates natural language and keywords used by the target audience, enhancing the website’s relevance for specific search queries.
