On the internet, content is king. However, as many experienced marketers will tell you, coming up with fresh and original social media content ideas almost daily can sometimes be next-to-impossible. To make their jobs easier, marketers have managed to find a convenient solution – user-generated content.
In this digital marketing era, user-generated content has replaced positive word-of-mouth as one of effective forms of advertising. Unlike its offline predecessor, user-generated content can be bought, influenced, and tampered with, but internet-savvy audiences will see right through it. As such, this content works best when shared by people who are genuinely passionate about your products or services. And although you shouldn’t try to tamper with it, you can – and should – actively encourage it.
This article will explain what constitutes user-generated content, discuss its benefits and the associated research, and show you how to leverage this type of content to promote your business.
What Constitutes User-Generated Content?
As the name suggests, user-generated content is any type of content created by your customers and social media followers without any direct input from your organisation. They create this content without expecting to be paid or otherwise compensated for it, though it may be submitted as part of a challenge or a competition where they stand to win some prize. In most cases, however, fans create and share this content to express their support for your brand and play a part in its promotion.
There are many types of user-generated content, including the following:
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Images and videos
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Social media posts
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Likes, shares, and comments
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Reviews and testimonials
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Blog/website posts and comments
Even reviews posted on Amazon and other e-commerce websites are considered user-generated content for both Amazon and – as long as they are positive – the companies behind the reviewed products.
How User-Generated Content Marketing Can Help Your Business
In the eyes of your prospective customers, user-generated content is much more trustworthy than any advert created by your marketing department. That’s because many don’t perceive this type of content as purely promotional. As such, more than 80% of online shoppers at least occasionally read user reviews before deciding to buy a product. They stop to look at social media posts about products they might be interested in and visit message boards to read about other people’s experiences with these products.
This type of content turns customers into content creators, thus allowing them to engage with your brand. The feedback you receive this way is much more valuable than any market research you conduct as it gives you a better understanding of how different groups of customers interact with your product. This, in turn, allows you to create better-targeted marketing campaigns aimed at specific segments of your customer base.
Many online marketers focus primarily on millennials, who are known to use social media and other internet services more than any other age group. A few years ago, a large survey found that 30% of these millennials’ online time was spent interacting with user-generated content. Asked about this type of content, millennials said they found it 35% more memorable and 50% more reliable than other types of media. In addition, most found it more trustworthy than similar content posted by celebrity influencers.
On top of all these benefits, user-generated content saves you the time you would have otherwise spent brainstorming and creating content. It also saves you money, save for an occasional prize you may use to motivate fans to create content related to your organisation. Through this process, you will also develop better relationships with your customers and spread the message about your brand.
How to Use User-Generated Content: 4 Ideas
If you’re looking for ways to incorporate user-generated content into your digital marketing strategy, the following four ideas might help.
1. Organise Contests
Contests are a sure-fire way to grow your online following and boost brand awareness in the process. You choose any prize you want – small or big – and ask your followers to upload original content where your products will be featured prominently. This usually creates something of a snowball effect, so as your followers post brand-related content to their profiles, many of their online friends will see it and be encouraged to take part themselves.
2. Encourage Reviews
If you run an e-commerce platform or have an online store on your website, you should encourage customers to leave reviews after each purchase. You can set up automatic email reminders that include links to the review page. To give them even more of an incentive, you can set up a reward system where each review they post gives them a few points they can use to get a discount on their next purchase.
3. Create a Quiz
Short and fun quizzes are particularly popular on social media, as evidenced by Buzzfeed, a news and entertainment website that used online quizzes to make a name for itself. Ideally, the quiz should feature your products in some capacity and put them in a playful context. The goal is not only to get your followers to participate but also to share their results with friends. In addition, you should use the quiz to encourage them to post feedback by commenting on one of your posts.
4. Repost User-Generated Content
Even if you’re not running a contest, you can still motivate your followers to share their photos and videos by promising to repost the top picks on your company profile and tag the authors. For your followers, this is a chance to showcase their support for your brand and have their work shared with thousands of potential new social media contacts. As for you, this gives you at least a week’s worth of user-generated social media posts and an opportunity to show your followers that you appreciate them.
A Win-Win Proposition
No matter how you decide to implement it into your digital marketing strategy, user-generated content is a win-win proposition.
With user-generated content, you get original content for your website and/or social media accounts with little-to-no money and time invested, as well as valuable direct feedback from your customers and fans. At the same time, your followers get a chance to share their enthusiasm for your products and feel that they are being listened to and appreciated by their favourite brand. As a result, you’ll improve customer satisfaction and build strong, long-lasting customer relationships.