Tag: UGC

Ideas, tips and tricks to make the most out of User-Generated Content (UGC).

20 statistics about UGC that you can’t miss in 2020

The User Generated Content (UGC) is a powerful tool that every marketing department must have in mind. We don’t just say it, look…

Marketing has always been an activity highly influenced by trends. From time to time a new weapon appears to try to reach more people better. Sell more. Get new customers. Achieve loyalty from existing ones.

But there is something that has never changed, staying high in the ranking of priorities of marketing specialists: the recommendation between customers and users.

If someone recommends a product, talks about a service or show that experience, it has a greater impact than the sales arguments of a company. Because it is natural and relevant. It has high value. That is why we use success stories, reviews, influencers, photo contests on social networks, unboxings… These mechanisms have something in common, the user generated content (UGC), which has been revealed as one of the main attraction tools in marketing. The customers themselves, the users, talking about – and showing – your product or service.

How to make the most of user-generated content

Still not using the UGC in your campaigns, in your marketing strategy or in your communication channels? Read on to know why you should incorporate it NOW…

UGC statistics that will convince you

  1. 48% of buyers recognize that the content of other users is a good method to discover new products.
  2. User content  based online advertising gets 4 times more interactions than normal ads.
  3. Almost half of the marketing professionals believe that customer content humanizes the brand.
  4. The contents that users share, have a 28% higher engagement compared to corporate publications.
  5. User content increases the click-through rate of emails by 73%.
  6. 25% of the searches made in the world about the main companies, are related to the UGC.
  7. 84% of millennials recognize being influenced by the content of other users when making online purchases.
  8. Recurring visits to websites with User Generated Content are 20% higher.
  9. The time spent on page is 90% higher in webs with User Generated Content.
  10. 70% of consumers consider content generated by others and reviews before making a purchase.
  11. 64% of consumers actively search for user reviews or content before making a purchase decision.
  12. Employees are also users: the company’s messages from them are distributed 24 times more than if the brand does.
  13. 92% of consumers are more likely to trust a friend’s recommendation than branded content.
  14. 84% of Generation Z relies more on a brand that uses real customers in its ads.
  15. Of the 18 hours on average that a millennial uses to consume content in different media, 30% is UGC.
  16. Companies that share customer reviews on Twitter increase their traffic by 26%.
  17. 71% of shoppers feel more comfortable if they review opinions of other users before buying a product.
  18. Conversion rises by 29% on web pages that use user-generated content.
  19. Reviews on website can increase conversions up to 74%.
  20. The key is to combine strategies: engagement increases by 28% with a combination of user content and brand content.

Seize the moment. All companies want their customers or users to create content about their brand; but only 16% have a defined UGC strategy.

Create now a marketing and communication strategy to take advantage of user generated content. Tell your audience what you want them to share, up to 50% of users thank your tips. And save time and resources using Yarr TV, the tool you were looking for to attract, filter and viralize all that content.

How to make the most out of User-Generated Content

There’s a common saying in marketing that your brand isn’t what you say it is, but what your customers say it is. There can be no better expression of this than the user-generated content trend.

User-generated content involves consumers submitting writing, videos, photos and other media related to and directed at your brand. There are many benefits, but here are a few of the biggest.

  • It humanizes your brand
  • increases your organic reach
  • fuels influencer endorsements
  • promotes brand loyalty
  • spreads brand awareness

But, before you go firing your entire content department, be aware that these benefits come with a warning label. To do user-generated content well requires strategy and effort. You can’t just open your channels and sit back sipping a beer while all the free content rolls in (unfortunately).

Requesting content without considering what you want to gain from it, who your target audience is and which channels you want to focus on, can end up being a costly and time-sapping mess.

So how can you make the most of it while minimizing any risk? Here are five of the most effective approaches that you can put into action for your business.

Know your audience

Who are they?

All good marketing begins with audience research. To aim the right message at the right people, you need to meet them where they are. To do that, you need to know where that is.

Both Facebook and Twitter have tools that allow you to find out who follows you. The best part is, they’re incredibly easy and intuitive to use. Just fill out a few boxes and click Enter.

So, run some analysis on your social media audience and use it as the basis of your campaign.

If your research suggests your audience are generally 30-something singletons from Western Europe who are into campaigning and watching cat videos on the internet, you can ask yourself ‘what might motivate them to send content to my page?’.

Where are they?

The first thought that comes to mind when you hear ‘user-generated content’ is probably beautiful Instagram photos. But you should avoid picking a platform just because it’s easy or common. Choose right platform for your audience.

It needs to be:

  • somewhere they already are – you need a captive audience
  • a platform that allows them to share the right content easily – asking for essays on Twitter might not be very productive
  • one that you understand enough to manage the content well – if you can’t use it now, you can’t manage a campaign on it
  • a place your business already has a presence – the bigger your profile, the more of a response you’ll get

What do they like to share?

Once you know who and where your audience are, find out what kind of content they share. If your followers are mostly social-media savvy millennials, photos and videos are a good bet. But personal letters, poems and other more niche content can also work with the right crowd.

Decide on an incentive

The most successful user-generated content campaigns offer incentives for participation. Which could be:

  • Fame
  • Freebies
  • Prizes

If you’re a small company, prizes and freebies are a winner. For larger companies, or niche businesses with a tight, cult following, offering notoriety can be just as compelling an incentive.

Set goals

If you don’t set measurable goals, you’ll find it impossible to tell whether you’re succeeding or failing. And that’s a pretty important distinction to be able to make.

You need a tangible plan, with specific goals, right from the off.

Your goals might be about increasing traffic to your website by a certain amount, gaining hundreds or thousands of new followers, or be more product-specific, like reaching sales goals for particular products or services.

Whatever it is, make sure you have the tools to track it. Use your website’s metrics tracking centre to gauge improvements in traffic and your sales team to track improvements in their KPIs.

Like any digital marketing campaign, check in with your goals regularly and alter your approach if something is not working.

Bonus tip: most content campaigns intentionally drive traffic to your website. Make sure yours is able to handle the extra heat before going live by checking the bandwidth and disk space limitations of your current provider and updating your web host if necessary. There’s nothing worse than watching your campaign go viral, only to experience serious downtime because of poorly prepared web requirements.

Create a story

In crowded, corporate marketplaces, people value the human touch. Content from really people is all the more meaningful when accompanied by a story. To really get the most out of your campaign, encourage people to give some context to their posts.

Not only does it feel more motivating for people when they’re able to talk a little about themselves, but it adds a real, human element to your marketing.

Apple’s #ShotOnIPhone campaign is an example of how great marketing can come from a company valuing the story behind how their customers use their products. It works because people love to love to share the story behind their special moments.

A word of warning… Stay away from blatant advertising prompts like ‘please share’. They look desperate and make people cringe.

Instead, focus on bringing out the best in people. The best campaigns ask people to get creative. Think Startbuck’s #WhiteCupContest which encouraged customers to doodle on plane white cups and tag their mini-artwork on Instagram.

Choose a message that displays your values

Sharing a story works. Sharing a story with a positive message works even better. To get this right, you’re going to need all of that research into your audience.

Choose a message that:

  • represents your brand
  • is relevant to the product or service you’re promoting
  • makes people feel good

Remember that ethical consumerism is on the rise. Harness it and you’ll create something people want to be involved in.

A great example is Aerie’s #AerieReal campaign that advertised fab underwear and promoted body positivity by building a campaign around the ‘real beauty’ trend. It was successful because it took a culturally relevant message and asked a receptive and engaged audience to contribute to it.

Final thoughts…

Use-generated content can be a powerful and cost-effective form of marketing. If you strike the right note with your followers, you’ll get be rewarded with great content in return that you’ve not had to pay a penny for. But it takes insight and time to do it well. Follow these tips and you’ll be well on your way to your #ShareACoke moment in no time.