Content is key. In today’s highly saturated digital arena, users are spoilt for choice and information is constantly vying to stand out. As audiences are increasingly digitally savvy with a shorter attention span, they tend to be more selective of the content they consume and trust. With 9 out of 10 consumers indicating their trust in user-generated content (UGC) rather than traditional advertising, UGC presents a sweet spot between organic creativity and advertising. This transforms it into a valuable acquisition driver. Additionally, its influence extends beyond conversion. UGC collectively drives SEO, brand visibility, credibility and an overall sustainable social media presence.
“Authenticity” is the new buzzword, yet marketers still can’t quite put a finger on it.
UGC is defined as content created by the brand’s consumers. It usually presents itself as social media posts, text, videos, images, reviews etc. UGC is generally not paid advertising, hence generating organic, genuine, and honest consumer-led sentiments. However, if you’re looking for effective paid advertising, check out our blog posts on micro and nano influencers. Suffice to say, when incorporated aptly, UGC becomes an invaluable asset to a brand’s social marketing efforts.
The Power of User-Generated Content (UGC)
1. Foster a sense of Authenticity and Credibility
“Authenticity” is the new buzzword, yet marketers still can’t quite put a finger on it. 90% of consumers believe that authenticity is important when deciding which brands they like and support. However, there often seems to be a disconnect between brands and consumers on what defines a sense of authenticity.
As marketers, it is easy to apply assumptions of what constitutes genuine content. There is often a constant pressure to create engaging visuals and produce quantifiable reactions. This consequently results in a social media feed that can feel overly curated and disingenuous, overlooking the impact of consumer-led content. As first-hand consumers of the brands’ products, they tend to define brand and product expectations, consequently producing the type of content they seek. For those in the fashion industry, Shopform provides a user-generated space tailored to encourage the production of trendy, organic content that speaks for itself.
By relaying UGC to other consumers, you are pitching a recommendation by a real user. 70% of consumers indicate trust in online opinions. Online sentiment acknowledges the power of the consumer and aids in increasing brand reliability by generating digital word-of-mouth referrals. This highlights previous consumer experiences, creating greater trust.
2. Sway Purchase Decisions
Often, the ultimate goal of the brand is to drive sales and acquisition, hence UGC should not be overlooked. Research shows that close to 80% of consumers indicate that UGC largely influences their purchase decisions, with 137% more likely to buy when shown visuals. When populated consistently, UGC on social media platforms are potentially sources of inspiration for consumers when deciding which brand to support. When searching for a certain product, it is natural for users to steer towards products with a higher rating, greater number of purchases and more reviews.
As UGC is unpaid for, it encourages truthful and holistic reviews that are less sugar-coated and more user-centric. Savvy consumers seek that. By gaining access to authentic reviews, consumers are able to set realistic expectations of the products, potentially leading to less disappointment and increased satisfaction.
3. Build Brand Loyalty
Long-term relationships between consumers and brands cultivates brand loyalty. This often stems from a strong sense of trust and meaningful past purchases. Users that share UGC tend to be believers of the brand’s mission. By capturing the value perceived by these loyal users, the brand may be able to captivate new clients through the indication of user satisfaction and support. This aids in enhancing desirability amongst unfamiliar audiences.
How To Increase UGC By 6 Times Using Shopform’s Methods
It requires no more articulation. You are missing out on a powerful marketing tool if you haven’t been integrating user-generated content into your brand’s media plans. However, it is never too late to start. The following are some methods to increase UGC.
1. Run Community-Based Events
Community-based events are a highly malleable method to establish meaningful relationships. Bonds are best built when consumers feel like they are a part of something bigger. By personalising these events to the different spectrums of your consumer segments, they can gather like-minded individuals to share their passions and interests. This is evidenced by the annual GoPro Creator Summit, where action-seeking videographers come together to celebrate their works.
It is also reflected in our monthly exclusive community meet-up, where Shopform’s power users and early adopters are invited to share more about their in-app experience and shopping habits. As these select users are highly influential in moulding and defining the brand’s target audience, such intimate events allow the brand to gain valuable insights to their consumer psyche. These exclusive invites also showcase a sense of recognition, simultaneously, allowing users to gain a deeper appreciation of the brand narrative and sensibility.
It also doesn’t hurt to put a face behind the brand. By running in-person community events, it humanises the brand and cultivates a greater sense of brand identity as users can now picture the team running the brand, strengthening the sense of community.
2. Build a Close-Knitted Community
Cultivating a close-knitted community requires relinquishing certain brand-guided principles. This allows users to be creative and think beyond what the brand advertises. By doing so, you may also chance upon new use cases that can help improve the product.
Some tactics include hosting timely giveaways alongside hashtag campaigns. This encourages users to submit more organic UGC that positions a multiplicity of narratives and showcases their individualism. Giveaways fuels content contribution, incentivising users to participate in content generation. Shopform’s 3-day giveaway in April managed to increase our social media following by 82%! As such, giveaways are a great way to boost organic engagement, increase brand awareness and probe user sentiments.
Quizzes can also be a great way to personalise the brand’s community experience. It showcases a brand’s social identity and capitalises on our desire for approval. By regularly analysing consumer attitudes, brands can provide tailored attention to the various consumer segments. For instance, to cater to the eco-conscious crowd, a sustainability quiz may be the key to their heart. By strategically highlighting use cases that should closely resonate with the brand’s target audience, one can build a tighter community.
Don’t overlook the power of chat web messaging services such as Telegram and Discord. As consumers are looking for increasingly efficient ways of consuming content, essential daily apps become their go-to platform for information. By leveraging mobile-centric consumers via messaging channels, you can create a more intimate, friendly and accessible experience for your audience. Its effectiveness can be seen in the high engagement rates of Shopform’s, Lovet’s and Hoolah’s Telegram groups. Creating these groups also allows the brand to sieve out its most loyal customers and provide them with a safe space to share user feedback. Engaging with like-minded audiences and allow you to identify organic brand testimonials.
3. Inspire Brand Desirability
Social media platforms have morphed into a site for inspiration. Sharing phenomenal brand experiences and products may motivate brand desirability. Its power also lies in its ability to afford users to live vicariously through the posts or picture themselves using the product. This potentially creates consumer desire as picturing everyday users showcasing them increases a sense of relatability and accessibility. As seen on the Discover page of Shopform, we only showcase community generated content. This encourages a bottom-up generation of product reviews and ratings. Applying the above mentioned methods, we were able to increase UGC organic posts by approximately 6 times within a span of 4 months!
Best Practices When Sharing UGC
1. Request for Consent
Spot something worth posting on your brand social media pages? Contact the owner and request for consent! By requesting permission to use these organic content, the brand is effectively showing recognition and appreciation to your best advocates.
When you seek consent, you show the content producer that you appreciate their work and build excitement and anticipation about sharing their post on your brand’s page. This also fosters a sense of pride and exclusivity that may attract more users to tag your brand organically for a chance to be featured. By crediting the creator you also effectively boost cross marketing. It also improves authenticity as it helps to highlight and verify the source of organic engagement.
2. Incentivise the Users
When designing UGC promotion campaigns, be sure to incentivise your audience appropriately. These incentives may not necessarily be products or monetary, rather they should cater to the value it brings to the participants. A study shows that 60% of consumers are motivated by getting featured or “likes”. As such, make sure to sieve out the true driver for UGC and incentivise your users aptly as intangible presentation of appreciation may be more valuable than money-based prizes.
Knotwear displayed this through their collaboration with National University of Singapore’s Temasek Hall Lush 2021, a pageant that is part of one of its largest freshman orientation projects. The brand sponsored a line of apparel that aimed to exude not only personal style but also inspire confidence and poise. As such, incentives may not always be measured transactionally, instead recognising the true value and desire of one’s target audience can produce more tangible marketing results.
3. Discover New Use-Cases
The value of user-generated content extends beyond marketing content. By studying the generated UGC, they can offer valuable learning points and serve as customer research tools. You may inadvertently discover new use cases you might not have considered or realise potential partner brands that can effectively complement yours.
UGC also provides a great opportunity to sieve out consumer insights; both positive and negative. Adopting these suggestions into your product can help improve the product in ways that align more closely with your target audience.
Thus, UGC is great but underutilized. Direct-to-consumer brands need to start implementing this in their marketing strategies. By encouraging the growth of UGC, you’d naturally increase your discoverability and desirability. You are empowering and intangibly incentivising users to share your brand story through honest reviews, creating a snowball effect. It converts views to acquisitions If you’re a local fashion brand that believes you can benefit from increased UGC and exclusive marketing entitlements, do get in touch with us. Be strategic about your marketing efforts, preserve your brand narrative without the need for big ad dollars.