We all know people trust people, more than brands, —and the rise of user-generated content in e-commerce is fast outranking all other forms of marketing when it comes to influencing purchase decisions. Your customers are out there on social media sharing photos and videos, featuring your brand and products, with the world- use this to your advantage.
User-generated content is one of the most useful forms of marketing that an eCommerce business could ask for. It is authentic, trustworthy content created by fans and influencers, sharing reviews, images and videos of your product online. Content can drive a significant amount of organic traffic, however many brands and marketers continue to struggle to create engaging content.
Where does UGC content come from?
Customers
Think of unboxing videos shared on TikTok or Instagram. Your own customers are usually the most prominent cohort you’ll look to gain UGC from either because you’ve asked for it or because they’ve organically decided to share content about your brand.
Brand loyalists
These are consumers who remain loyal to a brand over a long period of time. These users are typically the group that’s most enthusiastic about your brand. Since loyalists are so passionate about your brand, this audience segment is ripe to reach out to and ask for specific UGC content.
Employees
Employee-generated content (EGC) shows the value and story behind your brand. For example, photos of employees packing or making up orders. This behind-the-scenes content helps establish brand identity and works across social and ads to showcase authenticity.
Statistics say 90% of the consumers trust the User Generated Content for making online purchases. It’s clear that UGC can influence conversion rates. Let’s look at ways online sellers can embrace it.
Product reviews from customers
Social proof is the validation that customers provide to the brand about the trust, authenticity, reliability of their products & activities. Increasing and promoting product reviews can be a great way to boost your social credibility. As much as 70% of customers check reviews or ratings before making their final purchase. Having social proof is extremely important in this digital age as it influences the purchase decisions of consumers.
Allows for wide reach & exposure
One main aim of your marketing strategy is to reach a large audience with enormous exposure so that it increases the chances of engagement and conversions. User involvement in the campaign can help a brand achieve these goals quickly and effectively. When you create a campaign using custom brand hashtags, max out reach, help encourage users to share their views & opinions using the hashtag on social platforms.
Diverse Creative Content
When you create content in-house, there are only limited minds at work. So, it limits the diversity and creativity of the content. However, there are vast users with their creative thoughts and perspectives, creating a diverse range of interesting, engaging content. Using this diverse content that is relatable and impactful can be very beneficial to your brand.
Showcase Brand Advocacy
Brand advocacy is when the customers of a brand believe in it, show loyalty and speak positive & all good things about your brand. If your brand has these loyal customers or even better – brand advocates, you can use their created content to showcase brand advocacy that will help in attracting new consumers through the content of existing customers.
Unlimited Flow of Content
Creating a campaign is not a one-off event; it is a constant process with a continuous need for trendy authentic content for campaigns. One perk of UGC is you get an unlimited flow of content created continuously by the users.
Help Build An Online Community
Online communities help to create positive user-generated content about the brand in their networks. This increases the traffic, user engagement, brand exposure, desirability, and chances of conversions for the brand along with brand advocacy. Communities are all about interactions with like-minded people or individuals with similar interests, so it makes perfect sense that members are the best sources for sharing experiences. As members of the community share their stories, a clear picture emerges of what the brand can offer. It becomes a real, dynamic marketing medium as opposed to something stale that is drawn up in a conference room.
Enhance User Engagement
Creating a campaign that is both engaging and interesting with interactive elements and creativity can help encourage users to create content. Themes and challenges can be a great way to allow users to show off their creativity while also promoting your brand/products. Particularly on Tiktok. There is huge potential for shareable UGC that is not only showcasing the brand but also has the ability to reach viral status. For example, Gymshark has been creating shareable/relatable gym content featuring their gym gear without solely promoting their products.
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