Let us guess.

You probably haven’t tried the secret weapon: UGC or user-generated content. Even if you have, is there a chance you’ve just randomly sent UGC into the digital air without a strategic approach? UGC refers to original, brand-specific content created by social media users, which can be shared on various platforms.

This article is your ultimate guide on how to fire never-missing UGC “arrows,” just like a cupid, into your audience’s hearts to enhance customer trust and grow loyalty as strong as ever before.

So, let’s start your UGC archery training.

What Is User-Generated Content?

Consumer generated content (UGC) is virtually any type of content—text, image, video, or audio—naturally produced by customers rather than companies themselves.

Here are several user-generated content ideas for your consideration:

• Social posts (tweets, Instagram reels, etc.)
• Product photos
• Unboxing videos
• Testimonials or reviews
• Comments in the community forum
• Blog articles, etc.

Actually, you can use UGC content pieces like these via any marketing channel to raise trust and credibility in your brand.

For example:

Look at this customer newsletter from Postable, which mentions “Over 1M Happy Customers” and includes a review from one of them.

The Postable marketing team incorporated it into their Black Friday email, not without a reason.

Definition of UGC

User-generated content (UGC) refers to any content created and shared by individuals, rather than brands, about a product, service, or experience. This can include social media posts, reviews, testimonials, videos, images, and more. UGC is a powerful marketing tool that can increase brand awareness, engagement, and sales.

Importance of UGC

UGC is important because it provides social proof and helps build brand loyalty. When customers see that others have had positive experiences with a brand, they are more likely to trust the brand and make a purchase. UGC also helps to create a sense of community around a brand, which can lead to increased engagement and customer retention.

The Roles and Benefits of UGC in Enhancing Brand Trust

Just some stats for a quick start: Consumers are three times more likely to trust companies when they notice authentic UGC content about them, and 79% are ready to buy their products/services.

Yet, these are not the only benefits of user-generated content for businesses. UGC can significantly enhance brand marketing efforts by integrating genuine consumer interactions into their strategies. Let’s explore other perks that come along with UGC.

UGC Content and the Power of Emotional Connection

UGC is always someone’s personal and, more often than not, emotion-filled story.

When we come across user-generated content examples, we frequently recognize emotions like these:

• Happiness or shared joy (a wedding or proposal post featuring a venue that hosted it)
• Surprise (an unpacking TikTok video with a surprising gift for purchasing)
• Nostalgia (a retro picture from a lifelong brand ambassador who has been using the product/service for decades)
• Sense of belonging (a tweet with the hashtag #[BrandName]Community)
• Support and encouragement (a testimonial describing a successful mental health journey with a wellness app)

Creating UGC allows consumers to engage with a brand’s community, enhancing brand loyalty.

Such emotions are intense and memorable. That’s why they can establish a powerful invisible bond between you and your customers and make them feel loyal to you even more.

But essentially, they are contagious, too. They positively “infect” your target audience with the same emotion and resonate deeply on the psychological level, thanks to the human capacity to empathize. Even beyond that—they evoke credibility so potential customers can imagine themselves in similar scenarios, thinking, “This brand is authentic and reliable; I can trust it.”

UGC as a Catalyst for Customer Engagement

Just like with emotional resonance that works for existing and prospective buyers, UGC content likewise engages both groups.

Needless to say, your existing customers and social media users are involved in the very process of creating and sharing UGC pieces. Later, when you tag or mention them on social media, for instance, they may become engaged users by liking and commenting on it.

UGC also boosts engagement among your target customers.

Jeffrey Zhou, CEO and Founder of Fig Loans shares, “User-generated content, is one of the greatest accelerators of our social media engagement strategy. On Instagram, in particular, it stimulates users’ likes and comments and”

Zhou recommends video as the most compelling type of user-generated content for Instagram. Yet, he notes, “You shouldn’t discard text- or image-only UGC pieces.”

Cost-Effectiveness of User-Generated Content

This is by far one of the topmost user-generated content benefits, especially for companies with tight marketing budgets.

Compared to traditional marketing campaigns, UGC is more cost-effective. It brings you the same results but at comparatively low or even zero production costs. In most cases, UGC is 100% free! You don’t need to hire specialists (a photographer/videographer, a graphic designer, a content writer/editor, etc.) and spend hours creating content. Your customers are your content creators, participating in content creation. And you’re left with one single task—to use it wisely.

Let’s take Starbucks. It literally thrives on UGC, a staple of its social media strategy.

For example:

A couple of years ago, Starbucks invited customers to use their cups as a canvas to create a unique design, snap a photo, and share it on Twitter or Instagram with the hashtag #RedCupArt.

The most recent UGC hashtag campaigns were #PinkDrink and #PumpkinSpiceLatte (#PSL). They also harvested tons of user-generated content for Starbucks.

Social Proof and Brand Loyalty

Social proof is a psychological phenomenon where people are more likely to adopt a behavior or attitude if they see others doing it. UGC provides social proof by showcasing real customers’ experiences and opinions about a brand. This can help to build trust and credibility with potential customers, increasing the likelihood of conversion. Additionally, UGC can help to create a sense of brand loyalty by encouraging customers to share their positive experiences with others.

Types of User-Generated Content

There are several types of UGC, including:

• Organic UGC: This type of UGC is created by customers without any incentive or payment. It is often shared on social media or review websites.
• Paid UGC: This type of UGC is created by influencers or content creators who are paid to promote a brand.
• Visual UGC: This type of UGC includes images and videos created by customers.
• Testimonial UGC: This type of UGC includes written or video testimonials from satisfied customers.
• Review UGC: This type of UGC includes written reviews of a product or service.

5 Tips on Leveraging UGC Content to Build Brand Loyalty

Pick it up from UGC-loaded channels.

First, you should somehow extract user-generated content from your customers.

But where and how can you gather the best UGC to improve brand loyalty?

A few places and techniques to mention are:

• Email surveys
• Website forms to leave reviews
• Review sites (TrustPilot, Google, Yelp, or software review platforms for SaaS like Capterra or G2.com)
• Customer communities
• Forums (hat off to Reddit)
• Social networks

Social media platforms are particularly effective for gathering UGC, as they enable real people to share their experiences and foster consumer trust.

When it comes to the latter, roughly one-third of marketers (28%) believe Instagram audiences generate the most engaging UGC.

However, Brooke Webber, Head of Marketing at Ninja Patches, argues that, as a rule, it correlates with a business model and type of user-generated content. “If LinkedIn is a treasure trove of UGC stories in B2B, then Instagram and Facebook serve as such for B2C brands. And if Facebook is more about user narrations with pictures, YouTube and TikTok are wells brimming with UGC videos about unpacking or unboxing experiences.”

By the way, that’s where the Ninja Patches marketers typically find customer videos with their custom patches.

Pro tip: To accumulate and manage your user-generated content more effectively, Webber recommends using social media analytics tools or UGC collection software like Bazaarvoice, YotPo, or Billo.

Brand it for social media.

Do you brand user-generated content when sharing it across social platforms?

If you’ve been overlooking this UGC strategy, it’s never too late to start implementing it—go ahead. If you’re unsure why you need it, read the following insight from an expert in web design.

Roman Zrazhevskiy, Founder & CEO at MIRA Safety, claims that UGC branding is mandatory for higher brand visibility, recognition, and differentiation on social media. He says, “You can’t expect your customers to recognize or differentiate you from your competitors, much less to become your loyal fans, if you don’t brand your social publications with user-generated content. Mostly, this is about testimonials and reviews, but it can relate to any UGC piece. Label UGC with your brand identifiers—a logo, color, or hashtag—that’s all you need.”

Brands should strategically allocate resources to create content for the right social networks and guide their audience in creating user-generated content to enhance engagement and align with brand goals.

Turn to influencer marketing.

Influencers and UGC creators are excellent amplifiers of user-generated content.

Let’s pause to consider: influencer-driven content seems more trustworthy than brand information for 69% of consumers. Just imagine what a booster it could be for your UGC!

But guess what matters most in influencer marketing for the success of user-generated content (and not only!).

The size.

“The smaller the influencer, the better niche targeting,” remarks Murtaza Oklu, Owner of OMO Transfer. “A micro or even nano-influencer usually has a small but super-devoted follower base from a specific market segment, which gives you a field to unfold a highly targeted UGC content strategy. In our case, we frequently collaborate with DIY micro-influencers applying our printed UV DTF transfers and stickers to their arts and crafts.”

For example:

During this holiday season, OMO Transfer partnered with a crafty content creator (14.1K followers) to target DIY enthusiasts.

So, it would be best to prioritize nano- (1K–10K followers) and micro-influencers (10K–100K followers) from your business niche when doing influencer outreach for UGC marketing.

Motivate UGC creators to generate new UGC content.

What holds the highest motivational potential for people to engage them in UGC creation?

Naturally, according to the principle of reciprocity, it’s a reward, monetary or non-monetary.

In fact, 77% of customers would gladly submit UGC pieces in exchange for valuable rewards.

These can be:

• Freebies
• Discounts
• Coupon codes
• Badges or titles in profiles or communities (e.g., UGC Creator Elite)
• Personalized surprise gifts
• VIP perks (e.g., in-person or virtual event invitations or behind-the-scenes access)
• Bonuses for future purchases, etc.

In this context, Max Tang, CMO at GEEKOM, an electronics company specializing in mini-computers, recommends the following:

“You might need to develop a robust loyalty program with incentives for diverse UGC types. Rewards (type and amount) may also vary depending on their UGC reach on social media.”

Here’s what he means. GEEKOM has a GFans Rewards program with points, bonuses, and other perks earned for user-generated content featuring mini PCs and accessories. For instance, every GEEKOM customer earns 200 points for a review, 300 points for a video, and 200 points for a photo.

Besides, customers receive Netflix gift cards of different nominal values (from $15 to $500) for a particular number of UGC post likes and video views gathered on social media.

User generated content marketing is a powerful alternative to traditional marketing, enhancing trust and engagement through social proof.

Highlight UGC in ads.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to reap all the benefits of user-generated content and catapult your ad campaigns simultaneously?

You can do that by spotlighting UGC on various advertising channels:

• Google or Bing ads
• Website banners
• In-app ads
• Out-of-home (billboards, posters)
• Print advertising (magazines, brochures)
• Social channels (YouTube ads, TikTok ads, LinkedIn ads, etc.)

Positive online reviews can enhance consumer trust and influence purchasing decisions, illustrating the shift in consumer behavior towards valuing peer recommendations over traditional advertising.

For example:

The LeyaAI team frequently settles on this UGC strategy while promoting their AI language-learning app on Facebook.

Pro tip: Try Sotrender’s Ads Optimization feature to see what UGC works better and improve your ad effectiveness on social platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram.

There’s one last thing to remember (this is relevant for UGC advertising and marketing alike):

“In some situations, customers may be unwilling to disclose their identities associated with your product or service,” says Rodger Desai, CEO of Prove. “And if you share UGC without their permission, you violate their privacy rights and ruin trust. To avoid that, make sure to respect their right to stay anonymous and always ask for the user’s consent before showcasing UGC in your promotional campaigns.”

Putting UGC Content Strategies into Action

After assembling all UGC practices and tools from this article, start your free trial with Sotrender, an analytics and reporting tool, to help you understand and drive your social media performance, whether organic posts or ads, with user-generated content or without it. (Duh, better with UGC, of course!)

Join thousands of other social media marketers using Sotrender to make data-driven decisions based on numbers, not guesses.

Incorporating UGC into your comprehensive marketing strategy can significantly enhance brand loyalty and customer engagement.

So, are you ready to test your UGC-shooting skills right now?