The notion of user-generated content material (UGC), will not be new. In actual fact, it’s at all times been a part of the usual perfect advertising and marketing handbook — earn natural love from precise customers of your product? Sure please.
That being mentioned, the subject of UGC content material creators has been getting new buzz once more with the emergence of latest platforms like Kale (which launched in October of 2022). If you’re a marketer or company working for a model it’s possible you’ll be questioning:
- Ought to I be evaluating UGC content material creators in its place or substitute for influencer content material?
- If sure, how ought to I companion with UGC content material creators and what ROI ought to I count on?
- If not, is there a approach to combine UGC content material creators into my influencer program technique?
Under I’ll reply these questions based mostly on my expertise within the influencer advertising and marketing business — most of which was spent speaking to a number of the high magnificence, vogue, and way of life manufacturers about their influencer applications.
How UGC Content material Creators Can Affect Your Influencer Program
Should you’re an influencer marketer (or a lover of influencer advertising and marketing), by no means concern. This business and the creator economic system isn’t going wherever. In actual fact, the resurgence of curiosity in UGC content material creators could also be a very good factor. Right here’s a run down of what to anticipate and my recommendation on methods to modify your influencer program:
1. UGC platforms aren’t a completely new idea.
UGC has been an influence that entrepreneurs have been making an attempt to harness for ages. In actual fact, its core precept is considerably much like the likes of lengthy standing platforms like Bazaarvoice or Influenster. The primary distinction is that Kale gives customers the power to receives a commission, whereas Bazaarvoice and Influenster are extra targeted on a product seeding mannequin, the place customers can be part of and get despatched merchandise to put in writing a overview.
2. UGC content material creators gained’t change the standard influencer.
The reality is the influencer advertising and marketing area could be liable to hyperbole, particularly when evaluating the influence of latest instruments and platforms. UGC content material creators gained’t change conventional influencers, identical to Meta’s Threads won’t “kill” Twitter. As a substitute, the reality is commonly someplace within the center. UGC content material creators and conventional influencers are highly effective and helpful in numerous methods. If something, the emergence of latest platforms like Kale signifies an enlargement of the influencer advertising and marketing area. One gained’t change the opposite, the 2 will coexist.
3. UGC content material creators and influencer advertising and marketing will doubtless coexist.
On the model aspect, platforms like Kale supply a comparatively cheap approach to get some model consciousness via genuine mentions. It might probably additionally function a discovery device to assist them discover their “superfans” and could be good for serving to them discover micro influencers. This will probably be particularly poignant for manufacturers that don’t have entry to influencer marketing platforms like Traackr, which give the simplest and most thorough approach to discover and vet influencers.
Clearly for UGC content material creators, platforms like Kale give them a approach to receives a commission to advertise the manufacturers they love. It may additionally function an entryway into the world of influencer advertising and marketing for the “common” shopper.
Nevertheless, it’s doubtless that manufacturers is not going to depend on UGC content material creators to drive the kind of outcomes and objectives they count on to get from campaigns with skilled creators with bigger attain. For instance, whereas UGC will help be sure that a model is securing a share of dialog, influencers play a important position by spreading largely on-brand messaging. A part of the wonder (and ache) of UGC posts is that they don’t include any assure that the content material will probably be optimistic or keep “on message”.
Bear in mind Flip, the UGC social overview app particularly for magnificence? It made an enormous splash, however actually didn’t change conventional methods or campaigns for influencer applications.
4. UGC is proof that neighborhood is constant to be a key space of focus for manufacturers.
If something the emergence of extra UGC platforms like Kale is a sign that manufacturers are leaning extra into making an attempt to create neighborhood. They may wish to construct buyer advocates and communities alongside their common influencer applications. The opposite risk (that I discussed in bullet three) is that these UGC platforms may turn into a manner for manufacturers to feed their influencer applications. In some methods you would consider prospects as nanoinfluencers, and even influencers in the beginning of their profession. These UGC platforms give manufacturers a approach to harness area of interest nano/micro influencers earlier than they turn into large, locking in loyalty early and rising long run relationships from genuine love.
5. The significance of UGC content material creators will depend upon the model.
Most manufacturers put money into one thing like Kale as a result of it’s perceived as a “low hanging fruit” alternative to extend model consciousness and raise. That being mentioned, it’ll imply various things for various model varieties. For mid-to-large manufacturers the sort of factor will probably be a small a part of a much bigger technique, however for small manufacturers this might be an enormous focus.
