User-Generated Content (UGC) is every marketer’s dream; it’s authentic, it’s relevant, and you didn’t have to lift a finger to create it!

However, it is still easy to make mistakes, as Lorraine Ball explained to That Marketing Podcast:

Listen to the full conversation here.

5 important things about UGC

UGC is far more than just images of people using your product:

“Photographs, videos, all of that is fabulous. But when you think about user generated content in only those terms, you’re really missing out on just tons of other possibilities.”

 

The power of UGC lies in the fact that in-house marketers can’t write it:

“Marketing people talk in this sort of English but not quite English language. And it feels good when we’re together, but our customers feel entirely alienated.”

 

Users are already out there creating content you could take advantage of. It’s just a matter of knowing where to look:

“Pay attention to the people who are already engaged with you, and simply reinforce what they’re doing.”

 

How to wield UGC effectively once you have it:

“When you’ve got all this cool stuff coming in from other people, you start peppering that in your automated messages; ‘Hey, have you tried our new software product? Here’s what Mary said.’ ‘Did you know that companies can use this product for this? Here are two case studies that our clients have written.’ How hard is it to write that introduction and how amazing is the real story behind it?”

 

However, UGC has one fundamental limitation:

“You can’t control what other people say. It’s kind of like a river, it’s going to flow from the mountains to the sea, the only thing you can do is put in little dams to direct it a little bit, and maybe get it to come over and water your crops. That’s the best you’re gonna get.”

 

What are you waiting for?

Now it’s over to you! It’s clear from Lorraine’s insights that there’s plenty of User Generated Content lying around your business, waiting to be found. So go get it!

If you need help sharing it across your social presence, GatorSocial is just the tool you need.