Unlocking the Power of User-Generated Content: How Companies Can Reap the Benefits

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In the digital age, where social media and online communities dominate, user-generated content (UGC) has emerged as an incredibly powerful tool for companies and our content creation agency. 

UGC refers to content of all kinds – such as photos, videos, reviews, testimonials, social media posts, and podcasts – created by consumers rather than the company itself. This content can be harnessed by businesses to their advantage in numerous ways, yielding the following benefits for one’s brand.

  1. Authenticity and Credibility:

User-generated content possesses a unique characteristic that sets it apart from traditional marketing efforts – authenticity. 

According to the Nielsen Consumer Trust Index, 92% of consumers trust organic, user-generated content (UGC) more than they trust traditional advertising. Content created by their peers rather than slick, branded advertising is much more appealing. When consumers see real people using and enjoying a product or service, it enhances the brand’s credibility. This credibility fosters a sense of trust and transparency, which can lead to increased brand loyalty and repeat business.

Content Creation Agency - User Generated Content
  1.  Boosting Engagement:

UGC is a goldmine for boosting engagement on various digital platforms. Social media, in particular, thrives on user-generated content. Without users posting about their lives on the daily, social media would have little to no content on its platforms. So, when customers share their experiences, stories, and opinions, it sparks conversations and interactions among their social circles. As a result, businesses witness an uptick in likes, comments, and shares, expanding their reach organically. 

  1. Cost-Effective Marketing:

Leveraging user-generated content is a cost-effective alternative to traditional marketing campaigns. Brands can run UGC campaigns and contests to encourage customers to create content. This generates a stream of marketing materials without breaking the bank!  Additionally, sharing UGC on a company’s website and social media platforms requires little to no expense, making it an efficient way to market and include your community.

  1. Understanding Your Target Audience:

User-generated content provides invaluable insights into the preferences and behaviors of your target audience. Understanding what resonates most with your customers can be aided with content analysis. A content creation agency can take this data and use it to inform future marketing strategies, product improvements, and even new product development. It’s important to keep tracking this valuable information to hone in on your  target audience and perfect what they are looking for.

  1. Expanding Reach and Visibility:

When customers share UGC on their social media profiles, it exposes the brand to a wider audience. This enables companies to tap into new demographics and locations that might have otherwise been challenging to reach through traditional marketing methods. UGC also acts as a “digital word-of-mouth marketing” that exponentially expands the brand’s visibility. Comparing your new audience reach to your target audience is valuable, letting you see where gaps in your marketing strategy could be.

  1.  Creating Emotional Connections:

User-generated content often carries emotional weight. Customers share their experiences, stories, and memories associated with a brand, making it personal and relatable. These emotional connections foster a sense of community and loyalty among customers, encouraging them to become brand advocates.

Content Creation Agency - Brand Advocates Pyramid

  1. Inspiring Creativity:

Running UGC campaigns or challenges can ignite creativity among customers. When users are encouraged to create content related to the brand, they may come up with unique and innovative ideas that the company can then leverage in its marketing efforts. This symbiotic relationship between businesses and their customers encourages a continuous cycle of creativity and engagement.

  1.  Building Your Community:

User-generated content fosters a sense of community around your brand. Paired with the consistency you can get by utilizing a content creation agency, customers who actively engage with a brand through UGC campaigns or social media interactions become part of this community of like-minded individuals. This community-driven approach reinforces brand loyalty and encourages users to share their experiences more frequently.

In Conclusion:

Embracing user-generated content is a very powerful strategy for businesses in the digital landscape. By leveraging the authenticity, credibility, and content created by their customers, companies can boost engagement, expand their reach, and build a loyal community around their brand. The cost-effectiveness of UGC campaigns makes it great for businesses of all sizes. In today’s competitive market, harnessing the power of user-generated content has become a necessity for companies seeking to thrive and succeed. If you are looking to improve your user generated content, Bright Age can help! Connect with us to learn more about how we can help you develop a strategy to best utilize UGC on your social media platforms.

How to Increase Organic Social Media Engagement

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Every digital marketing strategy today has a rooted concept known as “organic social media.” Organic social media is important for businesses and brands because it is the best way to communicate and connect with an audience. Organic growth cannot be achieved overnight. Instead, it must be nurtured over time to effectively engage and grow an audience. In some instances, businesses will often look for a content creation agency to gain the correct insight to increase their organic social media engagement. Here are some tips Bright Age has for you: 

1. Analyze and Measure Your Data

It is highly encouraged for businesses to monitor their content by using the social media analytic tools each platform provides. Instagram, for example, allows their professional profiles to view their insights. This includes an overview as well as an in-depth look at the content interactions, the accounts reached, and the profile activity. Businesses can also look into sites that are dedicated to reading social media analytics such as Hootsuite Social Advertising and Sprout Social. 

Content creation agency photo of Instagram insights on phone showing the accounts reached

By analyzing and measuring data, businesses can decipher which posts did well and which did not. Be sure to investigate and theorize possible reasons why the posts either succeeded or failed. Apply the final observations to create future posts and allow the results to come in. For instance, if a business finds that sharing more user-generated content increases organic engagement, they should continue to implement it into their social media posts. 

2. Connect with Your Audience’s Sense of Humor

Another result that could increase a business’ organic social media engagement is posting with the intent to connect with the audience’s sense of humor. Humor can undeniably bring people together. When used effectively, businesses see an increase in their likes and comments. It can also drive shares which in turn increases a brand’s awareness. That said, humor is a double-edged sword. While some may love the sense of humor the post presents, others may not understand the comedic aspect of it and may instead feel offended. Be careful when using humor, and try to create a relatable post everyone can enjoy.

3. Collaborate with Influencers

Working alongside the influencers that are in your business’ industry is currently one of the most effective ways to increase organic social media engagement. Influencers are known to have a strong relationship with their audience, therefore when their audience hears about you, they start to promote your brand which can start a ripple effect. This is a great benefit for businesses that want to gain trust from new audiences and need their name or product to be promoted.

@itsthescotts #ad his face at the end \ud83d\ude02 love usi ♬ original sound – The Scotts

In the TikTok video, the personal care company Billie, works with influencers Kristy and Desmond Scott to bring awareness to their product and their brand. With the Scotts’ sense of humor, they were able to promote the razor in a comedic yet positive way. Some of Scott’s audience in the comment section even confessed to actually buying the product before and loving it. This engagement in the comment section can also influence others to learn more about Billie and therefore increase Billie’s organic social media engagement as well. 

4. Create a User-Generated Content Strategy

You may think this conflicts with the previous point; however, if you balance the previous tips with your user-generated content strategy, it can lead to proper organic growth and improve the connection between your audience and your brand. User-generated content is like a review of your product or service from a customer. This strategy may include creating user-generated content campaigns and resharing content that has been shared by a previous customer.  

5. Work with a Content Creation Agency

There are many more strategies we want to share with you, but to conclude, our last tip is to work with a content creation agency. Though our articles are informative, it doesn’t compare to working along with an agency hand-in-hand. It will be a lot more helpful to gain the correct insight and guidance through your social media marketing journey. Request a consultation today!

Types of Social Content to Try in 2020

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The number of users on social media has been increasing steadily, with a statistic from 2017 citing 1 million new users per day on average. It’s no surprise that consumers will continue to engage in social media as we enter the new decade, and it’s important that brands keep up with the newest trends in order to best coordinate their marketing strategies for the social media age. We’ve taken it upon us to compile a list of the top types of social content to try in the new year. With the help of a content creation company, you can take advantage of these new social trends for the betterment of your brand.

Conversational Marketing

It is now an expectation for brands to not only be responsive in a timely manner, but also engaging in a way that is authentic and fosters a friendly and approachable environment. This type of marketing can also be effective on the opposite end: you can learn a lot about your consumer’s needs and expectations by conversing with them one-on-one. Consider refreshing your existing social media community management strategy by working with a content creation company. Additionally, you could take advantage of a new trend that helps to meet the demands of consumers – utilizing the power of AI and chatbots to respond to customer inquiries. However, make sure that not everything you do is automated: a human voice and authenticity are important to maintain an effective conversational marketing strategy.

Content creation company photograph of a woman using smartphone for social engagement community management conversational marketing customer service

Product Discovery through Voice and Image Search

Multiple sources predict voice search will make up half of all search queries in the coming year, due to it being accessible as well as easy-to-use for consumers who may have lower levels of reading literacy. Image search will continue to thrive for the same reasons. In that regard, make sure your content is tailored to the voice and image search experience, and consider curating your content in a way that will allow you to gain traction on these types of search queries. Perhaps take advantage of Pinterest for your digital marketing strategy, and thoughtfully word your content so that it is easily findable for those using voice searches.

Content creation company photograph of a person using Google voice search query

Video

More than ever, consumers are passively browsing the web, meaning more people are browsing social media without direct engagement. In the same way that image search is beneficial, video—if done in a way that is engaging and informative in a short format—can be a great tool. Partner with a content creation company to create short-form, interesting video content, or take advantage of the live video functionalities of social media platforms. The latter can also help with increasing your one-to-one communication with your audience!

Content creation company photograph of man streaming live video livestream livestreaming audience communication engagement video

Although we’re able to predict consumer behaviors on social media into the next year, the new decade still holds many questions for the future of social media marketing. New features and changes arise on a near-daily basis, and it can understandably be difficult to keep track of all the new trends. Bright Age can help you create engaging content personalized for your brand’s goals and needs, while keeping in mind the ever-changing social media trends.

How to Engage Followers with Instagram Stories

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Is your company taking advantage of Instagram stories? Launched in 2016, stories have quickly become an important feature in the app. 500 million people use stories each day yet they are extremely under-used by businesses despite their ability to help companies gain insight about followers. How can your business benefit from posting engaging Instagram stories? 

 

Benefits of Using Instagram Stories

Although having an Instagram account allows you to connect with users, it lacks a sense of authenticity. Posting stories gives your brand a face and personality. There are many ways to reach your audience using engaging Instagram stories. You can educate people about your company, give them a behind-the-scenes look at a project you are working on, host contests, advertise an upcoming event and much more. Using this feature helps people learn more about your brand and it’s a quick and effective way to connect. You can also hire a content creation company that has experience in social media marketing to take your stories to the next level.

Let’s take a look at some of the new features Instagram stories include that will help you effectively engage with your audience!

How to Spice Up Your Stories

The “question” sticker is a great way to interact and learn more about your followers. When using this feature, you are able to ask a question and have people respond with their answer. You can share answers to your story and respond for everyone to see. Not only does this boost interaction, but it also allows you to engage with viewers on a deeper level. You will get a better understanding of your audience and what they want while adding a relatable aspect to your account.

content creation company, engaging Instagram story      

 

The countdown timer is a marketing strategy that companies should use to their advantage. This can be used for an upcoming event, product release, contest, etc. that helps build anticipation and urgency. This approach has been known to increase conversion rates and sales by getting people excited about what you are doing. There is also a way for viewers to turn on notifications to be reminded when your timer will end. 

 

How to Increase Sales Through Stories

Just like Instagram’s feature to make shoppable posts, you can now make your stories shoppable as well. When viewers tap on the product sticker in your story, they will be brought to a landing page where they can see more information about the product. This allows viewers to be further exposed to your company and shop your products. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Creating a close friends list is another feature that should be utilized more. This allows you to compile a list of people you can send exclusive stories to separate from your other followers. Businesses can use this feature to compile a list of loyal followers or past customers and send them exclusive offers, sneak peaks at new products, or any “insider” information. You can also make changes to this list at any time. This is a great way to build a relationship with your followers.

       

 

Using these techniques will help you be up to date on all of the latest features that users enjoy while engaging with your audience on a deeper level. Make sure to save your stories to a highlight folder on your profile and strategically organize them in a way that will benefit you and your audience. Some possible arrangements are having one that is made up of all the questions you have answered, one that showcases specific products or events and one with all your past contests or promos. 

 

Choose Us

Since Instagram offers many features that might be overwhelming for you to learn, it’s in your best interest to work with a content creation company that has a pristine track record. Bright Age Digital Creative Agency has a strong background in Instagram and offers a full range of services. Our team can create unique Instagram stories while effectively engaging with your audience.