Your Customer (Not Your Product) is the Hero of Your Brand

When thinking of user generated content (UGC), what is the first thing that comes to mind? Probably someone with a selfie-stick standing somewhere special, hawking a product they may or may not like. But truly, one of the earliest forms of UGC was the English Oxford dictionary. 

The massive, multi-volume Oxford English Dictionary was exclusively composed of user-generated content. In 1857, Richard Chenevix Trench of the London Philological Society sought public contributions throughout the English-speaking world for the creation of the first edition of the OED.[21] (Wikipedia)

Creating a plan for user generated content can be hugely powerful form of marketing for your Shopify store. You should develop some type of system in which you encourage your customers to provide you with content around their experience with your product or service. This can be a paid or unpaid arrangement, but one that should be ongoing. (Read Upcoming Article) 

Here are some benefits and strategies for increasing the quantity and quality of your brand’s user generated content. 

Making Your Customers the Hero: 

The biggest mistake that brands make in marketing is trying to make their product or company the hero rather than making their customers the hero. 

For example, Nike does not brag that they make a training shoe that is 400% better than the competition. Nike brags about making a training shoe that is worn by the world’s best runners and worn by runners who win. 

Another example is Apple. They could discuss how the chip in their new Macbook Pro is 500% faster, but their marketing showcases how the new Macbook Pro allows more creative people to create even more amazing things, faster. 

UGC provides a tremendous opportunity to showcase your customers as the heroes of your brand. Let them communicate why they're a better person because of your product or service; how your product or service makes them the hero. 

 

Social Proof:

Social proof is an extremely powerful variable in consumers’ decision making. Seth Godin once said, “People like us, do things like this.” This statement perfectly sums up social proof and how important it is in your marketing strategy. 

Seeing REAL customers with REAL photos of your products being used is more trustworthy than polished images on social media. Increasing the quantity of UGC will provide you with multiple opportunities to highlight the diversity of people who love your products, and to address the specific segments you are targeting. 

For example, getting UGC from mothers will allow you to showcase how great your products are for busy mothers on the go. 

Or for another example, getting content from business professionals who are flying around the world will allow you to showcase how you can benefit the traveling businessperson. 

The opportunities are endless when you have a significant amount of UGC that spans across multiple customer segments.

Free Publicity - Increasing Social Media Reach:

Lastly, another huge benefit to UGC is the increased reach you receive from your audience. UGC can be hugely beneficial for your brand’s marketing purposes (see above), but additionally just the creation of the content will likely increase your brand’s presence online. This can have tremendous effects on your brand’s ability to reach an audience on a larger scale. 

From the Oxford English Dictionary to TikTok, UGC covers a broad range of content, but always proves to be valuable. While in this article we have discussed the WHY of having UGC, in the next article we will discuss the HOW of getting UGC on a regular basis. 

Now go and grow. 

J