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UGC Strategy

When to Activate

• Building social proof for a new or growing brand
• Ad creative costs are high and performance is declining (UGC ads often outperform polished creative)
• Customer reviews and testimonials are sparse or unstructured
• Launching a UGC campaign or contest
• Scaling content production without proportionally scaling the content team
• Community building is a strategic priority
• Exploring influencer or creator partnerships that include UGC components

First Questions

1. What type of UGC is most valuable for your business? (Reviews, photos, videos, testimonials, social posts?)
2. Where do customers already talk about you organically? (Social, forums, review sites?)
3. What incentive (if any) will motivate customers to create content?
4. Do you have a process for obtaining content rights and permissions?
5. Where will UGC be used? (Social, website, ads, email, packaging?)
6. What is the quality bar? (Authentic and raw vs semi-polished?)
7. What is the legal landscape? (FTC guidelines, platform terms, privacy requirements?)

UGC Types

Reviews and Ratings

• Product reviews on your site, Amazon, G2, Capterra, Yelp
• Star ratings and aggregate scores
• Review response strategy (responding to both positive and negative reviews)
• Review solicitation campaigns (post-purchase email sequences)

Testimonials

• Written quotes from happy customers
• Video testimonials (short-form, interview-style, or self-recorded)
• Case study quotes
• Social proof snippets for landing pages and ads

Social Media Posts

• Photos of customers using the product
• Unboxing and first-impression content
• Stories, Reels, and TikToks featuring the product
• Brand mentions and tags
• Hashtag campaign contributions

Video Content

• Unboxing videos
• Product reviews and tutorials
• Before/after transformations
• "Day in the life" featuring the product
• Reaction and first-impression videos
• How-to content created by users

Community Content

• Forum posts and discussions
• Community Q&A contributions
• User-created templates, workflows, or resources
• Fan art and creative interpretations
• User-submitted tips and hacks

UGC Campaign Design

Campaign Structure

1. GOAL
   What business objective does this campaign serve?
   (Social proof, content volume, community engagement, product launch buzz)

2. AUDIENCE
   Who are you asking to create content?
   (Existing customers, new buyers, fans, creators, employees)

3. PROMPT
   What specific content are you asking for?
   (Be specific — "Share a video of..." not "Post something about us")

4. MECHANIC
   How do people participate?
   (Hashtag, form submission, direct upload, email, contest entry)

5. INCENTIVE
   What do participants get?
   (Recognition, prizes, features, discounts, early access, nothing but community)

6. CURATION
   How will you select and surface the best content?
   (Manual review, community voting, algorithm, editorial selection)

7. AMPLIFICATION
   Where will the best UGC be shared?
   (Brand social, website, ads, email, retail displays)

8. TIMELINE
   When does the campaign run?
   (Always-on vs time-bound, launch windows, seasonal alignment)

Campaign Examples

Product launch buzz: "Show us your first five minutes with [Product]. Tag #FirstFiveMinutes for a chance to be featured on our page and win a year free."

Community building: "What's the most creative way you use [Product]? Share your setup with #My[Product]Setup. We'll feature the best ones every Friday."

Social proof at scale: "Love [Product]? Leave a 30-second video review and get 20% off your next order. Honest reviews only — we want the real story."

Seasonal: "Show us how [Product] fits into your holiday routine. Best entries get featured in our holiday campaign and receive a gift box."

Incentive Structures

Incentive Rules

• Match the incentive to the effort required. A 10% discount is not enough for a 5-minute video review.
• Overly generous incentives can attract low-quality submissions motivated only by the reward.
• Non-monetary incentives (recognition, featuring, access) often produce more authentic content.
• Always disclose when content was incentivized (FTC requirement in the US).

Rights Management and Permissions

Getting Content Rights

You MUST have explicit permission to use customer content in your marketing. Approaches:

1. Terms of participation. Campaign terms and conditions state that submissions grant the brand a license to use the content. Common for hashtag campaigns and contests.

2. Direct permission request. DM or email the creator asking for permission to use their content. Document the approval.

3. Creator agreements. For paid or partnership UGC, use a content license agreement specifying:

• Usage rights (which channels, which formats)
• Duration (perpetual, 12 months, campaign-only)
• Exclusivity (can the creator post the same content for competitors?)
• Modification rights (can you edit, crop, add text?)
• Attribution requirements (must you credit the creator?)

Rights Management Template

Creator: [Name / Handle]
Content: [Description / Link]
Date obtained: [Date]
Permission method: [ToS / DM approval / Agreement]
Usage rights: [Social, web, ads, email, print — specify]
Duration: [Perpetual / Time-bound]
Attribution required: [Yes — format / No]
Incentive provided: [None / Discount / Payment / Product]
Disclosure required: [Yes — #ad, #sponsored, #gifted / No]
Notes: [Any restrictions or special terms]

Content Curation Workflow

Monitoring

• Set up social listening for brand mentions, product hashtags, and relevant keywords
• Monitor review platforms on a set cadence (daily for high-volume, weekly for low-volume)
• Tools: Sprout Social, Brandwatch, Mention, Google Alerts, native platform search

Selection Criteria

Rate incoming UGC on:

Curation Process

1. COLLECT — Aggregate UGC from all sources into a central library
2. SCREEN — Filter for quality, brand safety, and legal compliance
3. OBTAIN RIGHTS — Secure usage permissions (do not skip this step)
4. CATEGORIZE — Tag by theme, product, format, platform, and use case
5. STORE — Archive with metadata in a searchable asset library
6. DEPLOY — Match curated UGC to marketing needs (ads, social, web, email)
7. TRACK — Monitor performance of deployed UGC

UGC in Ads

UGC ads frequently outperform brand-produced creative, especially on social platforms.

UGC Ad Formats

Whitelisting / Spark Ads: Run ads from the creator's account (not your brand account). Appears native in the feed. Available on TikTok (Spark Ads) and Meta (partnership ads).

Brand account with UGC creative: Use UGC footage/images in ads run from your brand account. Feels more authentic than polished brand creative.

Testimonial ads: Customer quotes or video testimonials formatted as ad creative.

Mashup ads: Combine multiple UGC clips into a single compilation ad.

UGC Ad Best Practices

• Keep it raw. Over-editing UGC removes its authenticity advantage. Light editing only.
• First 3 seconds. The hook must grab attention immediately. Lead with the most compelling moment.
• Include the product. UGC ads still need to clearly show or mention the product.
• Add captions. Most social video is watched without sound. Caption all spoken content.
• Test at scale. UGC ads thrive on volume and variation. Test multiple creators and angles.
• Disclose properly. If the creator was paid or gifted, the ad must disclose the relationship.

Creator Briefs for UGC Ads

When commissioning UGC from creators, provide:

Product: [What they're reviewing/showing]
Key message: [The one thing viewers should take away]
Format: [Video length, orientation (9:16 vertical), platform]
Must include: [Product visible, specific feature mention, CTA]
Must avoid: [Competitor mentions, specific claims, inappropriate content]
Tone: [Authentic, excited, educational, casual]
Deadline: [When raw footage is due]
Delivery: [How and where to submit files]
Compensation: [Payment, product, or other incentive]
Usage rights: [How the content will be used and for how long]

Quality Control

Content Moderation

• Review all UGC before amplifying — never auto-publish without review
• Check for brand safety issues (offensive content, competitor products in frame, inappropriate language)
• Verify factual claims in reviews and testimonials (do not amplify false claims about your product)
• Ensure diversity in featured UGC — do not inadvertently represent only one demographic

Maintaining Authenticity

• Do not over-edit UGC — imperfections are part of its value
• Do not script UGC so heavily that it sounds like a commercial
• Do not fake UGC — fabricated "customer" content is a legal and reputational risk
• Do not cherry-pick only positive content — balanced representation builds more trust

Legal Considerations

FTC Disclosure Requirements (US)

• Material connection = disclosure required. If the creator received anything of value (payment, free product, discount, early access), the relationship must be disclosed.
• Disclosure must be clear and conspicuous. "#ad" or "#sponsored" at the beginning of the post, not buried in 30 hashtags.
• Platform tools preferred. Use built-in partnership/sponsored content labels where available.
• Applies to all formats. Written, photo, video, audio, Stories, Reels, TikToks — all require disclosure.

Other Legal Considerations

• Privacy. Do not use content featuring identifiable individuals (especially minors) without explicit consent.
• Copyright. The creator owns their content. Reposting without permission is copyright infringement.
• Trademark. Ensure UGC does not misuse third-party trademarks.
• Claims. If UGC makes product efficacy claims (especially in health, finance, education), verify compliance with advertising regulations.
• International. Privacy and disclosure laws vary by country. GDPR in EU, PIPEDA in Canada, etc.

Disclaimer: This is general guidance, not legal advice. Consult with a lawyer for your specific situation and jurisdictions.

Common Pitfalls

1. No rights management. Using customer content without permission exposes you to legal risk and damages creator relationships.
2. Over-controlling the content. If you script and direct every detail, it is not UGC — it is a commercial with an amateur actor.
3. Ignoring negative UGC. Negative reviews and critical posts are feedback. Respond professionally, do not hide from them.
4. One-and-done campaigns. UGC should be an ongoing program, not a single campaign. Build systems, not events.
5. No curation process. Without a system for collecting, screening, and deploying UGC, valuable content gets lost.
6. Mismatched incentives. Asking for a 5-minute video review in exchange for a 10% discount is a bad deal for the creator.

Quality Gate

Before launching a UGC program or campaign:

• UGC types and formats are defined with clear examples
• Campaign mechanic is simple and specific (participants know exactly what to create)
• Incentive structure matches the effort required from participants
• Rights management process is established with templates for permission requests
• Content moderation and curation workflow is defined
• Legal requirements are understood (FTC disclosure, privacy, copyright)
• Deployment plan specifies where UGC will be used (social, ads, web, email)
• Creator briefs are ready (for paid/commissioned UGC)
• Success metrics are defined (submission volume, engagement, ad performance, conversion lift)
• Escalation plan exists for negative or brand-unsafe submissions