User-generated content — UGC — is content about your brand made by customers and creators rather than by you: reviews, photos, unboxings, demos and testimonials. It has become one of the most effective tools in marketing because it answers the question every buyer has: "Do real people actually like this?"
Why UGC works
- Trust. People believe other customers more than they believe brands.
- Relatability. Real people in real settings help buyers picture themselves using the product.
- Native feel. UGC looks like the rest of the social feed, so it gets watched instead of skipped.
- Volume. You can collect many pieces of content for the cost of one traditional shoot.
- Better ads. UGC-style videos are a staple of performance advertising because they tend to hold attention and explain products simply.
Formats that work
| Format | What it shows | Best used on |
|---|---|---|
| Testimonial | A real person explaining the result they got | Ads, landing pages |
| Unboxing | The first-impression moment | Social, product pages |
| Demo / how-to | The product solving a problem | Ads, product pages, YouTube |
| Before and after | A visible transformation | Ads, social |
| Reaction | Honest first reactions | Short-form social |
| Comparison | Your product versus the old way | Ads, product pages |
Two ways to get UGC
- From customers — ask happy customers for reviews and videos, run hashtag campaigns or contests, and make sharing easy with packaging and post-purchase messages.
- From UGC creators — pay creators to make authentic-style content for you to publish on your own channels and ads. This is faster and more predictable.
UGC is different from influencer marketing: with influencers you pay for their audience; with UGC creators you pay for content that you distribute yourself. Many brands use both.
Rights and permissions — do not skip this
- Always get written permission before reusing a customer's content.
- For paid creators, agree usage rights up front: which platforms, whether it can run as an ad, and for how long.
- Credit creators where appropriate and follow disclosure rules for sponsored content.
How to brief UGC creators
- One clear goal per video (for example: "show how fast it sets up").
- The key benefit and two or three points to mention.
- What to avoid — claims you cannot make, competitor names.
- Format details: vertical 9:16, length, hook in the first three seconds, captions.
- Freedom for the creator's own words — scripted UGC loses its power.
Where to use UGC
- Paid social ads — test several UGC videos with different hooks.
- Product pages — short clips and reviews near the "Buy" button.
- Social media — reposts and compilations.
- Email and WhatsApp — real customer stories in post-purchase and win-back messages.
How to measure it
- Ads: click-through rate, cost per result and hold rate on the first seconds.
- Product pages: conversion rate with and without UGC.
- Social: saves, shares and comments.
Start your UGC programme
We run UGC campaigns end to end — strategy, creator sourcing, briefs, product coordination, review and usage rights — and turn the best pieces into ads with our production team. See our UGC content services, ad production or influencer marketing.