Think about the work it takes to find suitable content creators for your user-generated content (UGC) campaign.
There’s that gnawing feeling of uncertainty about creators’ abilities and previous records.
There’s also the challenge of filtering through a lot of options and finally choosing one.
Here’s the good thing: it doesn’t have to be that tough.
With this blog, your search can be seamless and yield better results.
You’ll learn:
- What a UGC content creator is
- Where to find one
- Tips for working with one
Ready to streamline your search?
Read on.
What is a UGC Content Creator?
A UGC content creator is a person who specializes in creating authentic content that naturally seems user-generated and personal.
Traditionally, UGC is an organic marketing strategy where loyal fans and consumers of brands create and post content that may later be officially shared by the brand.
Did you know that brands that incorporate UGC (user-generated content) into their content marketing campaigns receive 50% more engagement?
The reason for this is the fact that 79% of consumers see UGC as a key factor in their purchasing decisions.
This goes to show that user-generated content is an important marketing strategy.
However, getting real people to naturally and actively create and post aesthetically appealing content can take a bit of work.
This is why finding UGC content creators was adopted.
3 Benefits of User-Generated Content
Although it is not completely organic, the process is quite easy and yields the same result as an organic post created by a fan or a consumer.
Some of the benefits can be seen below.
- Increased trust and brand loyalty
The primary objective of a UGC creator is to increase the perceived credibility of your brand.
For instance, if you are a skincare brand, you could send a product to a UGC creator, requesting them to create a “morning routine” or “tutorial” video content.
By acting as a fan of your brand, the creator’s followers perceive these UGC videos to be non-promotional content.
This takes your brand away from self-promotion to building trust and relationships with the followers.
In return, the creator gets paid for their services.
- Improved social presence
The job of the UGC creator is to create content that showcases them as an average user of your brand.
Now imagine having the followers of various UGC creators know about your brand.
Because it is non-promotional, these followers would trust that your product is authentic. They, in turn, would buy your product and create their own user-generated content.
When this happens, it’s like a ripple effect that leads to even more brand mentions and a heightened social presence.
- Cost-effectiveness
In comparison to influencer campaigns which can often cost a ton, a UGC creator campaign does not cost as much.
You can work with UGC creators on an ongoing basis rather than using a one-time collaborative approach.
This way, you have more content, more brand awareness, higher engagement, and less expenditure.
Let’s now explore the differences between UGC content creators and influencers.
UGC Content Creators Vs. Influencers: Key Differences
Considering that they are often used interchangeably, it is important that we distinguish between influencers and UGC content creators.
Their differences can be better explained when divided into certain categories.
Below are some of these differences.
- Type of Content
As earlier established, UGC content creators focus on producing non-promotional content.
On the other hand, social media influencers are more focused on promoting products, brands, or services through their content.
Both of these types of content can be informative, entertaining, and engaging.
- Relationship with Brands
Although UGC creators may occasionally collaborate with brands on sponsored content, their content is not exclusively centered around brands.
In contrast to this, social media influencers always establish promotion-based partnerships or sponsorships with brands.
Their content is frequently and prominently done to promote and endorse products or services.
- Authenticity and Trust
Due to the fact that user-generated social media content often reflects personal experiences, testimonials, and opinions, they resonate strongly with various audiences.
This ultimately improves the trust of their followers.
With influencers, however, it’s not always the same.
The branded content they create, or post, is more in favor of the brand and less a reflection of their personal opinions and experiences.
This explains why consumers find UGC 9.8x more impactful than influencer content while making a purchasing decision.
Audience Engagement
As a result of the effect of authenticity and trust, UGC creators generally foster a strong sense of community with their target audience.
Participation, interactions, feedback, and dialogue with followers are always encouraged.
But, although influencers also engage with their audience, they prioritize promoting brand messages and boosting conversions.
Their content is often designed for specific objectives, such as clicking affiliate links or making purchases.
- Follower Count
UGC creators may have a smaller but highly engaged and loyal following on social media.
This is because their content attracts a specific niche audience that shares their interests.
But influencers on social media often focus on growing a larger following.
When we explore the different types of influencers (nano, micro, mega and macro influencers), we find that each type has a specific range of follower size.
And their influence, pricing, and marketability are directly tied to the size of their audience.
This is why it is believed that if done right, working with UGC content creators is much more cost-effective than working with influencers.
Let’s go a step further to learn the pros and cons of working with UGC creators.
Pros and Cons of Working With UGC Creators
Despite the fact that user-generated content is great, and working with UGC content creators has its benefits, we mustn’t ignore its disadvantages.
Let’s delve into the pros and cons of working with this specialized set of content marketers.
Pros
- High-quality content
Content creators already excel at generating aesthetically appealing content with immense quality.
The term is not just a buzzword but a description of an individual who is great at creating quality, educating, and entertaining non-promotional content.
- Cost-effectiveness
As discussed earlier, working full-time with a social media content creator saves costs.
Unlike influencer partnerships that often occur one-time only, UGC content creators can work with various brands continuously.
- Improved engagement
If done right, the quality and authenticity of content will lead to increased engagement on all social media accounts.
This level of outreach can also be achieved when branded hashtags are used to post engaging content such as product reviews.
You get these high engagement metrics by working with UGC creators.
But there are a few cons to consider.
Cons
- Fewer promotions
Unlike influencers who focus mostly on promoting a personal brand, UGC content creators focus on building trust and organically boosting brand awareness.
Therefore, the promotional opportunities you might get will receive less traction when working with UGC content creators.
- Credibility
Regardless of how the average person trusts and relies on user-generated content, a few people would always question the credibility of your product or service.
This happens because the UGC creator’s opinion may not hold as much social credibility, especially if they don’t have a large social media following.
- Legality
Copyright issues are one of the challenges brands face with organic user-generated content.
When working with experienced user-generated content creators, this would be fine if a creative brief and a signed deal were agreed upon.
Keep reading to discover how and where to find the right UGC content creators for your brand.
Where to Find UGC Content Creators
There are two major places where you can find UGC content creators.
They can be found on social media platforms or influencer marketing platforms.
- Social media
Instagram and TikTok are two of the best social media platforms for finding content creators with the best UGC portfolios.
For many of these content creators, you can easily find their status at the front or center of their bios.
The content of their page often includes product reviews, unboxing video content, morning routines, and so on.
To search for these creators, begin by using the search tool on the explore page. Simply type “ugc content creator” and then press enter.
To find specific UGC creators, you need to go a step further by searching “ugc content creator” and “[your industry]”.
For example, if you are looking to work with a ugc creator for your ecommerce business, you could search “ugc content creator ecommerce” or “ugc content creator in ecommerce”.
Other methods to filter your search include:
- Checking competitors’ lists
A major part of marketing is competitor research.
This helps you understand how you can enhance your own marketing strategies and improve your UGC content creator search.
To find out which potential UGC creators your competitors intend to work with, all you need to do is search their list of followers or their tagged posts section.
- Using Hashtag searches
Hashtags are designed to help you tailor your search to something you are interested in on social media platforms.
To optimize this tool, use keywords such as “ugc content creator” or “ugc + [industry]”.
For instance: “ugc content creator skincare”, “ugc content creator food”, “ugc content creator fitness”, “ugc content creator wellness” and so on. Click on the “Tags” section to show posts with these hashtags.
Influencer marketing platforms
If you don’t have the time for a social media search, you could use influencer marketing platforms to simplify the process.
Some examples of these influencer marketing platforms can be found below.
This influencer marketing platform helps brands upscale their content strategies by using UGC creators for organic posting.
The features of this platform include:
- Creator marketplace
This includes a range of filters that matches you with the most suitable UGC creator for your brand’s products.
- Creative brief
From content formats, to product details and creator requirements, this feature provides you with customized and intuitive creative brief templates to simplify your marketing campaign.
- Direct chat
Imagine having one space that lets you effortlessly communicate with up to 50 creators.
That’s what Insense does for you. It makes communication and collaboration with influencers a breeze.
- Campaign management
You can launch your campaigns, check progress status, and invite your team, all in one centralized dashboard.
- Payments and copyrights
Negotiations and pricing can be a bit difficult, but not with Insense.
The billing system lets you automate the payment of your creators. Additionally, you receive full digital copyrights with straightforward agreements.
- Creator licensing
You can amplify the UGC content generated by your creator by running ads directly from their handles.
- TikTok Spark Ads
Easily turn your best performing UGC content into ads that naturally and authentically blend into the “For You Page” on TikTok.
3. Klear
Klear curates solutions that enable brands to find, manage, and measure their UGC content creation campaigns.
The features on this platform include:
- Creator Analytics
The platform offers real-time analytical metrics such as; reach, engagement rate on Instagram Reels, and audience demographics.
Furthermore, brands can stay relevant with trending information on all social media platforms, including TikTok, LinkedIn, and Instagram Stories.
- Relationship Management
You can manage all UGC content collaborations, stay organized, and track your communication history.
- Activate Creators
This simplifies the recruitment process. Brands can easily navigate UGC content approvals and payment methods.
- Measure Campaigns
Return-on-investments (ROI) are an important part of any campaign.
Klear provides you with real-time notifications and tools to track the progress and results of your UGC content strategy.
4. Traackr
Traackr contains many features designed to make creator collaborations and UGC campaigns easy.
Some of these features include:
- Gifting & Product Seeding
This influencer marketing platform is integrated with Shopify.
This means that you can connect your Shopify store to Traackr and allow UGC creators to choose their preferred product for content creation.
- Governance & Compliance
By constantly automating safety checks and monitoring the content posted by your creators, the platform prevents you from falling victim to unethical practices.
- Paid Campaigns
The automated payment solution ensures that you reduce payment costs and manage all payments from one centralized place.
- Team Role Management
It can often be difficult trying to strike a balance between effective collaboration and privacy.
With Traackr, you can easily assign appropriate roles and grant permissions to whoever you want on your team.
- Affiliate Programs & Social Commerce
Share tracking links with your UGC creators, integrate your ecommerce with Traackr’s code snippet, calculate commissions, and send payments.
5. GRIN
GRIN prides itself on being the best platform for effective relationship and content library management.
The features of the platform can be seen below.
- Discovery Suite
Grin is integrated with a Chrome extension tool that helps improve creator search.
When you install the extension, you gain instant access to creator insights and add potential partners with just a click.
- Creator Content Management
Easily find, download, and repurpose an influencer’s winning image or video content.
You can track your brand mentions, discover what people say about your brand, and ultimately improve your social listening skills.
- Creator Comparisons
Analyze and compare multiple influencers simultaneously.
This will enable you to choose industry-specific UGC creators that are perfect for your brand.
- Engagement Rate Calculator
Engagement rates are calculated according to the number of likes, comments, followers, and shares.
These calculations help you gain insights into the UGC creator’s ability to meaningfully interact and engage with their audience.
- Relationship Management
With a good relationship, it is possible to have an efficient UGC marketing campaign with creators.
This feature helps you create long-term partnerships, nurture UGC marketing relationships, communicate efficiently, and gain media content rights for all UGC creator-produced content.
Keep reading to learn more about managing your relationships with a UGC content creator.
5 Tips for Working With UGC Content Creators
There are certain best practices to follow when working with UGC content creators.
Remember that, unlike influencers, your collaborations with UGC creators tend to occur on an ongoing basis. Therefore, it is necessary to have a smooth working relationship with them.
Below are some tips you should consider using when working with UGC content creators.
Define your marketing objectives
Communication, as they say, is key.
Clearly defining the goals you plan to achieve with your marketing strategies will help the UGC creators understand what is expected of them.
These marketing objectives should be measurable and specific.
For example:
- You plan to increase brand awareness by 20% within one month.
- You intend to boost the engagement rate by 15% on all social media platforms in two months.
Avoid being too prescriptive
As much as you want your goals to be achieved, remember that these UGC creators are professionals.
Rather than dictating what should or should not be included in the content, give them enough creative freedom to develop their own ideas.
Allowing them to tap into their individual creativities would boost the authenticity and aesthetic appeal of the content.
Stick to creators with an existing audience
Very often, brands are advised to work with creators that already have a substantial follower count.
The reason for this is to improve reach.
The amount of exposure you would receive from a UGC content creator with 7,000 followers would be different from what you would receive from one that has 15k – 20k followers.
Generate a creative brief
A creative brief outlines your content marketing strategies in detail. It states your expectations.
The key elements in a brief are:
- Target audience
- Objectives
- Competitor analysis
- Tone, style, and message
- Deliverables and timelines
Remember that with the Insense creative brief template, you can develop a detailed brief for your campaign.
Compensate them properly
Adequate compensation should never be overlooked.
No one wants to work for free.
It is understandable that you might be working on a tight budget, but always ensure that the prices you offer UGC creators are fair and square.
Everyone thrives in a healthy environment, and when you consistently practice these tips, you enjoy a good working relationship as well as the best possible UGC content.
Congratulations! We’re done now.
Now, let’s finish in grand style.
Over To You
If you’ve read up till this point, you have an idea of how to find UGC content creators for your marketing campaigns.
The next step is to use this information.
Still don’t know how to begin?
Start with Insense.
From matching you with the best UGC creator to producing authentic UGC ad creatives, the platform helps streamline and simplify your collaboration with UGC content creators.
Book a free demo with Insense today.
