{"id":13235,"date":"2021-02-05T02:00:48","date_gmt":"2021-02-05T07:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/verticalresponse.net\/?p=13235"},"modified":"2022-09-21T02:33:47","modified_gmt":"2022-09-21T07:33:47","slug":"user-generated-content-the-community-is-full-of-creators","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/verticalresponse.com\/blog\/user-generated-content-the-community-is-full-of-creators\/","title":{"rendered":"User Generated Content: The Community is Full Of Creators!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s no denying the power of content.<\/p>\n<p>Content is what attracts people to your site and socials. It\u2019s what educates the masses about your products &amp; services. What\u2019s published is what compels individuals to share (and talk) about your brand to others.<\/p>\n<p>The problem with content?\u00a0<em>It\u2019s intensive.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>You can spend a whole lot of time putting together content. You could dump a bunch of money into content creation.<\/p>\n<p>Or\u2026 you could explore user generated content.<\/p>\n<h2>What is User Generated Content (UGC)?<\/h2>\n<p>User-generated content (or UGC) is content created and shared by communities. Specifically, it\u2019s content typically submitted, tagged, or solicited by a brand from its community. It\u2019s community-driven<span>\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/verticalresponse.com\/blog\/making-content-marketing-email-and-social-media-work-in-harmony-for-your-small-business\/\">content marketing<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>User generated content examples can include (but not limited to):<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Blog posts<\/li>\n<li>Video posts<\/li>\n<li>Photos<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/verticalresponse.com\/blog\/how-to-conduct-great-interviews-for-even-greater-content\/\">Interviews<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/verticalresponse.com\/blog\/gain-more-credibility-with-a-customer-case-study\/\">Case studies<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Artwork<\/li>\n<li>Reviews<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Brands small and large embrace UGC as part of their site and social campaigns. This can include a simple use of a #hashtag to share UGC or become something elaborate like a full-scale marketing campaign involving the community.<\/p>\n<p>The takeaway is that you\u2019re<span>\u00a0<\/span>creating a\u00a0culture\u00a0where people<span>\u00a0<\/span><em>want<\/em><span>\u00a0<\/span>to\u00a0participate<em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>The Advantages of User Generated Content<\/h2>\n<p>We all know that content plays an important role in getting noticed online.<\/p>\n<p>The problem with content?<em>\u00a0You\u2019ve got a business to run.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Site &amp; social content might be a lower priority for daily operations. This is where you\u2019d\u00a0turn to outsourced content creation so you can focus on the important business tasks (to you). Though, it\u00a0gets a little expensive especially\u00a0for\u00a0a small company\u00a0operating on\u00a0an even smaller budget.<\/p>\n<p>UGC offers many advantages for those willing to explore it:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>It\u2019s free<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 The content is community-driven and doesn\u2019t cost you anything (besides running the platform)<\/li>\n<li><strong>It\u2019s diverse<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 Creatives of all type come together in creating and sharing neat things to\/for your brand<\/li>\n<li><strong>It\u2019s fun<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 Everyone gets to be involved so it\u2019s like one big party, it\u2019s ever-evolving and engaging<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>UGC is also\u00a0<em>amazing<\/em><span>\u00a0<\/span>for boosting<span>\u00a0<\/span><strong>search engine value<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Every piece delivered by your community is another that\u2019s indexed and ranked in search results. So, you\u2019re getting new funnels to products and services by way of user submissions. These may work even better than your own content efforts because it doesn\u2019t have an\u00a0off-putting \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/steliefti\/2020\/10\/06\/how-to-avoid-being-labeled-too-salesy-by-being-self-aware\/\">sales-y feeling<\/a>\u201d to potential buyers.<\/p>\n<h2>How to Encourage User Generated Content<\/h2>\n<p>There\u2019s a vocal part of the community behind every brand. Often, all that\u2019s needed to give them a voice is by offering them the platform you control. Give fans the opportunity and they\u2019ll engage with your business!<\/p>\n<p>Here are a few ways to spur community engagement and user-generated content:<\/p>\n<h3>Setup a Knowledgebase<\/h3>\n<p>Got intricate products or services that really get users engaged and tinkering? If so, then you\u2019re in a perfect opportunity to get UGC by way of tutorials, guides, and insights. Specifically, by offering and collaborating on a community-driven knowledgebase.<\/p>\n<p>Try this:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Set up a knowledgebase using a subdomain + theme\/template<\/li>\n<li>Encourage the community to create tutorials and guides for your products and\/or services<\/li>\n<li>Promote and reward participation such as with coupons and shoutouts<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Not only is your community answering questions and helping one another. But, they\u2019re also creating content that\u2019s getting picked up by search and social. These helpful pieces can convince and convert visitors into trying your products &amp; services. They also see how open your brand is to the community and how active it is \u2014 making them want to be part of it even more!<\/p>\n<h3>Repurpose Reviews &amp; Testimonials<\/h3>\n<p>Your business is already likely on several<span>\u00a0<\/span>local sites and platforms. These tend to include user reviews and ratings. You may also have<span>\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/article\/83752\">client testimonials<\/a><span>\u00a0<\/span>either already published or sitting in a document somewhere. All of this feedback is UGC, and is ready to go to work for your brand and marketing efforts!<\/p>\n<p>Try this:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Collect and prune the best reviews, ratings, and testimonials<\/li>\n<li>Create catchy graphics including the feedback or do clever content formatting when editing<\/li>\n<li>Publish the work and see if those included are willing to promote it<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>This strategy scales when you begin exploring video reviews and testimonials. Not only do you gain the video format but you\u2019ve now got visuals and sound bites to work with when remixing the content!<\/p>\n<h3>Survey the Audience<\/h3>\n<p>Got a hot discussion going on in the industry? Want to<span>\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/verticalresponse.com\/blog\/activate-your-fanbase-with-user-generated-content\/\">open your platform<\/a><span>\u00a0<\/span>to community voices? A survey is a great way to get people engaged while also creating content! This works especially well when there\u2019s debate, new product launches, or big news.<\/p>\n<p>Try this:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Put together a survey touching on one or two main topics<\/li>\n<li>Send an email to followers asking for their opinion and participation<\/li>\n<li>Publish results via blog posts and social media shares<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>You can turn this into a regular event, too, by way of holding discussions or Q&amp;A\u2019s. Whatever\u2019s the choice, you\u2019re bound to get the community fired up and sharing their opinions by opening the platform!<\/p>\n<h3>Hold a Contest<\/h3>\n<p>Contests are a fun, engaging, and low resistance way to get your community to submit content. A content-focused contest operates much like any other except the \u201centry\u201d is the content submission. Whether it\u2019s using a hashtag when sharing a photo or submitting a write-up, this added engagement layer is quite effective in encouraging UGC.<\/p>\n<p>Try this:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Ask users to submit a photo of them with your product + a hashtag<\/li>\n<li>Let the community pick the best submission\u00a0<em>or\u00a0<\/em>do so with in-house voting<\/li>\n<li>Announce the winner and distribute a cool prize + participation extras for all entries<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Get creative and see what your team comes up with for the brand!<\/p>\n<h2>Connect With Your Audience on a Deeper Level<\/h2>\n<p>Building a strong community takes a ton of dedication but is 110% worth the effort. Once it\u2019s there, and people are active, you should have no problem exploring user generated content. Then, the sky\u2019s the limit!<\/p>\n<p>So\u2026 are you ready to connect with your audience on a\u00a0<em>deeper<\/em><span>\u00a0<\/span>level? Want to build a community that cultivates UGC?<\/p>\n<p><em>Email marketing makes it possible.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/vr2.verticalresponse.com\/users\/sign_up\">Start your free trial<\/a><span>\u00a0<\/span>of our award-winning email marketing management system and build your community today!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s no denying the power of content. Content is what attracts people to your site and socials. It\u2019s what educates the masses about your products &amp; services. What\u2019s published is what compels individuals to share (and talk) about your brand to others. The problem with content?\u00a0It\u2019s intensive. You can spend a whole lot of time [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13236,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.0 (Yoast SEO v24.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>User Generated Content: The Community is Full Of Creators! | VR Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"From a new set of eyes and a place within the community user generated content helps establish authenticity and trust among you and your audience.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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