Beyond Influencers: Why UGC Creators should be part of a brand’s content strategy
Kait Richmond is a writer, producer and contributor to the M.T. Deco Blog
Internet trends come and go, but one thing we know isn’t going anywhere? The need for content.
This is especially true for brands. Regardless of size or budget, brands need content to sell their products and services to the world. That used to be a smaller job before social media took over and “authenticity” became a buzzword. Today’s customers want more than standard marketing language that’s been sanitized by a legal team.
Enter influencers. We all know influencer marketing is the hot strategy - so hot that “Influencer Marketing Manager” made the list of LinkedIn’s 25 fastest-growing roles in the U.S.
But influencers have become their own behemoth, often costing a lot of money for less content. Influencer partnerships can be meaningful and effective [especially for reaching new audiences], but when brands need more content on a regular basis, working with UGC Creators might be better for the bottom line.
The term “UGC” has been around for a while. It stands for user-generated content and gained popularity in the earlier days of social media when brands would recycle customer posts as their own. Using UGC was a free, turn-key way to share customer stories and reviews. These days, though, as the need for content has dramatically increased, UGC has become its own business.
[Read this in-depth guide from Sprout Social on what UGC is!]
Today, brands are paying creators with much smaller followings (or no following at all) to create content for all kinds of products and services, from reviews highlighting a specific beauty product to travel vlogs for an Airbnb that needs bookings. The opportunities are endless, and what is extra special about creating UGC content is that it’s become an incredible side hustle for many 9-5’ers who want to find another stream of income.
Something else we love about UGC Creators is that the people doing it make up a lovely community that is committed to transparency. We’ll dive into a few of our favorites, and you’ll see all of them have created videos about how to approach brands, negotiate contracts, and decide what to charge. Anyone looking to break into the space has a lot of tools at their disposal thanks to others who have paved this path.
Marketing Brew wrote about the UGC trend and whether it could replace influencer marketing altogether. While that’s unlikely, it’s another lever for marketing teams to pull as they create well-rounded strategies.
Isha Patel, CEO, and co-founder of Kale, a platform that pays users in exchange for social posts about products, told Marketing Brew, “Instead of paying one big influencer tens of thousands of dollars, how about you take that money and spread it among your long tail of customer enthusiasts?”
Those enthusiasts are in all the best places too. The platforms that UGC Creators use the most are TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. That isn’t to say that their business won’t spread elsewhere, but those are the places many brands want to prioritize.
To get a better understanding of what it means to be a UGC Creator, here are a few we love to follow for tips, inspiration, and even business advice:
Ang Wells - With more than 140,000 followers on TikTok, Ang has built a significant community for UGC creators, sharing invaluable tools and also hosting a course for up-and-comers, whose stories are sometimes shared on her page. A quick look at her portfolio shows she’s been at this for awhile; Ang says she is currently making over six figures as a creator (she shares her story here).
Jade Beason - Like most creators, Jade is across all social media but her primary channel is YouTube, where she has 166,000 subscribers and offers a master class in all things digital and social. Of the many “how-to” guides out there, Jade’s video to become a paid UGC creator in 30 days or less is one of the more popular options, thanks to her clear explanation and step-by-step process.
Samantha Dixon - Sam is a must-follow on Instagram, where she shares a lot of her daily life as a creator and has so many helpful tools saved to her highlights. Like Ang and Jade, Sam is transparent about her business and passionate about helping people learn. (She also has an amazing TikTok, and has pinned videos about the questions we all have: rates!)
Thanks to these creators and many others, there are endless resources available to anyone wanting to explore UGC, either for themselves or their brand. We’d also suggest checking out the r/UGCcreators subreddit to learn more and get a sense of what people are getting hired to do. If you’re working for a brand and looking to connect with a creator, you can find them easily by searching “UGC Creator” on your preferred platform, or checking out websites like Fiverr to find talent (bonus: check out Arbel Kimmick for tips on UGC + Fiverr).