User-generated video content is a way of making your product or service visible online without actually producing the content yourself.
Witchcraft? No, it’s just a helpful addition to your existing online marketing campaign.
It’s created and uploaded by your customers then shared on their own social media platforms, offering an alternative and arguably more authentic narrative to your brand.
Users could be posting on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook or Twitter – wherever they choose to host their video and share their message.
What makes it so good?
There are a few reasons why user-generated video content can be good for business.
Firstly, it’s free exposure.
Organic user-generated content is created by happy customers who have purchased your product and chosen to make a video about it.
There’s no cost to you from the outset.
Secondly, it’s statistically more likely to go viral.
Read more about viral posts here.
When shared on your own social media platforms, this type of video is said to gain up to seven times more engagement that brand-generated content.
So share the love and promote customer reviews to get more likes and comments.
Thirdly, it helps customers make purchasing decisions.
It’s reported that 84% of millennial consumers claim that user-generated content has an influence on what they buy, meaning that positive reviews online will inspire confidence in your potential customers leading to increased sales.
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Increased reach
You can also rely on this type of video for tapping into new, undiscovered audiences.
When Nivea Shave Balm was reviewed by beauty YouTuber NikkiTutorials, her subscribers started buying it in their thousands because she recommended it as a dupe for a high-end make up primer.
The product which was initially sold to men as part of their shaving routine quickly became a firm favourite with millennial women.
The downsides
It takes work to find and source the content that your customers have created if you’re not tagged initially.
You’ll need to task someone with the job of trawling through the internet to find videos with your name in and then decide if they are worth promoting through your own channels.
Bear in mind too that if you encourage user-generated content then you need to be prepared for people to be completely honest in their reviews.
You can’t guarantee the quality of the content so there could be bad visual and poor audio.
You also don’t know exactly what the user’s values are so you risk affiliating yourself with people who may not always be a good fit for your business.
With that said, there are some hugely successful influencers who could take your brand to the masses.
