In the world of marketing, user-generated content (UGC) is a beacon of trust and authenticity. Imagine your customers or clients becoming your advocates, passionately sharing their genuine experiences with your products or services.
The result? A boost in credibility and trust among potential buyers or clients. It humanizes your brand, reinforcing the notion that yours is a thriving community where tangible benefits are experienced by real individuals.
UGC is nothing short of marketing gold!
But how can you make the most of it? Sure, you can reshare but there are so many other ways that you can maximize the impact of UGC through repurposing.
What is user-generated content and why is it so important?
Simply put, it’s any content — be it text, images, videos, reviews or testimonials, that’s created and shared by your customers, clients, fans or followers about your product, service or brand…. Think of it as the digital equivalent of word-of-mouth marketing.
You can say your product or service is the best in the world until you’re blue in the face, but when those who consume it start shouting out about it… that’s something special.
So what’s the secret sauce that amplifies the impact of repurposing UGC?
It boils down to saving time, enhancing engagement and prolonging the lifespan of your content.
Imagine a customer or client sharing a glowing piece of content on social media. Instead of it fading away after a few days, you repurpose it into a compelling testimonial video or an eye-catching quote image and it gets seen by a much larger audience over a longer period of time. You’re not only preserving its impact but also amplifying it across multiple channels.
The art of repurposing user-generated content
Now we’re aware of the potential of repurposing UGC, let’s delve into three strategic avenues to maximize its impact.
1. Visual stories
You can reshare the stories that your customers post — whether they’re photos or videos. But why stop there?
Elevate these narratives by transforming them into fresh, engaging visual content.
For example, create short videos that showcase the before-and-after journey of your customers. These videos have the power to tug at heartstrings while demonstrating your product’s effectiveness.
You could also pull together different visual content like videos that your customers and clients share and edit it all together into single videos — perhaps focusing on different themes each time.
If your clients and customers are sharing this content anyway, it’s a case of taking it and repurposing it into stories that you can also share.
2. Testimonials
Extract impactful quotes from user-generated content and transform them into visually appealing graphics with your branding.
These quotable gems are perfect for sharing on social media, injecting authenticity into your posts.
You can also share them in your sales and credentials decks, proposals and pitches, on your website, and within internal content — for example in recruitment and training material and town-hall meetings, as well as within external marketing content.
3. Long-form content
Compile user generated content that provides solutions to pain points, or interesting insights or points of view and craft them into blog posts, insightful industry articles or a topic for a webinar, video or podcast episode.
This not only shines a light on, and celebrates your real-life customer experiences but also positions your brand as thought leaders in your industry…
User-generated content for B2B
In a B2B setting, user-generated content holds massive potential. Success stories told by satisfied clients and customers can be repurposed into compelling content that showcases real-world applications of your products or services.
Sharing the journey of a B2B client complete with measurable results, establishes credibility and builds trust among potential customers and clients. For example, you can use it to create a powerful case study that can then be repurposed into multiple pieces of evergreen content.
Additionally, UGC provides social proof, crucial for B2B buyers who often rely on peer recommendations and industry validations. When industry experts or professionals endorse your offerings through UGC it enhances your brand’s reputation and increases the likelihood of conversions.
So be on the lookout for user-generated content. When you see it (provided it’s good) be sure to work out if there is more that you could do with it.
- Can you repurpose it into a testimonial for your site or sales and marketing materials?
- Can you create some social media content?
- Where can you reshare it?
- Could you use it as a topic for a webinar, podcast episode or blog post?
User-generated content isn’t just a badge of trust, it’s a catalyst for authentic connections and a repository of content that keeps on giving. Recognize it, amplify it and watch your brand grow!
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