User Generated Content (UGC) has been an omnipresent buzzword in digital marketing for quite some years. This visual content is authentic, it is versatile and it is created in no time. After all, what constitutes good User Generated Content is spontaneity and imperfection, in other words the exact opposite of sterile, staged images taken in a photo studio. Nevertheless, many brands are still struggling to include UGC in their marketing mix in 2020 and therefore still rely on oldschool visual content production. With squarelovin, managing User Generated Content becomes a piece of cake.
Here’s why UGC Rocks
Basically, User Generated Content is any content (reviews, images, text, videos, etc.) created by people, rather than brands. Today, a lot of companies have already figured out that it might be much more beneficial to use UGC in their marketing campaigns or for example for inspiring social walls on their websites. Mainly because 84% of millennials say that user-generated content is more trustworthy than other forms of media (including influencer marketing). If you want to learn how to embed Instagram content on your website or how to make the most of Social Content, check out our related blog articles. Moreover, 90% of consumers in the USA cite UGC as more influential to their buying decisions than traditional marketing. Thanks to social proof! Out of all types of User Generated Content, video is by far the most influential. No wonder. Video content is more likely to capture your attention and create an emotional response. As a result, website visitors will spend 90% more time on a site with UGC video content.
Step 1: Collect Content
The squarelovin UGC Management Tool is able to collect images and videos based on mentions, hashtags, geo-locations and tagged content. The curated images are then displayed for review in the squarelovin Collector. In addition, it’s possible to filter the images and videos according to even more specific requirements. For instance, during a campaign, certain hashtag combinations can be collected separately in an individual folder. Excluding hashtags is also an option. If you would rather not collect images where your own brand is being shown in combination with a competing product, it is possible to avoid that such content flows into the collector at all.
Step 2: Request Usage Rights
Once images and videos are on display in the squarelovin Collector, our customers can request essential usage rights with a single click or remove content they do not like just as easily. Requested content automatically moves into a separate folder. As soon as usage rights are granted by the respective Instagram user, this is indicated by a green button. For each brand that uses the squarelovin UGC Management Tool, individual Terms & Conditions are created. These are always attached to the request for image rights, which is being sent to the individual users on Instagram. By agreeing to the use of their content by a brand, the respective user guarantees to hold the copyright as well as the consent of all depicted persons.
Step 3: Effectively Utilize UGC
Customer Content for which usage rights have been granted, can be used in a multitude of ways. Online on the website or in an online shop, in newsletters or social ads, as well as offline in the store or on print products. Within an online shop or website, squarelovin offers the options to embed an interactive social wall or teaser. These offer customers versatile and authentic product impressions and tons of inspiration. The individual images and videos can directly be linked to the respective products – this way customers can go to the product detail page with just one click. There, in turn, specific product galleries can be created, offering further styling ideas and inspiration for combining multiple products. If you’d like to learn more about how to make the most of Social Content or how to embed Instagram Content on your website feel free to explore our blog further.
Step 4: Analyze Performance
Within the tool, squarelovin users have access to detailed analytics for the evaluation and optimization of the UGC that is shown in their website galleries. There, aspects such as stream views, interactions and conversions can be viewed. By default, the tool displays an overview of the performance of the last 30 days. However, it is also possible to view the “all-time” performance and self-defined time periods. In addition to the UGC-Analytics, users of the UGC Management Tool can also use the squarelovin Instagram-Analytics Tool to evaluate the performance of their very own brand account’s performance. This includes aspects such as the “Best-Time-To-Post” to be identified and the performance of individual posts or the entire account to be tracked in detail.
Step 5: Boost Online Conversions
The advantages that User Generated Content brings for website performance and E-Commerce are particularly significant. The integration of UGC animates website visitors to browse – this significantly increases the time spent on the website. Experience also shows that most visitors who scroll to such an integration interact with it, which results in a significantly higher click-through rate. These two factors in turn have a positive influence on the search engine ranking of the respective website. Read our blog to find out how you can provide online shop inspiration to users.
The direct linking of the displayed products extremely shortens the path from inspiration to purchase, resulting in a significantly higher conversion rate. At the same time, UGC galleries on the product pages immediately provide new incentives and combination possibilities, which also increases the average shopping basket value. To find out how else your brand can benefit from product pages with images, read our related blog post.
Do you want to see squarelovin in in action? Click here to have a look at the Social Wall we have integrated for the outdoor brand Eddie Bauer.
