The digital age is creating a fragmented narration of brand content, with 1.6 billion people on social media sharing their personal product experiences and opinions online. For small businesses requiring a new way to reach customers and stakeholders, the best way to promote your business is through your customers. All business owners believe their products are the best, and you can and should share this with your audience.
However, this is not the most objective and credible opinion. Potential customers want to hear about products or services from existing customers. If a client is talking about your brand, potential customers will listen and trust what is said. Customers can share positive and negative opinions, but through the correct usage of user generated content, businesses can create a bridge that helps people cross over as potential customers to buying customers.
What is UGC?
User-Generated Content is content that is created by users of your product/services. It can range from feedback on social-media channels to reviews on websites, as well as photos and videos. Generally, this feedback is shared on social media, however, brands can also offer this feature on their websites. The key is to encourage your customers to voice their experiences.
UGC captures the multi-media voice of brands authentically. Product reviews and opinions, photos and videos in true living environments are becoming a powerful medium in influencing purchase decisions. According to recent research, about 90 per cent* of decisions are influenced by UGC – as opposed to brand-created content. The right leverage of UGC also closes another gap that is widening in the retail world; the face-to-face relationship between brand and customer. With the increase of digitalisation and online the chance to provide feedback is becoming slimmer.
My wife Julia and I identified the power behind this content to create Australia’s first 100 per cent UGC platform for the baby sector, Tell Me Baby. The one crucial aspect brands are struggling to meet in the dynamic digital age is the generation and control of their brand’s online reputation. Our solution offers companies the chance to affordably meet this demand by accessing and utilising this powerful user-generated multimedia content. The site encourages customers of thousands of brands to share, review and provide feedback on used products and brands.
With the baby sector estimated at around $8bn, and with Australia’s birth rate surging by 6.4 per cent, this robust industry is showing none of the sluggish signs experienced in the broader retail environment. There are mature and new-to-market entrants all vying for a share of a sector where parent experience is most powerful.
The key benefits of UGC are as follows:
- boosts SEO
- UGC content thrives on social media
- provides proof of service/product to potential customers
- builds brand trust
- nurtures relationships with exciting clients and start new relationships.
* http://marketingland.com/survey-customers-more-frustrated-by-how-long-it-takes-to-resolve-a-customer-service-issue-than-the-resolution
Mat Colbron, Co-Founder, Tell Me Baby
