If you’ve ever attended any of my classes or presentations, you’d know that I absolutely love user-generated content (UGC) as a part of any social media plan. It's one of the best types of content a brand can use to build up a reputation for quality without having to sing their own praises. 

That’s because user-generated content (UGC) is any content—text, videos, images, reviews, etc.—created by followers rather than the brands themselves. 

User-generated content is original, brand-specific content created by customers and published on social media or other channels. UGC comes in many forms, including images, videos, reviews, testimonials, and even podcasts. These can be created by customers, employees and social media followers. 

Today I’m here to tell you 7 ways to encourage UGC from your followers.

1. Hold a contest 

Followers love the opportunity to win something fun, so holding a contest is a great way to generate UGC. The key to contests is to make it easy for someone to enter and to make it beneficial for both parties (you and the person entering the contest).

Make sure the prize is something that will appeal to your followers and make the rules easy to follow. Having a photo contest is a great way to encourage your customers/followers to create content for you. Make sure the rules clearly state that by entering the contest, you may use the pictures for your future social media content and will be tagging them to give them credit on the picture.

Examples of photo contests could be: 

• Post a picture of your favourite meal at our restaurant. 

• What’s your favourite thing to do while visiting (insert city/town/village.)

• Best use of our product.

• And so on. 

2. Use Hashtags 

Hashtags are a great way to help people find relevant content easily. It also makes it easy for a business/brand to track and collect user-generated content from their followers. 

It’s important for you to encourage your customers to use specific hashtags when posting about your brand or product. For example: #TheSocialMediaContentPlanner #KASocialMediaEvents #ConnectAndConquerRetreat

3. Share User-Generated Content 

Show your appreciation for the current content that your customers are already creating for you by sharing it on your own feeds. Sharing what followers are posting helps promote their content/brand/feed, and encourages them to post more about you and your business. This also encourages others who see this shared UGC to create similar content and help you grow your accounts.

4. Offer Incentives 

As I mentioned above, followers adore contests, incentives and anything related to getting something for free! So on top of contests, create in-house offers to help promote user-generated content. 

This could be discounts or coupons that can be used on the spot or entry into in-house monthly prizes. This helps show your current customers that their efforts are appreciated and not simply expected.

Example: 10% off your meal/coffee/stay, entry for merchandise, discounts etc.

5. Get Involved In Conversations 

Social media is all about conversations, connections and relationships; it’s about being SOCIAL! So get involved in the conversations that are already happening about your business/brand/product. The more you are involved, and the more you encourage followers to talk about your business/brand, the more they will!

6. Make It Easy To Submit Content 

The easier you make it for customers to submit the user-generated content, the more likely they will do it. Have a simple process in place for them to follow, and make sure you let them know how and where to submit their content.

7. Be Creative And think outside the box 

User-generated content can be used in so many ways; it’s time to get creative with how you use it. Think outside the box and come up with unique ways to showcase the content your customers are already creating.