User Generated Content: 10 UGC Stats You Need To Know

If you haven’t been using  UGC  in your content marketing, now’s your chance to start. UGC campaigns are extremely effective for organizations of all types– so effective that  47% of the top performing content marketing teams  already rely on it for their own marketing efforts. So, to kick off your 2019, we gathered some important UGC stats that you need to know.

But first, an introduction:

What Is UGC?

UGC stands for user-generated content. Simplified, it’s the use of marketing content that’s sourced from your audience (aka users).

This content can be mixed in with professionally produced content to create a crisper, more trustworthy message.

UGC can be anything from photos, to videos, to reviews; as intricate as a a video upload contest, or as basic as pulling photos from a specified hashtag. The point is that the creator is someone outside of your organization.

On New Years Eve, European brand Vodafone ran an international UGC campaign called  #ResolutionsLive . Using a  Video Uploader , participants in seven different countries submitted videos of their new year’s resolutions for a chance to be featured in a final compilation by the brand. 

Why Use UGC?

UGC is extremely effective. Most brands already have a small group of loyal customers who are talking about their brand. Since consumers, on average, generate  3x more word of mouth  than traditional marketing, those loyal consumers are more than just fans. They’re influencers.

More importantly, these influencers generate more trust—about 4x more than traditional messaging, which is pretty significant. UGC takes these influencers and utilizes them to your advantage, turning them into brand advocates and amplifying your visibility.

10 UGC Stats You Need To Know

1.    UGC posts shared to social channels see a  28% higher engagement rate  than standard brand posts.

2.    Videos created by (and featuring) users get  10x more views on YouTube  than content created by brands.

3.     84% of Millennials  say that the user-generated content on company sites has at least some influence on what they buy

4.     Adding UGC to professionally produced content leads to a  15% increase in key message communication  amongst audience

5.     Customer reviews are trusted  12 times more   coming directly from the organization

6.        85 percent of consumers  find visual UGC more influential than brand photos or videos.

7.       Roughly  30% of the time millennials  spend consuming all media is spent on UGC.

8.        48% of customers  say that UGC is a great way to discover new products.

9.        51% of millennials  say that user-generated content from strangers is more likely to influence their purchase decisions than recommendations from friends, family and colleagues.

10.      71% of customers  agree that user-generated reviews make them feel more secure in their decision to purchase a particular product over another.

So there you have it, ten UGC stats to help you plan your new year!