Get more from your user-generated content

Most brand and retailer sites have some function for collecting user-generated content, but many of them miss out on business benefits by not using that content fully. This is a huge lost opportunity, as user-generated content can put you in touch directly with consumers of your products and services and help you learn about their attitudes towards it. Here are some ways you can get additional value out of your content.

1.  Improve your digital marketing

Customer voices have impact far beyond your web page. Use UGC in email campaigns to increase open rates and click-through rates. Include it in banner ads and Google AdWords to create more effective advertising.

2 . Turn positive feedback into campaigns

Listen to what your customers are saying that they like and use their words to create acquisition campaigns focusing on those benefits.

3.  Use negatives to improve
Negative reviews can be a powerful tool. Smart retailers use them to drive their merchandising and manage catalogue content. Manufacturers use them to improve their product features and quality.

4 . Take reviews in-store

UGC can influence purchase decisions in stores as well as online. Add ratings and review snippets to shelf tags to boost in-store conversion. Or provide access to reviews on mobile devices using barcodes on the products.

5.  Take it social

Make it easy to share UGC on social networks and integrate it into your Facebook page. Use the social ground to facilitate product discovery by prempt users to find products that are highly targeted to their friends.

Tags: google adwords, ugc, user-gernerated content