In the world of reputation management, content is everything. Moreover, when it comes to the type of content, nothing can beat the mightiness of a user-generated content. Brands of today are rushing towards taking hold of the power of their users, as it brings a humanized and authentic feel to their marketing campaigns.
Due to an oversaturation of the markets online, customers are now tired of seeing the same generic promotional content everywhere. They need content that is genuine and has a personal touch in it. Plus, with a huge surge of content marketing in the past few years, generating eye-catching blog posts has become very hard for the brands.
Nevertheless, we understand that you want to up your user-generated content game as well. Marketers can use multiple resources to collect user content, and then use it to promote their business. However, here are the three main resources that can help you with that and can provide you with sufficient content. Have at them;
1. Discussion groups on Facebook & LinkedIn
Facebook in terms of B2C and LinkedIn in terms of B2B are a goldmine of user-generated content. There are multiple groups of people with common interests in your industry that you can target while you’re at it. You can collect and promote the content from these channels in your blogs in a simple five-step way.
- First of all, choose a large and relevant group. It will make the comments and interactions much easier for you. Moreover, it can save you the effort of spamming multiple groups with the same message. Also, people would consider your post more unique and appealing.
- You can post a short yet an open-ended question in the group that you selected. Make sure the question you posted is precise and thought-provoking, it will grab their attention and make them comment. If you are dealing in the reputation management industry, you can post a question like “How would you describe “customer satisfaction” in one word?”
- Now that you’ve posted the question, wait for people to comment on it. Once you collect a good amount of comments, select the best ones according to your blog topic. Then, politely ask for permission to use their comment in your blog. This will make them feel acknowledged and happy.
- After that, put your creative hands on the keyboard and create an interesting blog-post around their comments. But, make sure you credit each and every contributor’s name.
- In the end, notify the contributors that you have published the post. Also, don’t forget to ask them to share it with their network. On your end, you can boost your blog using various advertisement tools – on social media.
2. Your own customers
There is not a better option than your own customers when it comes to collecting user-generated content. When you ask your customers to share their valuable thoughts, it creates a sense of appreciation in their minds and they happily cooperate.
Just like using Facebook and LinkedIn, start with a unique idea or a question in your request. Although in the case of customers, you also have a liberty of launching an idea or a photo submission contest. This is what you can do;
- Devise a concept in your mind and then create a list of relevant customers.
- After that, contact each one of them personally via email or phone call.
- Once they agree, fill them in with your information needs.
This thing will help you create a very strong content for your marketing purposes. However, make sure you give out value through it along with an emotional appeal. Set deadlines for content submission to stay on schedule, and send the final content to them for approval. Finally, don’t forget to inform them when the content has been published.
This thing will not only help you in collecting the necessary data but also in creating a long-lasting brand loyalty.
3. Influencers and thought leaders of the industry
Reaching out to influencers and the industry leaders is one of the greatest ways to boost your online reputation. Online influencers can get you the access to a huge follower base that you can leverage to ace your content marketing.
Furthermore, when it comes to contacting them for gathering user-generated content,
- Think of a great idea first that could intrigue their attention.
- After that, form a list of industry-relevant thought leaders that you can target.
- Then contact each of them privately to keep it formal and acknowledging.
If you’re lucky and they like your idea, they’ll be more than happy to contribute their part in it.
The best ways to contact big influencers is via Twitter, LinkedIn or a personal email. However, if you don’t hear back from them, you should not send more than a single follow-up message.
User-generated content can help you save a huge deal of time and create stronger connections with your existing customers. Moreover, it can help you connect with big names in the industry that could create a positive impact on your overall online reputation.