By Rafaela Ruf - Head of product at GUURU and UGC expert
UGC: Why it is so important and how content can be easily extracted from live conversations between customers
User-Generated Content is an extremely effective type of marketing and is now essential for eCommerce. In online retail in particular, reviews and customer opinions play an enormously important role in purchase decisions; a whopping 95% of consumers read consumer reviews before making purchases (Newswire).
We see these numbers in action in our discussions with clients; the need for high-quality UGC is increasing. Let’s have a quick look at other statistics related to the impact of UGC:
- 79% of people say that UGC highly impacts their purchasing decisions (Stackla).
- +28% is the rise in brand engagement when a mix of marketing and user generated content is used (Stackla).
- +29% is the increase seen in purchase conversion rates on websites that put UGC on their product pages (insiderintelligence).
- 87% of businesses incorporate user-generated content trustbuilding content while saving money (Searchlogistics).
What we also see in these conversations with eCommerce brands is that it’s not nearly as easy as it might seem to source relevant, high-quality user-generated content. Shoppers like to read reviews, but they less enthusiastic about writing reviews.
In order to motivate customers to leave digital feedback on their products, brands often have to ask their customers for reviews—sometimes even incentivise customers using vouchers for example.
But more and more countries – Germany in particular – are already imposing legal restrictions when it comes to actively requesting and incentivizing customer reviews. Even simply asking customers to leave a review could result in a penalty.
In addition to the challenge of continuous collection of customer reviews, the question of credibility also arises.
Ask yourself, do you trust the reviews you read when you shop online or when you book a hotel? Or would you rather ask a friend or a colleague for a recommendation based on their personal experience? And if so, why?
It’s precisely these UGC challenges that sparked the concept behind Expert UGC.
To recap:
- How much effort does your user-generated content demand?
- How authentic is your user-generated content?
- How credible is your user-generated content?
What is Expert UGC?
Expert UGC is user-generated content created by your product experts – the customer who often use your products. The content is derived from real conversations between the most experienced product users (we call these experts Guurus once they’ve passed a brand-specific knowledge test) in your community and your potential customers, which means the content comes from the context of the customer’s needs regarding the product. The content may include product usage tips, category recommendations or advice that relates to the field a product is used in, for example skiing.
How do you convert relevant content in live consumer conversations into user-generated content (UGC)?
We apply our AI-powered community software. It scans live conversations and extracts valuable content about products and its usage and displays it as relevant, high-quality Expert UGC on related product pages.
This solution, solves both the issue of effort and authenticity.
- Effort: relevant content is automatically identified, summarised and displayed directly on the respective product pages.
- Authenticity: Every piece of UGC is linked to the expert (or Guuru) that created it. Every Guuru has a user profile that shoppers can access. They also have the option of contacting the Guuru directly for a live, 1: 1 conversation, if they’d like to.
We call this type of user-generated content Expert UGC, as Guurus are qualified experts. They are consumers who know your products, use them regularly and have developed an expertise in the field. In order to become a Guuru in the first place, every customer has to pass a product knowledge and communication test. They truly are experts, but more importantly these consumers are very passionate about the lifestyles each of our clients’ product support.
If, for example, a ski brand uses the GUURU Community Solution, online shoppers can connect with other, enthusiastic skiers on the brand’s online store to get advice.
Personally, I am thrilled by Expert User Generated Content because it is absolutely authentic by nature. You’re not asking for product reviews, you’re extracting practical information that helps the shopper make faster, more confident buying decisions, from real exchanges between like-minded consumers.
Since our underlying solution is Expert Community Advice Solution, shoppers can engage with experts’ biographies and they can start one-to-one conversations with them. UGC is n longer a one-sided form of communication, it’s interactive, creating layers of trust.
What excited us the most about this solution is how perfectly it aligns with our vision to humanize your brand.
Now we can help brands build stronger connections with faces behind their business, not only in 1:1 conversations, when shoppers have questions they actively want to answer through live exchanges, but also when they passively want to engage with trustworthy, high-quality UGC.
About Rafaela Ruf, Head of Product at GUURU
With 15 years of experience in product management, Rafaela loves being the connecting piece between what users want and what technology can build. Joining GUURU in 2020, Rafaela enjoys lean experimenting and the hands-on work at a startup. She is also a passionate dancer and member of Lisbon’s Forró dance community. Follow Rafaela on LinkedIn.
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