User-generated content (UGC)
Also called UGC, customer content
What is user-generated content?
User-generated content (UGC) is any content about a brand that was made by its customers, fans or users rather than by the brand itself. It includes photos, videos, reviews, unboxings, testimonials and social posts. Brands often reshare UGC, with permission, because it shows real people using the product.
The term has stretched in recent years. Alongside organic customer posts, there is now paid UGC: content made by creators who are paid to film in a natural, customer-like style, often for ads. These UGC ads look like posts from a regular person but are planned and licensed by the brand.
Whether organic or paid, the appeal is the same: it looks and sounds like a peer, not an advertisement. That makes it a strong form of social proof.
Why user-generated content matters
People tend to trust other customers more than brands. A real photo of someone enjoying a product often answers questions and doubts better than polished brand content, and it shows the product in everyday settings.
UGC also eases the content workload. A steady stream of customer posts gives a small team more to share, and it makes customers feel noticed, which encourages more of them to post.
How to get user-generated content
- Ask: put a note in packaging, emails and your bio inviting customers to tag you.
- Create a branded hashtag so posts are easy to find.
- Feature customer posts often so others want to be featured too.
- Run occasional photo or video contests with a clear theme.
- Always ask permission and credit the creator before resharing.
User-generated content example
A yoga studio asks members to tag their post-class photos with its branded hashtag. Each Friday it reshares one, with permission, as Member of the Week in Stories, and uses the best ones on its class schedule page.
User-generated content FAQ
What does UGC mean?
User-generated content: posts, photos, videos and reviews about a brand made by its customers or fans. It also now refers to paid creators who make content in that style.
Can I repost customer content?
Ask permission first and credit the creator. For use in ads or on your website, get clear written permission, because a social repost and an ad license are not the same thing.
Related terms
UGC ads are paid ads that use user-generated content, or content made to look like it: real customers or creators talking about a product on camera.
Social proof is the tendency to follow what others do. In marketing it means reviews, testimonials, customer counts and endorsements that build trust.
A testimonial is a statement from a real customer about their experience with a business, used in marketing as proof.
A hashtag is a word or phrase after a # sign that groups posts by topic, so people can find them by tapping or searching the tag.
Influencer marketing is paying or partnering with creators who have an engaged audience to promote a product in their own content and voice.
A brand ambassador is a person who represents and promotes a brand over time, often a customer, creator or employee with a long-term arrangement.