Keeping up to date with UGC trends has never been harder, with so many different variations of user generated content trends going viral constantly, what is it that makes the content viable for a business? Let’s take a deep delve into the top UGC trends in 2024 so you can take your business to new heights.

11 Crucial UGC Trends for 2024

1. Social Media Influence (Sharing, engagement, trust)

• Stir the buzz with social sharing, turning posts into community vibes and brand recognition.
• High-five recognition – shout-outs drive UGC success and build trust.
• Trust the talk – authentic user-generated content on social media turns followers into a community.

2. Visualising Product/Service Placements (Website)

• Elevate your website with visual storytelling using impactful user-generated content.
• Speak your audience’s visual language – understand preferences for captivating UGC campaigns.
• Feast your eyes – see how travel, fashion, and food industries use UGC to showcase online offerings.

3. AI & UGC Collaboration (Fake Influencers)

• Deep fake content creators with deep fake products
• Cost effective and game changing content turnaround times
• Automatic adjustments to test audience interactivity

4. UGC Email Marketing

• Boost click through rates with the secret sauce – turning emails into attention grabbers
• Tailor triumphs – personalised emails satisfy customer needs, enhancing the entire journey.
• Inbox success – real brand examples acing UGC in email marketing for tangible results.

5. Informative User Generated Content (Blogs)

• Turn your brand into an info hub with insightful user-generated content in blogs.
• Claim thought leader (KOL) status – UGC isn’t just about selling; it’s about being the industry authority.
• Enhance your SEO visibility for your content and website

6. UGC Podcasting Partnerships

• Create podcast ear candy – partner with users for a symphony of diverse voices.
• Decibels of diversity – see how UGC adds varied perspectives, enriching the listening experience.
• Community waves – successful UGC podcasting partnerships build community and boost brand awareness.

7. Offline UGC Advertising Efforts

• Unplug and engage – explore offline UGC advertising to connect with your audience.
• Street-level vibes – take user-generated content to the physical world for authentic advertising efforts.
• IRL impact – witness the power of offline UGC in creating memorable brand experiences.

8. Immersive UGC in Virtual Reality (VR)

• Dive into the virtual realm with immersive UGC experiences.
• Virtual vibes – explore how UGC takes on a new dimension in virtual reality.
• VR storytelling – craft narratives that captivate in the immersive world of user-generated content.

9. Augmented Reality (AR) UGC Campaigns

• Blend reality with imagination – discover the magic of augmented reality in UGC campaigns.
• AR allure – explore how UGC becomes an interactive experience through augmented reality.
• Augment engagement – witness the impact of AR on user-generated content campaigns.

10. Employee Advocacy Programs

• Turn employees into brand advocates – leverage UGC through employee advocacy programs.
• Team talk – explore how UGC empowers employees to be brand ambassadors.
• Advocacy in action – witness the organic reach of user-generated content through passionate employees.

11. Safety & Security UGC Utilisation

• Navigate the online world safely – explore strategies for ensuring safety and security in UGC.
• Safe spaces – understand how brands utilise UGC while prioritising user safety.
• Security matters – dive into the responsible utilisation of user-generated content for a secure online environment.

Importance of Staying Up To Date With UGC Trends

Keeping a finger on the pulse of evolving trends isn’t just a strategy—it’s a necessity. Staying ahead of the curve ensures that your brand remains relevant, resonates with your audience, and capitalises on the latest tools and techniques. Here’s why riding the wave of trends is more critical than ever:

• Adaptability
• Connectivity and Community Building
• Maximising Brand Visibility
• Incorporating Diversity
• Staying Authentic in an Influencer-Driven World

In the fast-paced world of UGC, where trends emerge and evolve at the speed of a double-tap, the secret sauce lies in not just keeping up but staying a step ahead. It’s about anticipating the next wave, riding it with finesse, and ensuring your brand remains not just a spectator but a trendsetter in the vast sea of user-generated content.

Top 11 UGC Trends of 2024

1. Social Media Influence

Unlock the power of social sharing for your content campaigns—UGC stats reveal a love for sharing ingrained in people:

• 84% share what they’re passionate about.
• 49% share to express preferences with loved ones.
• 78% share brand-related content to nurture relationships.
• 68% see themselves through their favourite brands, aligning with shared values.
• 69% view sharing as a meaningful contribution to society.

Social sharing isn’t just about engagement; it yields key advantages:

• Awareness
• Recognition
• Popularity
• Desire
• Fear of missing out (FOMO)

Yet, the real gem lies in customers sharing positive experiences—your community’s foundation. This community fosters connections, attracting potential customers into an exclusive family.

Examples:

Glossier’s UGC Instagram Hashtag Campaign – View Campaign

Calvin Klein’s #MyCalvins Campaign – View Campaign

GoPro’s Hashtag Campaign – View Campaign

2. Visualising Product/Service Placements

The way you shop over the last few decades is constantly being revolutionised globally, from going into stores with people in the streets shouting you in, to TV Shopping, making a purchase on your landline, all the way to tapping 3 buttons from a social media post on TikTok.

All of which, the processes have been drastically thought about from start to finish of how the consumer goes from seeing/wanting the product/service, all the way to making that purchase.

And in 2024, this is still changing to this day!

From seeing a commercial to make an immediate purchase, the next stage to master is the landing page of which the user is to land onto to then make there purchase. This is where utilising UGC for outside of your ad campaigns becomes really crucial.

Amazon and e-commerce shops need to be utilising UGC to showcase there products to consumers of others using and enjoying there product. Business owners are on the rise of outreaching to customers to offer something for free or a discount code in return of them using there product to be added into there reviews.

In doing so, businesses have seen an average increase of 104.8% in conversion rate to there store. So if your ads were sending people to a page at a CPA of £10 on average, adding these initiatives into your products landing page could reduce this to just below £5. You will be sending the same amount of traffic to the webpage for more than twice the amount of sales.

Game changing!

All with just a sprinkle of UGC implemented. Here are some examples of these case studies:

Amazon Example

Website Example

3. AI & UGC Collaboration

A lot of people in the industry are currently unaware of the big change that is happening currently, the change that is going to start to massively reduce influencers income by estimates of over a factor of 10. With the new deep fake influencer marketing campaigns.

Combined with a mixture of both AI and Machine Learning systems, these new profound pieces of technology are about to revolutionise the space by reducing the cost of influencer advertising but at the same time increasing reach. Overall, bringing a higher return on investment for brands everywhere when investing into influencer activity.

Usually influencer marketing has solely relied upon one person building a following based on there activities and making others everywhere feel like they are missing out on not following them, building this huge consumer base. In turn, this takes time, efforts and sometimes a lot of money.

But now, it has all changed. 1 person could be in charge of 50+ accounts, all pretending to be in different locations, vehicles, activities, all at 0 cost. What this means is whereas before an influencer may have to spend £100k+ to maintain there following by jet setting off to different locations and dining at lovely restaurants, this can all be done for next to nothing, nearly fully removing the operational cost of the social media accounts, in return dropping the cost massively for the brand to publish there product.

If you’re not sure on how effective this could be, or hesitant on the content, here is an example below of deep fake influencer account:

4. UGC Email Marketing

Increasing open rates on emails has always been down to the change of headings and sub-headings, enticing users to want to open your email, being intrigued to seeing what is behind the text. But during times like 2024, brands and businesses sending emails with standard images and text have never seen lower click through rates from the email than ever before.

But, there is hope, as email marketing campaigns are now making a swift turnaround.

Introducing UGC in email marketing, adapting the efforts you would on social and web into your email campaigns has never been stronger. Building an instant rapport with whom you are sending the email to, igniting trust between you and your customer, stopping them from hitting the spam button and building there confidence to come onto your website to convert.

Showcasing in an autoplaying video, or even static image, that an ordinary person has your product or service and has experienced a great end result from making that purchase can really skyrocket 🚀 your click through rates on your emails.

Some benefits of using UGC in email marketing:

• Trust building
• Authenticity
• Social proof
• User involvement
• Increased engagement/click through rates

As long as your landing pages and other aspects are optimised, in return this will then lead into sales.

Here are some amazing cases of UGC in email marketing:

5. Informative User Generated Content

Increasing SEO efforts has been a thing of the world now for over 20 years, but even SEO is changing in the realm of UGC with many SEO’s around the world integrating UGC in to there blog content online.

In doing so, a content write is able to produce a high quality piece of content for then a content creator to explain that piece of content and what it is about, but instead of the user reading the blog, they can sit and watch the user generated content to get all of there necessary information.

In addition, a qualified technical SEO can then go away and wrap the UGC video in Video Schema to increase search visibility on the important parts of the content, for the UGC to be in return pushed up the rankings for the viable search terms.

Here is an example of how we have integrated UGC into our article content:

6. UGC Podcasting Partnerships

Most people think of podcast and firstly springs to mind Diary of a CEO, Joe Rogan and so on. But these would be influential people promoting there own podcasts, this wouldn’t class as UGC for podcasts.

Utilising UGC for Podcasts involves finding different content creators out there who you can get excited about any podcast online for you to then showcase this online on different social platforms to increase visibility of your podcast in total.

Another way of utilising UGC for your podcast is by collectively increasing your reviews on your podcast to build trust when others are scrolling through the likes of Spotify or YouTube. Having these reviews massively helps and increase click through rate outrageously.

Showcasing these content creators on your podcast or mentioned at any point can also increase the trust that not only you have with your audience, but also the creators, making them more inclined to want to continue to talk about your brand online.

7. Offline UGC Advertising Efforts

8. Immersive UGC in Virtual Reality

The world of Virtual Reality (VR), where the conventional boundaries of user interaction are shattered. In 2024, the landscape of virtual experiences is evolving at an unprecedented pace. No longer satisfied with the standard images and text, users crave a deeper, more engaging connection within the virtual realm.

But fear not, the rise of User-Generated Content (UGC) is transforming the VR experience in 2024. Picture this: users not only consuming content but actively contributing to the virtual tapestry, shaping their own narratives within the digital cosmos.

Embrace the power of UGC in Virtual Reality, transcending the limitations of traditional content creation. Much like the shift in email marketing, where personal testimonials and real-life experiences have become paramount, VR enthusiasts are seeking authenticity and genuine user involvement.

Imagine a VR experience where a fellow user, not a scripted character, shares their journey with a product or service. This authentic representation serves as a testament to trust, creating an immediate connection between the virtual world and the user. Gone are the days of passive consumption; now, users actively participate, building a communal tapestry of shared experiences.

The benefits of incorporating UGC in Virtual Reality:

• Trust Building: Establish an unwavering trust between users and the VR environment through authentic user stories and experiences.
• Authenticity: Break free from the scripted and curated narratives, allowing users to shape the VR experience organically.
• Social Proof: Showcase real users engaging with your VR content, offering indisputable evidence of its value and impact.
• User Involvement: Empower users to actively contribute to the VR landscape, fostering a sense of ownership and community.
• Increased Engagement/Collaboration: Watch as user-generated content propels engagement and collaboration within the VR ecosystem, leading to an unparalleled immersive experience.

As long as your VR environments are optimised for user interaction, the integration of UGC will not only elevate engagement but also pave the way for increased conversions. Dive into the exciting frontier of UGC in Virtual Reality, where users become co-creators, shaping the digital landscape in ways never before imagined.

9. Augmented Reality UGC Campaigns

In the AR realm of 2024, static filters are ancient history – users now shape their own augmented experiences, injecting creativity and personality into every snap.

Why Snapchat’s UGC in AR matters in 2024:

• Creative Explosion: UGC unleashes a wave of creativity, turning AR into a personalized canvas where every user is an artist.
• Authentic Engagement: Bid farewell to generic filters; welcome authentic expressions that redefine how users interact with AR, creating genuine moments.
• Community Vibes: UGC fuels a thriving community where users collaboratively shape and share AR adventures, fostering a dynamic and engaging digital space.
• Brand Brilliance: Brands leverage user creativity, integrating products into interactive AR experiences that forge connections between consumers and their offerings.
• Viral Surge: UGC-driven AR content spreads like wildfire, propelling users into creators and sparking viral phenomena within the Snapchat sphere.

For brands, embracing Snapchat’s UGC in AR is a ticket to unparalleled engagement, authentic connections, and the potential for viral brand moments. Step into the future where every snap is not just a moment but a canvas for creativity, community, and brand brilliance.