It is estimated that by 2021, Content Marketing will be an industry worth $400 Billion dollars. So let’s get clear on this. If you are not delivering content consistently you will be (or are) missing out. It’s this reason that we continue to circle back to this topic. Content has proven to be one of the largest obstacles for entrepreneurs to stay consistent with and we get it. We were totally there too. However, once you start tapping into goodies at your fingertips – the game changes. Meet user-generated content.
It is probably among the most solid, innovative, relevant and niche specific content available to you.
Today we want to dive into what this looks like and, how you can learn to maximize and monetize it.
USER-GENERATED CONTENT
We posted a blog a while back about our Top 7 Places to find Content. Among these, we touched on user-generated content where today we want to dive a little deeper.
There are a handful of reasons for this;
- It is a strategy we teach our clients and partners
- User-generated content has created an astounding amount of leads for us personally
- We believe anyone can master this strategy
- Helps entrepreneurs stay consistent
- Ensures relevant content is delivered to your respective audiences
To help us illustrate this, think of an occasion you read a great post on Facebook, one that you felt totally related to you. Perhaps it pulled at your heart strings or helped you solve a problem. This could range from anything like a DIY post or even a Netflix suggestion. Take a moment to do this and jot down the feelings, thoughts or ideas that came of it.
WHAT WAS THE AUTHOR DOING FOR YOU?
In short, the author of that post was filling a void or a need that you. Whether they knew it or not – their post helped you in some way. Now, if you had a similar need would you be likely to return to that page? Of course you would!
Now, let’s take that same approach to those who comment on your current content or slide into your inbox with.
Jot down the questions people are asking you. Are they;
- Business related
- Parenting related
- Living clean related
- Travel related
… and so on? Become conscious of the reasons people are connecting and/or reaching out to you. There is a good probability that these people make up a general idea of your current demographic. Now, this next part is helpful as we tap into a real example of our own.
LET’S GET BUSY
This small activity – where we will give our example – can be applied to whatever audience question you grabbed from your timeline. We would love to help you through this as well if you wanted, just make sure you’re plugged into our Free Facebook Community for Entrepreneurs.
Example: We did a post on being able to travel the world with our business.
Comment from someone in our audience: Where has been your favorite place to travel?
Post for the following day: We were asked a great question yesterday about our favorite place to travel. So, we decided to share with all of you a quick story of our travels to … [post continues].
We topped up the post with our favorite things that we ate there, did there, saw there and why it was special. We added a gorgeous picture we took and described the moment a little bit deeper.
NOW YOU ARE PROBABLY WONDERING WHY THIS IS HELPFUL FOR YOUR BUSINESS, RIGHT?
Well, one thing we know about social media audiences is they like to feel heard. As a result of feeling heard, they are for more likely to trust you and in turn — buy from you. You can use the same formula when crafting a business post. Let’s assume someone asks you about a great cleaning product that is non-toxic. They are asking you because you posted a curiousity style post the previous week.
Well, bingo! Now you are able to preface your post with someone asked me last week more about ‘xyz’ so I wanted to share more about other ways I use it. Or, share more info on how to get some yourself.
- Answer the question in a post
- Give it some substance – tell a short story
- Pair it with something personal
- End it with a question or CTA
- Use images or videos where appropriate
THIS FORMULA WORKS WITH ALL STYLES OF POSTS TOO; TEXT, IMAGE, VIDEO OR A HYBRID OF THEM ALL!
Experiment with your format but keep the question at the forefront of the value you deliver. This will also subconsciously prompt others to ask more questions of you when they realize you are going to overdeliver on your answer.
Have you used this user-generated content creation before? Let us know if this was helpful and, if you would love more step-by-step breakdowns like this one!
