What is UGC? A guide for brands

The short answer

UGC stands for user-generated content. Originally it meant anything customers created about a brand on their own: reviews, photos, unboxing videos, posts. In marketing today, "UGC" usually means something more specific: short videos made by paid creators in a natural, first-person style, designed to look like a real customer's recommendation rather than an advert.

Two kinds of UGC

Organic UGC

Content real customers create without being paid: a review, a tagged Instagram story, a TikTok about your product. It's valuable social proof, but you can't control when it appears, what it says or whether you're allowed to use it in ads. You need the creator's permission to reuse it.

Creator-made (paid) UGC

Videos commissioned from creators who specialise in this style. The brand provides the product and a brief, the creator films it, and the brand gets the video plus agreed usage rights, often for paid ads. This is what UGC agencies and "UGC creators" mean.

UGC vs influencer marketing

With influencer marketing you pay for a creator's audience: they post to their followers. With UGC you pay for content and rights: the creator usually doesn't post it at all, and the brand runs it on its own channels and ads. We cover the difference in detail in UGC vs influencer marketing.

Common types of UGC videos

• Testimonial-style reviews: "I've been using this for a month, here's what I think."
• Demos and tutorials: how the product works, start to finish.
• Unboxings: first impressions, packaging, what's included.
• Problem-solution: a relatable frustration, then the product as the fix.
• Before-and-after or transformation: only where it's genuine and allowed for the category.
• Comparisons: your product against the usual alternative.
• Reactions and challenges: trend-led formats adapted to the product.

Why brands use UGC

1. It looks native. In a feed of friends and creators, a person talking to camera feels less like an interruption than a polished ad.
2. It answers real questions. Seeing someone use the product handles doubts about size, texture, taste or ease of use.
3. It feeds paid social. Ad platforms reward fresh creative. UGC can be produced in volume, with several hooks per video, which makes ongoing testing affordable.
4. It's flexible. One video can be cut into versions for Reels, Stories, Shorts and in-feed ads.

When UGC isn't the answer

UGC won't fix a weak product, an unclear offer or a broken website. It's also not ideal when you need a creator's reach and authority, for example in a launch where the creator's audience matters. That's influencer marketing. And some categories, such as healthcare, finance and supplements, need careful claim review before any creator speaks about results.

What makes UGC work

• A clear brief built from real customer objections.
• Creators who match your buyer, not just anyone with a camera.
• Several hooks per video, so you can test what stops the scroll.
• Usage rights in writing: organic, paid, duration and partnership ads.
• A testing loop, so each batch learns from the last.

Our guide on how to brief UGC creators walks through the brief step by step.

Getting started

If you're considering UGC, start with a small batch that tests a few distinct angles rather than one perfect video. See how we run UGC production, or, for D2C brands, UGC for D2C.