When building a brand or leading a marketing effort, it can be tempting to want to hold tight to control. To be the brand police.

But what if you shared the love a bit, loosened the reins and let your audience have some ownership of the brand – what might that look like? How could you let consumers be part of the brand’s evolution? 

The Value of UGC

An important piece of any marketing strategy in the age of social media is user generated content (UGC). User generated content is any type of content created by individual users, regular people, rather than by companies or brands. 

Why embrace user generated content?

User generated content can help to spread the love. It will:

1. Engage your audience – organic posts are more likely to receive engagement than branded posts. Encouraging UGC while you also have a paid campaign running can double your results.
2. Build trust by showing how real people enjoy your brand – seeing the brand used and customized by real people will build authenticity.
3. Diversify the messaging around your brand – the more voices the better. UGC will reach audiences you may not have successfully engaged with.
4. Reach more audiences ^^^ (see all of the above).

Re-sharing, liking or engaging with user generated content is the bare minimum, but embracing it can mean so much more – from including UGC in official campaigns, to inviting your audience to submit for a design or product naming contest and more.

Brand Activations Big and Small

Another way to widen access to your brand is by allowing your audience to run with low-level brand activation.

What is a brand activation?

Brand activation refers to the creation of an interactive opportunity that allows the audience to experience the brand in an impactful way. Usually we think of this as a comprehensive event, campaign or sponsorship. 

For these premium experiences, ways to incorporate audience participation could look like creating an interactive mural or outdoor exhibit, inviting social sharing as part of an event or allowing them to make or create something on site. 

Not every brand has the budget for something so grand, but that doesn’t mean all activations are out of reach. Brand activations could also look like producing and sharing templates for cake toppers, print-at-home coloring pages or instagram gifs that users can combine with their own content or creations (and then share!) Inviting users to have fun with your brand in this way can build affinity and turn them into brand ambassadors. 

Joining the Conversation: Responding on Social

It’s one thing for your brand to have a social media presence. It’s another for you to actively engage with your audiences on those platforms. Social media is ALOT of work. But if you are going to commit to having social accounts as part of your strategy, do it right. This means being prepared to reply to comments when appropriate, respond to DMs and engage with user-created spaces like Reddit communities and Facebook groups. The perception of your brand is being shaped in these spaces. It’s word of mouth amplified.

Asking for Feedback

To make sure you are spending time on the most effective platforms and marketing tactics, don’t forget to regularly check in with your audience. There are a few ways you can do this, but the most straightforward one is to conduct a regular user survey. When correctly constructed, surveys take the guesswork out of it and allow your audience to give you direct feedback about your brand — including what role they’d like to play in its evolution.