Utilizing User-Generated Content In Ecommerce

Do you sometimes feel frustration, as you are building a product to get the management off your back, rather than address the users? Here are 6 ways to become user-centric again: 1) Prioritize in a transparent way This is a great place to start. If your backlog is prioritized based on data and potential opportunity, risk, and cost, it will be easier to put forth user-centric initiatives ahead of those that came from upstairs. At the very least, you will have a good basis for an educated discussion. 2) Utilize users' perspective using user stories and personas If your team understands the users and their problems, it will be easier to craft something great that will later appeal to the same users. Just keep up the empathy of creating something by people for other people, and not get some metric magically go up! 3) Understand user problems If everyone in the company can see the themes that come from user feedback, it will be way harder to ignore it in favor of some corporate nonsense. Let those voices be heard by everyone! What if there are 100,000s of voices? Here is where this post's partner comes in: Productboard , and their new release: Productboard Pulse. It's a powerful new tool you can use either as a standalone solution or to elevate your work within an existing Productboard product management suite. This new AI will help you make sense of all the feedback and comments, quickly transforming them into actionable, user-centric tasks. Check out the comments for more details :) Now, back to the post: 4) Have the NPS and user ratings at the forefront The same goes for a single metric representing the general product sentiment. If the number is low or, worse, is going down and everyone can see that, the responsible Product Manager has to react. 5) Focus on your product goals Now, upstairs mandates might not be the only distraction you face when trying to improve your product. To survive them all, focus on one thing: your product goals. This will allow you to demonstrate you are doing what you are asked for and you can use user feedback and points 1-4 to pursue those goals. Thus, it's like killing 2 birds with 1 stone. However, you can also simply: 6) Have the confidence to say "No" Not all company/legal/management requests can be ignored. Sometimes changing the law or a wider company initiative will require you to comply and that is OK! However, there will also be times when someone will try to force your compliance. This is where you need to be confident, and exercise your Product Manager's independence, especially when there is no data to support a specific request. There you go! My 6 ways you can become a user-centric Product Manager. Do you put your users first in your product? Sound off in the comments! #productmanagement #productmanager #usercentricity

Tactic 2 for influencing stakeholders from Jules Walter: Frame your message from their POV (not yours) It’s more effective to speak their language and demonstrate how your proposal will help them reach their goals, not yours. Stakeholders are focused on their own problems and are more receptive to proposals that address what’s already top of mind for them. A few years ago, when I was leading Monetization at Slack, we began to encounter diminishing returns in our product iterations, and we needed to take a bigger swing to re-ignite revenue growth. To do that, I spearheaded a controversial project to experiment with a new approach to free-to-paid conversion. The CEO, Stewart Butterfield, had strong reservations about the project. I knew from his previous statements that he didn’t want the company to be thinking about ways to extract value from users, but rather ways to create value for them. We had scheduled a review with the CEO and a few of his VPs to discuss the proposal. Since he was intensely user-driven, I framed the entire proposal around the benefits it would have for users (the CEO’s POV) rather than emphasizing the revenue impact of the project (our team’s goal). I started the meeting by anchoring the proposal on user-centric insights that we shared in a deck: - “About 10% of purchases of Slack’s paid version happen from users in their first day on Slack.” - “Paid users find more value and retain better. Yet we make it hard for people to discover that Slack has a paid version that’s more helpful.” - “How do we help new teams experience the full version of Slack from the start?” Once we framed the issue with this user-centric lens, the CEO was more open to our proposal and let us try a couple of experiments in this new direction. This user-centric framing also got the cross-functional team more excited and set an aspirational North Star with clear guardrails, which then enabled various teammates to contribute productively to the project. After we tested two iterations of our monetization experiment, we landed on a version that resulted in a significant increase in revenue for Slack (a 20% increase in teams paying for Slack) and we used what we learned to shift Slack’s monetization strategy into a new, more successful direction. Full set of tactics here: https://lnkd.in/gezP2EDw

I consult businesses for $3K/hour on how to double or triple their organic traffic. Here’s 5 of my best, non-obvious advice for 2025: 1. Start optimising for AI chatbot visibility Over 71.5% of consumers now use LLMs for search to complement Google. • Structure content clearly. Use bullet points, concise intros, and proper H2s so AI can summarize your info easily. • Publish original stats, examples, and expert perspectives. AI prioritizes unique, first-hand insights. • Add schema markup. Use FAQ, How-To, and Product schema to boost AI readability. • Build domain authority with consistent mentions and authoritative backlinks. Chatbots prioritize trustworthy sources. • Monitor citations. Use tools like AlsoAsked, Bing Chat, or Perplexity to see where your brand shows up, and reverse-engineer what works. 2. Create topical clusters Google’s moving from keyword-based indexing to topic-based indexing. That means: • Build pillar pages and surround them with 10–20+ related articles. (depending on topic size) • Cover every question and angle around your niche. (Use ChatGPT or Ahrefs to come up with content ideas) • Link internally in a way that mimics expert knowledge architecture. • Update older pages with new stats, examples, and links to new content to keep your topical coverage fresh. 3. Focus on user-centric SEO Google prioritizes user experience signals now more than ever. • “Last-click satisfaction” tells Google your site ended the search. If users pogo-stick back to the SERP, your rankings are toast. • Format pages to be scannable and easy to read. Use short paragraphs, strong subheadings, and clean layouts that guide the reader's attention. • Prioritize user intent, not just search terms. Understand what the searcher really wants and deliver it fast. 4. Double down on video and visual content 60% of users say they prefer video over text when learning something online. Google knows it. And they’re adjusting the SERPs. To stay competitive: • Embed short-form videos that summarize your content to boost dwell time and increase value for skimmers. • Use VideoObject schema to help search engines index and feature your videos properly. • Add custom visuals, charts, or infographics. They make your content more engaging, reduce bounce, and boost backlinks. • Repurpose blog topics into YouTube videos targeting the same keywords. This doubles your chances of appearing in both search and AI-generated results. 5. Focus on bottom-of-funnel keywords and CRO Informational queries now trigger AIOs 59% of the time. To stay profitable: • Focus on commercial intent keywords like "[product] vs [product]" and "best [product] for [specific need]" (these trigger AIOs only 3-5% of the time) • Maximise revenue from your traffic by testing different headlines, CTAs, and page layouts to improve conversion rates. • Install heat map tools (like Hotjar/Mouseflow) to get invaluable data on user behavior and fix potential friction points.

The rise of creator economy tech is real. But building tools for creators isn’t enough. You need creators to 𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 use them. Creator acquisition has become one of the most strategic priorities for creator-focused tech companies. In a crowded market, it’s not just about features. It’s about standing out, building real engagement, and getting creators excited from day one. So I asked five standout companies in the creator space: "What’s one specific way you’ve strategically built engagement and excitement to bring creators onto your platform?" 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝: 🔹 Neal Jean at Beacons AI emphasized the power of personalization. His team uses data and AI to craft beautiful, pre-built link-in-bio pages even for creators who haven’t signed up yet. That proactive approach gives creators a tangible reason to join. 🔹 Will Baumann at Fourthwall shared how success starts when creators feel proud of their product. Once a sample is ordered, the team initiates a personalized onboarding sequence, including a strategy call to co-develop a launch plan tailored to the creator’s audience. 🔹 Rob Balasabas 💙 Uscreen at Uscreen leaned into the value of IRL connection. Through curated dinners, local meetups, and high-touch events, the team doesn’t just sell software. They create intentional communities where creators feel seen, supported, and inspired. 🔹 Sherry Wong at Roster turned hiring into content. Their "Hiring Challenges" tap into existing creator behavior, making the hiring process time-bound, community-driven, and shareable. That’s how Roster went viral without spending a dime on paid ads. 🔹 Cat Valdes at Mavely / Later stressed the importance of authenticity. By being transparent about what works (and what doesn’t), and backing it up with favorable commission rates and bonuses, she builds long-term trust and buy-in from creators. These companies all take different paths, but they share one thing in common: they lead with intention, value, and empathy for the creator experience. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞, 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟: why should a creator care about your platform? And what will make them stay? The most effective platforms are the ones that think beyond onboarding and focus on long-term creator engagement from day one.

Slapping “community-led” into your brand positioning doesn’t magically make it true. Because if what you’re calling a “community” is really just: - A one-way email blast - A WhatsApp group with no interaction - A silent audience politely lurking because they don’t know what they’re meant to say… Then what you’ve got is an audience. There’s nothing wrong with having an audience, by the way. But don’t confuse people watching with people connecting. Real community-led brands do things differently: - They don’t just speak at their audience, they co-create with them - They build rituals and reasons for people to engage beyond product updates - They listen, tweak, involve - not just broadcast It’s not always loud and ain’t always sexy. But it’s consistent, intentional and centred around actual people - not just a content strategy or GTM feature. Look at Strava. They didn’t just build a fitness app, they built a behaviour loop. You show up because others do too. You cheer each other on. That, my friends, is community. If your people aren’t engaging, it’s not always an awareness issue. Sometimes, they’re just not being given anything to belong to. And calling it “community” without the trust, participation or two-way value exchange is simply just marketing. Again, that’s okay. But remember: you’re not building a community if no one’s talking to each other. P.S. We now have over 500+ members in our Nexus Femtech community. All built on a SHARED purpose. 🤝

While auditing content for an Entrepreneurship course at UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture I discovered a secret. The secret to enhanced user-centric innovation: We often get "stuck" with what we're taught, and this sometimes affects how we think. We all learn about Design Thinking as a standalone tool, but there's MUCH MORE to it. Integrating Design Thinking, Lean UX, and Agile methodologies creates a powerful framework for driving user-centric innovation. Here's how it works: → Design Thinking: for deep empathy and problem definition → Lean UX: for rapid prototyping and validation → Agile: for iterative development and delivery ... And what happens when each is missing? • Without Design Thinking = "Misunderstanding" • Without Lean UX = "Wasted Effort" • Without Agile = "Stagnation" Combining these methodologies offers a holistic approach. Concept Exploration + Iterative Experimentation = Needs-and-Pain-point Discovery The initial stages emphasize brainstorming and prioritizing insights, leading to hypothesis formation that guides subsequent experiments. Continuous experimentation allows for the revision of hypotheses based on real user feedback, creating a dynamic loop of learning and adaptation. Here's how to integrate them: 1/ Design Thinking: Start with empathy. Understand your users deeply before defining the problem. 2/ Lean UX: Prototype quickly. Validate your ideas with real users early and often. 3/ Agile: Iterate. Develop in short cycles and adapt based on feedback. As teams build and explore new ideas, they foster collaboration across disciplines, leveraging diverse perspectives to refine solutions. This integrated framework not only enhances the customer experience but also drives sustainable growth. This helps founders ensure they remain competitive and relevant in their respective industries. George Dr. Kelsey Burton Yenni 👀 LESSGO!

Audience collaboration isn’t a buzzword, it’s a revenue and relevance strategy for local news. Local journalism has been under pressure for years, but collaborative investigations could offer a sustainable path forward. Community-driven journalism, where newsrooms work directly with audiences to source information and leads, is reshaping how impactful stories are uncovered. By involving audiences directly in storytelling, publishers unlock deeper insights, rebuild community connections, and diversify revenue, without relying solely on traditional advertising models. Collaborative journalism works such that communities contribute firsthand data, reducing reporting costs and uncovering underreported issues such as systemic discrimination and environmental risks. Also, public participation fosters accountability, helping counter perceptions of bias or disconnected reporting. Then, smaller newsrooms pool resources with peers or broader networks to tackle complex, resource-intensive investigations. Projects that document hate crimes or public misconduct through open submissions show the tangible potential of this model. Crowdsourced investigations allow publishers to broaden their reporting reach without expanding headcount which is a crucial advantage amid ongoing financial constraints. Revenue Models for Collaborative Work ✅Memberships/Subscriptions: Offer exclusive access to collaborative findings, early reports, or behind-the-scenes updates. ✅Grants and Philanthropy: Secure support from organisations focused on civic engagement or public-interest journalism. ✅Sponsored Content: Partner with businesses to fund hyperlocal investigations into issues like housing affordability or environmental impact. ✅Licensing: Syndicate investigative work to larger networks, research institutions, or educational platforms. The focus is on building a reciprocal relationship where audiences are not just passive readers but active participants, directly contributing to meaningful reporting. Here are the key takeaways: 1. Start Small: Pilot a single collaborative project, such as crowdsourcing insights into local infrastructure challenges, to gauge community interest. 2. Monetise Participation: Offer tiered membership perks linked to audience input, like early-access reports or Q&A briefings. 3. Measure Beyond Clicks: Track engagement metrics such as submissions received and policy changes influenced by investigations. Crowdsourced journalism demands upfront investment in moderation systems, fact verification processes, and audience education. Maintaining editorial standards while scaling collaboration is key. However, the potential payoff includes sustainable revenue streams, loyal readerships, and journalism that drives real-world change which justifies the shift. Have you partnered with audiences on investigations? Share your experience in the comment section. #CollaborativeJournalism #LocalNews #MediaRevenue #AudienceEngagement #PublishingStrategy

I've been thinking a lot about the kind of content brands put into the world. Some of it sparks conversation and strengthens brand connection. Some of it...just fills the feed. Most B2C brands are great at chasing engagement, but not always at building brand meaning. When I mapped it out, the content that matters most always ends up in the upper-right quadrant: High Engagement + High Cultural Relevance / Emotional Impact. 🟩 The Sweet Spot This is content people actually interact with and that strengthens brand connection: • User-Generated Storytelling (not just reviews, but authentic, emotional UGC) • Lifestyle & Aspirational Content (travel inspo, fashion, wellness — fits seamlessly into how people see themselves) • Viral TikTok/Reels Trends (when done authentically and in sync with culture) • Influencer Collaborations (especially when creators embody your brand values) • Community Challenges / Hashtag Activations (identity-driven and participatory) This is where loyalty gets built. Where campaigns outlive algorithms. Where engagement means something. ⸻ 🟧 What to Watch Out For (Low/Low) • Generic Product Ads (feature dumps without story) • Random Sales Promotions (uninspired discount graphics) • Forced Trend-Jacking (when brands hop on memes without fit) 👉 These pieces don’t move the needle on culture or engagement. ⸻ 🟪 The Trap (High Engagement / Low Relevance) • Giveaways / Sweepstakes (quick hits, low equity) • Funny Memes / Low-lift Humor (attention-grabbing but not tied to your brand) • Clickbait-y Hacks (drive views without deepening connection) • Flash Discounts (transactional, not relational) 👉 Yes, these light up the metrics — but they don’t build lasting brand affinity. ⸻ The takeaway? Don’t just chase clicks. Make more content for the upper right: where engagement fuels cultural relevance, and cultural relevance and emotional impact fuels long-term brand love. 𝙄𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝘽2𝘽 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙭, 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙘𝙠 𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚: https://lnkd.in/d7DXQDMB 𝙄’𝙡𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙪𝙥𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙈𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖 𝙇𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥 𝙣𝙚𝙬𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨. 𝙎𝙪𝙗𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚: https://lnkd.in/d28dna4K

Your customers scroll past 500 posts a day. Boring corporate content isn't getting their attention. Human content is. People are being spammed to death. Cold emails, Cold calls, LinkedIn pitches from strangers. It's harder than ever to reach people. But content consumption is as high as ever. So give your customers what they actually want: Useful, interesting, fun content that brings your brand to life. B2C brands figured this out years ago. Duolingo's unhinged TikToks. Ryanair roasting customers. None of it looks perfect. All of it works. B2B companies are still stuck in 2019. Snoozefest product updates, unactionable whitepapers and webinars. Here's what to do instead: 1. Employee-Generated Content (EGC) Exec perspectives, your team filming day in the life videos, product demos on their phones. People trust employees/execs over impersonal content every time. How to implement: • Get your execs posting consistently (work with someone like me to help) • Recognise employees who post in all-hands meetings • Monthly incentives for team members getting the most reach Example: Zapier, beehiiv, ClickUp 2. Creator-Generated Content (CGC) Creators making branded content that doesn't feel like ads. Tutorials, breakdowns, recommendations that fit naturally into their feed. How to implement: • Partner with educators already talking about your space - they have more influence than entertainers • Let them create content that looks like their existing content Example: Zapier, Gamma 3. User-Generated Content (UGC) Real customers sharing real pain points and results. Think before-and-afters and "Here's how I actually use this" videos. This converts because it's proof, not corporate promises. How to implement: • Feature customer posts on your company page • Build program tiers that reward UGC with early access or perks • Make them look good when they share your content You don't need the biggest ad budget to win here. The ones who are winning are building content systems - around their team, creators and customers. 📌 Want help implementing this? Send me a DM ♻️ Repost to help your network win at marketing in 2026. ➕ Follow me (Will McTighe) for more like this.

I got rejected after this Interview answer 💔 Not proud of it. But this one still lives rent-free in my head. Company: One of the top product companies Round: Product Design Challenge Question: Design a feature to help users discover relevant content in our app? What I did: I jumped straight into wireframes. Added a "Recommended for You" section on the homepage, designed some cards with thumbnails and CTAs, picked nice colors, and called it a day. Result: A polite rejection email the next week. Here's what I should have actually done: Before jumping to solutions and wireframes, a good answer starts with thinking. 𝗜 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱'𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴:  - Who are the users? (new users? power users? different personas?)  - What kind of content? (articles, videos, products, connections?)  - What does "relevant" mean? (based on past behavior? trending? personalized?)  - What's the current discovery problem we're solving?  - What are the business goals? (engagement? retention? revenue?) 𝗔 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀: 𝟭. 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 & 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁  - Understand user pain points through data/interviews  - Map the current user journey  - Identify where discovery fails today 𝟮. 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀  - What does success look like? (time spent? click-through rate? return visits?)  - How do we measure relevance? 𝟯. 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀  - Consider multiple approaches (algorithmic, social, editorial, hybrid)  - Weigh trade-offs of each  - Don't marry one solution too early 𝟰. 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲  - Information architecture first, visuals later  - Think about empty states, loading states, error states  - Consider personalization vs. serendipity  - Design for accessibility and inclusion 𝟱. 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 & 𝗜𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻  - How would we test this? (A/B test? prototype testing?)  - What could go wrong?  - How do we handle edge cases? 𝟲. 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗳𝗳 & 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁  - How does this scale across platforms?  - What's the technical feasibility?  - What's the rollout plan? This way, the solution is user-centered, strategic, and actually solves a real problem.