User-Generated Content Strategies for Brand Growth

Some of the best creators for your brand are already in your org chart right now. But they lack the permission, tools, and strategies to create high-performing content aligned with your business goals. I’m big on employee-generated content (EGC) for B2B organic marketing in 2026. I’ve personally seen it work wonders. Examples below. I think a lot of brands will kick off and evolve these programs *next year.* The time is ripe for EGC because it’s: 💵 Low-cost (your main cost is time spent) 📈 High-performing (individual profiles get much better reach and engagement than brand accounts on social) 🏃♀️ Fast to execute (you can get it out much faster than traditional campaigns… and we all know everyone’s being asked to move fast) 🤖 Naturally human (people post how they actually talk, which performs better anyway) Implementing this as a strategic lever of your marketing program isn’t just telling people to post on LinkedIn and calling it a day. Instead, you’d build an EGC program with governance, strategy, and KPIs. Real examples: When I worked at Salesforce, we shifted the Sales Cloud newsletter to be voiced by a real internal sales leader. Turns out he got way more opens than “Sales Cloud by Salesforce” in the inbox. At Microsoft, we created an employee influencer program on LinkedIn and empowered employees to create their own videos about our products. This led to content that outperformed our brand channel benchmarks by hundreds of percentage points and garnered millions of views on LinkedIn. Will you be trying this in 2026? What other questions can I answer about this strategy?

I've taken brands from $30k/mo to $750k/mo solely with user-generated content. Here’s why I prioritize UGC for any brand I work with: 1. Social Proof When real customers share their experiences with your product, it’s far more convincing than any polished ad. I’ve seen firsthand how UGC can build trust, especially when potential buyers are on the fence. It’s raw, authentic, and more relatable. 2. Authenticity People today crave authenticity. There’s only so much curated content they can consume before it starts feeling disconnected. That’s why UGC is so effective. It’s genuine, and it captures the real-world impact of your product in ways you can’t replicate in a studio. 3. Cost-Effective Content I’ve worked with brands who struggle to keep up with the demand for new content. UGC solves that problem by providing a steady stream of fresh material. Not only does it keep your feed active, but it’s also more affordable than creating original content. 4. Engagement Booster Whenever I’ve incorporated UGC into a campaign, engagement rates shoot up. People love seeing content from people like them, and they’re more likely to interact with it. If you can use it to create a sense of community, even better. 5. Diverse Perspectives One of the best things about UGC is the diversity it brings. Every customer has a unique way of using your product, and showcasing that range allows others to see how it can fit into their lives. Incorporating UGC into your strategy isn’t only about leveraging your customers’ voices—it’s about creating a dialogue. It turns your audience into active participants in your brand’s story.

UGC without structure is a vibe, not a strategy. Everyone wants user-generated content. It feels real. It drives performance. It builds trust. But most brands treat it like a lucky break. Hope someone tags you. Repost if it looks decent. Maybe turn it into an ad if it performs. That’s not a strategy. That’s gambling. If you want to build real momentum with creators, you need a system: → Clear briefs that inspire, not restrict → Creative guardrails that protect the brand without killing the voice → Performance tracking that shows what works → Rewards that make creators want to post again The best brands are turning UGC into pipelines. They onboard creators. They train their top performers. They run Discords, Q&As, and give feedback like they’re building a team, not just buying content. Because when creators feel invested, content quality goes up. And when your system is strong, scale doesn’t mean chaos. Random UGC is fine. Repeatable UGC that performs, converts, and compounds? That’s the goal. Build the system, and the content will follow.

Just as it seemed to be exploding, influencer marketing may soon be on the decline. To a certain extent, it’s already happening. Brands have poured massive budgets into influencer partnerships, but the returns aren’t as strong as they once were. For one, engagement rates are dropping. Younger audiences are skeptical of branded content, and as the market becomes oversaturated, it’s harder to make an impact. Rising costs and declining trust make it difficult to justify the spend. But brands aren’t abandoning social influence altogether. Instead, they’re shifting toward more sustainable strategies—leveraging micro-influencers, KOLs (a big thing in China), and community-driven content. That could mean: - Allowing fans and super users to be brand ambassadors, which offers authenticity and a sense of relatability that resonates with customers. Ikea does a great job with this. Their Ambassador Club network of patrons has shared over 9,000 pieces of content, leading to 5% increase in sales. - Throwing employees into the mix. Team members offer the same realism, and have the advantage of knowing your target market. Perfect example: last year, the owner of a cafe in Illinois created a TikTok campaign pitching drivers on the restaurant’s pancakes. Her videos went on to accrue over 10.5 million views, and sales increased by 50%. - Repurposing material for targeted campaigns. Ads based on user-generated content get 4x higher click-through rates than regular ads, and campaigns that include UGC see 29% higher web conversions. Original, everyday voices can drive just as much—if not more—engagement as traditional influencers and reduce the drain on your budget. And they’re often easier to work with 🤣

There’s no marketing tool more authentic, powerful and cost-effective than the voices of the people who live, work and love your destination. DMOs spend a lot of time crafting brand messages, but in reality, the best stories don’t come from us—they come from our residents. When residents share their experiences, it’s more credible than any ad we could run. Visitors trust real people more than they trust brands. A local artist talking about how your destination inspires their work or a restaurant owner sharing their family’s generational recipes—that’s the kind of storytelling that builds deep, emotional connections with travelers. How to Activate Residents as Storytellers 📸 Leverage User-Generated Content (UGC) – Encourage locals to tag your destination in their posts and showcase their unique perspectives. 🎙️ Start a Podcast or Blog Series – Feature local voices, businesses and community leaders to highlight what makes your destination special. 🎥 Create Resident Video Spotlights – Short, authentic videos of locals sharing their favorite places, hidden gems and experiences go further than generic ads. 🏡 Host “Be a Tourist in Your Own Town” Initiatives – Give residents reasons to engage with their own destination and become natural ambassadors. When you empower residents to tell their stories, you create a destination identity that feels real. The result? More trust and credibility from potential visitors, stronger community buy-in for tourism and content that resonates and spreads organically. Tourism isn’t just about attracting visitors—it’s about building a sense of place that locals are proud to share. If we make them part of the story, they’ll help us tell it in ways we never could. How are you engaging residents in your destination’s storytelling? Let’s swap ideas in the comments!👇 #DestinationMarketing #Storytelling #DMO #Tourism #Marketing #Travel

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.

While analyzing dozens of social media trend reports, I noticed something fascinating: EGC is becoming the secret weapon for B2B brands looking to cut through the noise. 🌟 Here's what makes EGC so powerful: 1. Expertise Showcase - Your engineers explaining complex tech? That's gold. - Subject matter experts sharing insights? Pure value. - Real people = real credibility 2. Human Connection - Behind-the-scenes content outperforms corporate messaging - Interns sharing conference experiences - CEOs celebrating product launches - Culture becomes content 🚀 3. Cost-Efficiency Win - Reduce external content creation costs - Scale with internal "employee influencers" - Redirect influencer budgets to empowering your team Companies are now boosting employee posts more instead of running traditional ads. Why? Because authenticity sells. Brand examples? I got you. Currys, NitroBar, and John Deuce are on it providing this is not just a trend, but the future. 🌟 Prediction: 2025 will be the year of the employee creator. Those not leveraging LinkedIn's "golden age" through their team will fall behind. Pro Tip: Don't aim for perfection. The magic of EGC is in its authenticity – let your team's real personality shine through! ✨ What's your take on employee-generated content? Are you empowering your team to create? Share below! 👇 Also, I am opening my books on LinkedIn for more clients interested in improving their personal (or employee) brand. Feel free to DM. #B2BMarketing #ContentStrategy #EmployeeAdvocacy #LinkedInMarketing #FutureOfWork #MarketingTrends2025

Your customers trust strangers more than you Even when they love your brand It’s not about control. It’s about credibility. Share these tips to harness UGC that converts browsers into buyers: Step 1 Ask at the right time After a wow moment—like Unboxing—Casper asks for content and gets a 2.5X share rate. Step 2 Make sharing dead simple Lush built a native Instagram upload feature into its app, increasing UGC by 187%. Step 3 Feature UGC everywhere GoPro’s YouTube, made from user videos, reached 10M+ subscribers and built global demand. Step 4 Turn UGC into campaigns Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” boosted sales 2% by turning bottles into shareable content. Step 5 Use UGC as social proof ModCloth used customer-submitted outfit photos and increased product conversion by 20%. When your customers tell the story, people believe it. P.S. What’s the last piece of UGC you shared? #Leadership #Sales #Marketing

One thing we’ve learned working with youth audiences is that they trust people more than they trust brands. That’s why user-generated content is the centerpiece of a successful youth campaign. When young audiences see real people sharing experiences, it changes how they engage.  It feels accessible, human, and real.  And that’s exactly what they look for online. But getting it right takes more than reposting what’s already out there.  It means giving your audience tools, moments, and reasons to create content with you, not for you. It means making them co-authors of your story. When you do that, something powerful happens:  The message spreads faster, the engagement feels genuine, and the community becomes part of the brand.

In a sea of marketing strategies, there’s one big opportunity most DTC brands are overlooking: using UGC as an educational powerhouse.📚 Imagine this – instead of using user-generated content merely for aesthetic appeal on your website or emails, you transform it into a trove of knowledge for your customers. This way you’re not just just showcasing your products, you’re enlightening your audience on how to extract the most value from them. Do this and your UGC will transform from just testimonials to a powerful series of mini-tutorials, tips, and hacks shared by real users, for real users. This approach deepens the connection with your product and elevates the user experience to new heights. At Refunnel, we've witnessed firsthand the transformative power of educational UGC. It's a conversation starter, a trust builder, and a community enhancer. By focusing on this unorthodox yet potent method, brands can unlock a whole new dimension of customer engagement and loyalty. So, why not turn your UGC into a learning hub? It's time to rethink UGC and turn it into an educational ally that can drive your brand forward. #UGC #Education #Innovation #Refunnel