User Generated Content for your Business
User generated content, or UGC, can be extremely helpful for a company website. This form of interactivity can have several benefits and are not always that difficult to implement.
Examples
There are hundreds of user generated content sites out there but they all have one thing in common. They involve creating the design and backend framework of the site and then letting all the users take care of the content. Myspace, Flickr, YouTube, and eBay are all great examples of UGC centered websites.
One of the earliest examples however is the use of public forums. I’ve mentioned before how having a forum can reduce support costs by allowing users to help each other solve problems. Cultivating a large forum community can also create brand loyalty among users. Paul Boag, of U.K web design company Headscape, says that he loves having a large forum community following him because it allows him to “sit on his ass” while the users organize events for him.
Another great example of UGC is the product review feature seen on many shopping web sites. This feature is excellent for creating trust among users and turning them into buyers. Today this feature has spilled over to other areas such as movie reviews, book reviews, and restaurants. Even Google is now allowing users to rate business in its Maps program.
Implementation- Not Effortless
While a UGC website can reduce some costs they are not all fun and games. These websites can often be very complicated (and expensive). Even a forum that is free and easy to create needs some kind of moderation to keep things for getting out of hand.
When I say moderation I do not mean censorship. Users should be allowed to speak their minds about the issues. If you take a look at the Apple’s online store you’ll see that they always keep the reviews about their products, even the negative ones. This goes right back to the issue of trust amongst the users. This also means that you’re just going to have to make sure you make a great product that people will review positively.
