UGC vs Influencer
What is the difference between being an “influencer” or being a content creator who provides “user-generated content?” I’m glad you asked because I provide user-generated content to businesses to help with their marketing. As a travel enthusiast, I enjoy hidden gems and your mom-and-pop businesses. I’m not an influencer because I’m not looking to build a huge following if I do great, but that’s not the goal here.
My goal is to provide content to businesses for marketing purposes. Whether it be video or photos, marketing will help drive sales and build the success of a company. Many small towns rely on word of mouth and social media platforms as a way to have some content. This may work, but it’s not reliable and it’s inconsistent.
Influencers sometimes have thousands of followers. Between my photography page on Instagram and my travel page (I like to keep them separate), I have a little under 1000 followers. Facebook is a different ballgame. Collectively, I have close to 3000 friends and followers. To be honest, I don’t care to have a lot of followers. This way it’s catered more to their needs and can respond to people without being bombarded with thousands of messages. One of my favorites is Google reviews. I’m a local guide and on level six (6) working toward level 7. To the right, is a picture I took at a Mexican restaurant, here in my hometown called El Ranchirito. This image got almost 900,000 views. I still cannot believe that. A town of not even 32, 000! That’s amazing that so many people have checked it out!
Many influences will highlight the glamorous aspects of travel and businesses, but UGC helps to connect one’s story to other individuals. It helps to capture that raw unfiltered image of people who are just like you and I. It’s about becoming and showcasing one’s journey.
While influencers have a certain agenda they typically follow, especially for aesthetics, they tend to give a one-sided story and usually clout-chasing. For me, what’s trending isn’t that exciting. It’s exciting to find these places that don’t have a lot of marketing and create campaigns that highlight and showcase their authenticity and uniqueness. Create the trend and help grow their business organically.
There’s nothing wrong with being an influencer, don’t get me wrong. It’s just not my focus. Coming from a small town, I see the lack of marketing. Galesburg has a lot of awesome local businesses and the business owners are one-of-a-kind! The problem is, if you’re not from here, it’s sometimes hard to know what’s what and what they offer. Word of mouth only goes so far and from those who are from here, it’s hard to trust what you don’t see.
What I love is the personability. It is what gets me. It’s nice to go into a business and the owners know what you like, a little about your family, and take the time to care about their customers. It’s not like going into a large corporation where there are so many people involved that people blend in and don’t get that personal touch.
