It is no doubt that content Creators are a group of marketing wizards. They have figured out how to increase engagement through niche content and creator partnerships. Despite the hardships due to COVID-19, many Content Creators are doing better than ever by encouraging consumer buying decisions. 

Once your brand has taken the plunge by investing time and resources into Influencer Marketing initiatives, be sure to ensure you are putting UGC to use through whitelisting and amplification. Whether it is a paid or gifted partnership, you want to ensure you are getting ROI. The simplest way to utilize content created by a Creator is to reshare it on your social media accounts. 

We organically shared this fabulous post by @robynlee.97 on our IG feed to bring awareness to both @artingstallsgin and to our engaged members within our @creatorco.community

Make the appropriate distinction by deciding the call to action that you would like to get across. If you would like to share your UGC, you can share the Creators static photo on your social media accounts. Another tip is to tag and share the Creators content that showcases your product or service as a post under your brand’s IG handle. These two examples are simple ways your brand can utilize UGC to boost your social media presence.

A fabulous post by another lovely Creator @ellahh. Her post analytics are available right through the Creator.co Dashboard.

We have functionality built into our Dashboard that makes it easy to download Creator assets to utilize for marketing initiatives. Furthermore, brands that take additional steps to Whitelist and Amplify UGC on social media could receive a larger ROI.

Content Whitelisting

Whitelisting allows brands to have open access to their Influencer media metrics to create and pay for promotions on behalf of the Influencer.

When your Influencer Whitelists their post, the Creator is allowing you to promote their content to your audience. Targeting your desired consumer base is something you would plan while engaging in more traditional forms of marketing; so why not do it with your social media marketing initiatives?

An example of Content Whitelisting from a long-time member of our engaged community, @nancyjbeaulieu

Studies have shown that “Influencer ads for prospecting outperform brand ads by 20-50% across consumer categories”. In addition to the control brands gain from content whitelisting; it also allows brands to edit Influencer/Creator posts, create ‘Dark Posts’, and extend the posts’ life.

Being able to make minor edits to the content created through collaborations will allow your brand voice to remain cohesive and consistent- it may just be a matter of fixing grammatical errors or hashtags within the caption created by the Influencer; but that in itself is a perk of Whitelisting.

Furthermore, Whitelisting allows brands to create ‘Dark Posts’- posts that would not otherwise come up on a viewer’s regular feed. Unlike posts that are organic, Dark Posts are usually labeled as sponsored content and appear on the feeds of audiences that are being targeted; even if they don’t follow your brand account. Whitelisting also allows brands to extend the life of Influencer Partner content through promotion or ‘boosting’ which can extend Instagram stories for example to live for more than the standard 24-hours.

Content Amplification

Content Amplification is where brands promote content on their social media platforms while putting a budget behind the promotions. Utilizing your Creator relationships and user-generated content towards paid ads is the biggest differentiating factor between Whitelisting and Amplification. According to the Business Development Bank of Canada, “a common rule of thumb is that B2B companies should allocate 2-5% of revenue on marketing, while B2C companies should spend between 5-10%.”

Here is another piece of user-generated content created by @3girlsandalegend! The content was amplified by ZeroWater during a collaboration with Creator.co!

“Small businesses in Canada spend an average of $30,000 a year. Mid-sized businesses (20-49 employees) spend an average of $60,000, and companies with more than 50 employees spend more than $100,000 annually.”

Business Development Bank of Canada

If your brand wants to boost brand awareness in a highly concentrated space, content amplification increases the likelihood of audience engagement. This is especially effective when the content is heavily targeted and placed on an appropriate social media platform. Through content amplification, you are able to view metrics such as content engagement, audiences, and, most importantly, conversion. 

Want to streamline your creator collaborations through whitelisting and amplifying your user-generated content? Reach out to us at brands@creator.co to chat about how we can support your social media marketing efforts.