Glossary/UGC
What is UGC?
Short answer
UGC (user-generated content) is a photo or video filmed by an ordinary user rather than in an advertising studio. A brand orders the material from a creator, receives the finished file and publishes it wherever it needs it: in paid ads, on a product page or in an email. You are not buying reach — you are buying material that looks like an honest recommendation.
What exactly is UGC?
An ad filmed in a studio looks like an ad straight away, so people scroll past it out of habit. UGC works the other way round: material filmed on a phone — in the kitchen, in the car, over morning coffee — looks like a post from someone you know who has just tried something. The creator films it, but the brand publishes it: the brand decides where the material appears and how long it keeps working.
What does UGC look like in practice?
The most commonly ordered material looks like this:
An unboxing filmed on a phone — the brand runs it as an ad on Instagram and TikTok.
A short video, “three reasons I bought this” — it goes onto the product page in the shop.
Photos of the product in a home kitchen instead of a studio shoot — for the shop, email and social media.
A review filmed after a week of use — it comes back in remarketing to people who have already visited the site.
How is UGC different from working with an influencer?
When you work with an influencer you pay for a post on their profile: the material stays there and works for as long as their reach works. With UGC you pay for the file itself. The creator does not need a large community — they need to be able to film in a way that looks credible. That is why you pick a creator on portfolio rather than follower count, and why one budget can buy several versions of the material to test.
Why do brands order UGC?
Because the cost of entry is low and one piece of material works in several places at once: in ads, in the shop and in email. Several versions from different creators show which way of talking about the product actually sells — instead of putting the whole budget on one big video. For a creator it is a task that does not require building reach: a phone, light and the ability to show a product in use are enough.
Where to order it or find tasks
Related terms
Words that come up in the same conversations. Each has its own definition in the glossary.
- UGC creator
- A creator who films material for a brand but does not publish it on their own channel. What counts is the quality and the credibility of the footage, not the follower count. Read more
- Usage rights
- The creator's consent to where and for how long the brand may use their material. Without it the recording may only be shown where it originally appeared. Read more
- Sponsored content
- Material published by a creator on a brand's order and for payment. It has to be clearly labelled as advertising — including when the settlement was barter. Read more
- Product placement
- Showing a product inside content that would have been made anyway: in a video, a story or a post. The viewer watches the material and the product is part of it, not a break in it. Read more
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a large following to film UGC?
No. The brand is buying material, not reach. What counts is the portfolio: how your earlier videos look and whether you can show a product in use.
How is UGC different from an ad filmed by an agency?
Cost and tone. An agency makes one polished video, UGC gives you several simpler versions from different people — you can test them in ads right away and keep the one that sells.
Who owns the rights to UGC material?
The brand — but only to the extent written into the task: where it publishes, in which market and for how long. Without that clause the rights stay with the creator.
How much does one piece of UGC cost?
It depends on the format and the industry. We give rate ranges next to every niche — you can see there what brands pay for video and what they pay for a set of photos.
Does UGC material have to be labelled as advertising?
If the creator publishes it on their own profile — yes, the label is mandatory. If the material goes only to the brand’s own channels, the brand is responsible for labelling the message as advertising.
How many pieces should you order to start?
Usually three to five versions from different creators. Fewer will not show which way of presenting the product works, and more is hard to compare fairly within one campaign.
