Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

Consumers trust content created by users more than most types of media, according to a recent L2 study on user-generated content. This trust extends to visuals, where amateur snaps on Instagram produce higher conversion rates than professional brand photos.

Fifty-five percent of consumers trust customer photos more than professional ones....

Welcome to the modern state of consumer behavior. Today, people express their opinions about products and brands freely in the form of reviews, questions and answers, social media posts, pictures, videos, and even quick chat comments.

At BAZAARVOICE, we call this consumer-generated content (CGC).

CGC refers to all forms of digital content that people create about a product or service they have experienced, used, purchased, or considered. CGC can be everything from a critical rating to a comprehensive review, a picture, a video, or a brief comment; it can be a rich, experiential story, or an uncontrollable emotional outburst. Far more often than not, the time and effort to create and share this content is driven by the will of people to help, inform, protect, entertain, or inspire confidence in other consumers.

These are the people we know, love, and specialize in: both the advocates and detractors. Their voices help brands and retailers connect with others when and where they shop....