If content is king, then user-generated content (UGC) reigns over it all!
It’s the authentic “voice of the people” for all kinds of brands and often a huge part of modern social media and digital marketing campaigns.
But creating amazing user-generated content is only half the battle, friends; finding the right tools to tweak it to perfection and the right stage to showcase it is just as important.
But fear not, UGC creators and editors. Today’s blog is here to help you get it done.
Whether you’re looking for tools to edit your client’s user-generated content or want to become a UGC creator yourself, today’s blog is showing you the best tools and platforms to showcase your work and share your UGC with the world!
Why is User-Generated Content so Valuable?
User-generated content is marketing gold to many brands for several reasons.
First off, it’s free. Users aren’t paid for their contribution (if they are, it’s sponsored content, not UGC!).
User-generated content is perfect for adding a personal touch to a brand and providing social proof on lead magnets like landing pages and ads. It’s also a great way to build authenticity and trustworthiness around a brand, since unsolicited positive word-of-mouth about products and services is a very effective way of swaying potential customers over to improve conversion rates.
The Essential Tools for UGC
So, whether you’re touching up content for clients or creating your own UGC for the brands you love, the right tools are essential for editing and enhancing eye-catching graphics and videos to organizing your creative flow!
Have a look at our favorite tools and see which best fit your needs and your workflow.
Content Creation Tools
Whether you’re adding a finishing touch to photos, editing video, or bringing some animations to life, the following tools are designed to enhance your UGC creator skills and techniques!
Adobe Photoshop
Photoshop: the image editing tool that’s so popular, its name has become a verb.
Photoshop is one of the most popular and powerful photo editing tools out there. From basic touch ups to complex manipulations, Photoshop is the go-to for any professional looking to edit images with precision.
Adobe Premiere Pro
For video editors looking for professional software for professional results, Premiere Pro is what you need.
It’s got a wide range of editing tools that can handle everything from short clips to feature films, so user-generated video will definitely not be a problem!
Adobe Illustrator
If you want to add vector graphics for your user-generated content, you can’t go wrong with Adobe Illustrator.
Whether it’s logos, icons, or intricate illustrations, Adobe Illustrator gives you the right tools and the flexibility you need for sophisticated and customized visuals.
Adobe After Effects
Our last Adobe product on the list, After Effects allows creators to animate, alter, and composite 2D and 3D media with a wide range of built-in tools and third-party plugins.
Add professional-quality visual effects and motion graphics to turn simple videos into amazing UGC content that will shine on any platform.
Subscribe individually to any of the Adobe products we mentioned above or get them all by subscribing to the Creative Cloud. Click that link for pricing information!
Canva
Canva is a useful tool that helps make design more accessible for everyone.
Even beginners can create with ease with Canva’s user-friendly interface and its huge library of templates to help create graphics, posters, and other social media assets. Get it free here or opt for one of Canva’s paid plans with premium features.
Affinity Designer
A solid alternative to Photoshop, Affinity Designer is known for its ease of use and its speed and efficiency in processing high-resolution images.
And if you don’t like paying subscription fees for your image editing tools, it also offers all of the photo and image editing capabilities you need at a one-time purchase price.
Final Cut Pro
Apple's answer to Adobe’s Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro gives video editors powerful editing capabilities with an intuitive interface to make the job easy.
Especially useful if you’re a Mac user, since it’s fast and has the ability to integrate with other Apple products you might be using. It’s now available for iPad so click there to get the app or here to download it for your Mac.
InShot
This mobile video editor is perfect for filming UGC video and editing it on the go, right from your smartphone.
Trim clips, add music, insert text, and anything else you need to do to make videos that get noticed!
Available in the App Store or Google Play.
Procreate
Made for iPad, Procreate is an extremely popular tool for digital artists because of its intuitive design and huge brush library.
It’s an all-in-one sketching, painting, and illustration app that goes wherever you do and makes touching up your UGC images and photos easier than ever.
Get Procreate for iPad here!
Blender
Blender is an open-source 3D creation suite that lets you do it all —modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing, and motion tracking.
Perfect for adding a new level to your user-generated content! Plus, it’s free, so click here to download Blender for Windows or Mac!
Top Platforms for Showcasing UGC
This digital age we live in gives us more options than ever for showing off user-generated content.
From social media channels to portfolio sites that help you build your brand as a UGC creator, you’ve got to find the perfect place for your UGC to get it the attention it deserves.
To help you out with that, here are some of our favorite platforms for showcasing your (or your client’s!) user-generated content.
Instagram is where it’s at for featuring any kind of visual content, user-generated content included.
With features like Stories, Reels, and IGTC, Instagram makes it easy to post and edit images and videos to allow for storytelling and instant engagement for brands, influencers, and other UGC creators.
TikTok
While we still have it, TikTok is a great place for showcasing user-generated content, especially if you’re looking to go viral.
Ideal for short UGC clips that show off trends, share quick tutorials, reactions, or just a little something to entertain a wide audience.
YouTube
YouTube is the go-to platform for video content, able to host everything from quick clips to long, extensive tutorials, walkthroughs, or unboxing reviews.
The platform also gives your user-generated content a big stage and makes it easy to embed your content or link it anywhere you need. As an added plus, YouTube also makes it possible to monetize UGC, offering creators a way to earn revenue from their content!
Behance
Adobe’s Behance is made for creative professionals, offering them a space to showcase portfolios for a variety of fields, from graphic design to photography and illustration.
Use it to display your best UGC projects, highlight your writing, video editing or graphic design skills, and to get feedback from other members of the Behance community!
SoundCloud
For musicians, singers, and audio creators, SoundCloud provides a user-friendly platform for sharing tracks, albums, and even podcasts with a huge audience.
Its user-friendly interface makes it easy to upload and share your tracks on any social media platform or embed it directly onto other websites.
Dribbble
A social networking platform for designers, Dribbble is where visual creatives can share snapshots of their work, process, and current projects.
It's a great place for finding inspiration, receiving community feedback, and networking with other designers on your user-generated content projects and more.
How to Maximize the Reach of Your User-Generated Content
Of course, the entire point of UGC is to amplify brand awareness and engage its intended audience on a deeper level.
Here are some ways you can maximize the reach of your UGC to make sure your work is seen, appreciated and — most importantly — shared!
- Cross-Promote – Don’t limit your UGC to a single platform. Share your work across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and even niche networks like Behance and Dribbble. Cross-promotion increases visibility and puts you in front of new audiences.
- Engage with Your Followers – Be sure to respond to comments, share user stories, and actively participate in community discussions. Engagement not only boosts your content’s visibility but also builds a loyal following.
- Optimize Content for SEO – Use keywords, tags, and descriptions strategically. For written content like blogs or captions, using SEO best practices can make your UGC more visible to search engines and any potential followers.
- Collaborate with Other Creatives – Join forces with fellow artists, designers, or content creators. Collaborations can introduce your work to new audiences and add fresh perspectives to your UGC.
- Use Analytics to Understand Your Audience – Don’t ignore the analytic tools offered by social platforms and your website! Understanding which pieces of content perform best can guide your UGC strategy to make sure it's what your audience wants to see!
- Use Trending Topics and Hashtags – Stay fresh and relevant by creating content around trending topics, events, or hashtags. Trending content is more likely to be shared and reposted.
- Create Shareable Content – Make your content easily shareable! Whether it’s insightful, inspirational, funny, or simply beautiful, shareable content is more likely to be reposted and shared, extending its reach.
- Regularly Update Your Portfolio – Whether it’s on a personal website or a social media platform, keep your portfolio updated with your latest UGC. An up-to-date portfolio attracts more followers and can possibly link you with professional connections as well!
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Looking for a Place to Share your UGC Editing Talents?
If you’re looking for the ultimate platform to share your work with the world, then we can’t think of a better option than Designity.
Designity is made up of the top 3% of the thousands of creatives that apply each year and we’re always looking for new talent to join our creative community. As a Designity Creative, you’ll enjoy plenty of perks like competitive pay, flexible hours, and the ability to work from wherever you have Wi-Fi access because we’re 100% remote!
Enjoy the opportunity to work with a huge variety of clients from a huge variety of industries on a huge variety of projects, user-generated content included!
Think you have what it takes to join the elite Designity community?
Put your skills to the test with our one-of-a-kind application process and let’s start seeing the new and exciting places your work will turn up next!
