5 Reasons to Utilize User Generated Content for Social Media Marketing
Almost everyone uses social media these days. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and the like are household names for most people. People love to share things that they enjoy and feel good about with others.
When the customers of your gym share pictures and experiences at your gym with others it is a form of free and influential advertising. This type of marketing content is called user-generated content (UGC), and you should be working to get customers to create as much of it as possible. Here are some reasons why you should encourage your users to generate content about your gym.
The Statistics
This first stat is sure to pique your interest; the TurnTo Network found that 90% of all consumers in the US find UGC to be the most influential when making purchasing decisions. This tells you that people are paying attention to what their friends, family, and acquaintances are doing. You want your users to show they are enjoying your space virtually.
When people see others that they personally know using a product or service they are more likely to use and trust the brand. As you can see in the image below UGC plays a significant role in user decisions as well as their overall reported experience.
How UGC Influences Customers
Image From: TurnTo Network
It is clear from the user statistics that UGC can go a long way if you manage to do it right. Utilizing UGC will build your credibility, enhance the experiences of your customers, provide you with free advertising, help you interact with your community, and increase membership.
Credibility and Customer Experience
As mentioned above, when people see others that they know benefiting from things they may be interested in doing they are more likely to choose the products their friends use over others. This occurs because people making decisions about products or services want to know they are going to have a good experience. When they see their friends having a good experience, they want the same for themselves.
This, in turn, enhances the new customer’s experience because when they come into your gym, they already have expectations. If you can meet and exceed those expectations, you may just have a new customer for life.
Free Marketing
There is nothing better than a free lunch; you savor every bite. For every minute of work, you put into your social media accounts you will be paid many times over. Encourage customers to interact with you on social media by tagging them in photos, liking their posts, or even holding photo contests.
When customers post photos of themselves in your gym with tags, you have access to new possible members. Businesses that run social media accounts for different amenity services will look into the demographics of your followers and tailor social media posts specific to their interests.
You gain exposure to the community as well as a list of new possible members. Using UGC will give you a leg up on the type of people you should be marketing to in addition to some free ad space.
Interacting with the Community
It is hard for small businesses to keep up with their communities. A gym should be part of the lifeblood of a community, where people interact and meet on a daily basis.
Your personal interaction with UGC and your customers will help to keep your finger on the pulse of the community. You will know what they need and be exposed to creative ways to get more of the community’s attention using UGC.
Increase Membership
UGC is a hands-on well-loved way to garner attention for your establishment. It is all in the statistics above. If you can generate quality UGC, people will be influenced to come and at least check out your fitness space.
Once you have new people in the door, it is up to you to get them excited about enrolling and coming back. In addition, customers that are influenced by UGC to join your fitness center are more likely to add to your treasure trove of UGC customers than ones attracted by a sign or coupon.
Using UGC will establish your credibility as a gym that people want to go to. It will solidify your place in the community. You will gain membership and free marketing from using it. Every penny and second spent on your social media accounts to gain UGC will benefit you greatly in the long run.
For more information about user generated content, contact soOlis at info@soOlis.com or 877-789-8773.
