User-generated content has gone through rapid evolution: from lo-fi, low-value product videos to a creator economy that’s predicted to reach $500b by 2027. We investigate why brands are putting more time, money and trust into content creators, and what UGC 3.0 looks like…
We’re in a new era of user-generated content. Something that was once considered a lesser being of the creative world – cheap, low-value and often hastily created – has evolved into a major part of brands’ marketing mix. And it looks nothing like it used to.
There’s no more immediate proof of that than Lewis Hamilton’s recent remake of an iconic scene from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Created to mark his move to the Ferrari team, it’s a piece of absolutely gold standard UGC: the kind of content companies dream of being associated with.
It also marks a sea change for talent’s involvement in UGC. Brands have always been keen to work with these kinds of well-known or well-networked names, but often the value of the project and the quality of the content didn’t add up for them. The Hamilton x Ferrarri video suggests there’s a very real shift in creative power.
“We’re starting to play around with how we put more authentic user-generated content out there, and I think it’s at this level where it’s becoming really interesting."
Joel Mishcon, founder, Chrome Productions
“It’s a fascinating moment, in what it represents for our industry and for things moving forward,” says Joel Mishcon, founder of Chrome Productions, a global creative production company that helped produce and execute the Hamilton x Ferrari film. “We’re starting to play around with how we put more authentic user-generated content out there, and I think it’s at this level where it’s becoming really interesting.”
Mishcon has seen firsthand the rise of online video content. When he founded Chrome in 2002, brands knew they needed to create content but were at a loss around how to do so.
Most agencies and companies were used to creating one or two big campaigns a year, but regular, ongoing content? This was a new world. Years later, however, and budgets are increasingly filtering through to the digital world, via content that’s being given as much love and care as any traditional ad campaign.
“When we started out, content was often a ‘nice to have’, and it was challenging to connect the value it drove for brands,” says Mishcon. “With the proliferation of broadcast, publishing platforms and social media, content has become vital in connecting with audiences, staying relevant and building long-term committed followings. As such, we’ve seen a huge rise in the budgets brands are willing to invest.
“We’re at a point where people trust people more than they trust brands."
Ilan Bass, Global Business Director, Chrome Productions
It’s something we’re also seeing at ASK US FOR IDEAS, where we regularly field briefs from companies asking us to find them content partners or agencies to set up talent partnerships – with the aim of producing creative, effective, high quality content. Talent partnerships in general are going through a major shift – something we’ve written about previously – as brands hire content creators and talent to do more than just post.
“We’re at a point where people trust people more than they trust brands,” says Ilan Bass, Global Business Director at Chrome Productions and former Global Managing Director at WhoSay – a branded content studio that helped brands collaborate with talent to produce premium, storytelling-led marketing campaigns.
”It’s become quite apparent that rather than brands telling the story and bringing the talent along, there’s been a reversal. Rather than trying to force talent into an equation, let’s empower them to tell their stories and we can all get the benefit.”
Part of that shift is because celebrities and influencers are increasingly becoming brands of their own. In some cases, individuals are functioning almost as holding companies – think Selena Gomez, Hailey Bieber or Ryan Reynolds, for example.
“The most forward-thinking brands aren’t just handing talent a script; they’re listening, collaborating, and co-creating."
Joel Mishcon, founder, Chrome Productions
That means many of them are more savvy around brand storytelling, and instead of grudgingly incorporating brands and products into their content, it’s a natural part of their business.
“It’s this conflation of media – digital, TV and social,” says Bass. “It’s all merging. The content lives across everything, and brands and talent are wising up to that.”
Smart marketers and brand leaders are now adopting a far more collaborative model. Instead of pushing their ideas onto talent, they’re asking them what they want to do, and helping make that happen.
According to Mishcon: “The most forward-thinking brands aren’t just handing talent a script; they’re listening, collaborating, and co-creating. These aren’t just ambassadors. Many of them think like brands themselves, with ideas, ambition and range far beyond their core craft. The smartest partnerships tap into that and build something bigger together.”
“Flip the script,” adds Bass. “Get talent to tell you what they love about your brand, and get them to be the creative force behind it and make that happen.”
And it makes complete sense. Celebrities and other talent are far more likely to create singular and notable moments that can bring a brand real, tangible benefit and influence. And for companies that want to ‘get into the culture’, as it was once quaintly known in adland, this is absolute gold.
“Talent seem to intimately know their audience - what they're likely to react to and resonate with", says Mishcon. "These days, talent are able to appeal to the many tastes and sensibilities of a very complex audience landscape, perhaps even more so than brands can. These major personalities act as cultural revolutions, profoundly influencing global conversations and creating exciting possibilities for brands and fans alike."
“The risk is higher, but so is the cultural reward. In a world where audiences are faced with an endless buffet of content, the brands that win are the ones that don’t shout the loudest, but offer something worth choosing. The future of UGC belongs to brands that trust talent to lead, break the mould, and create stories people want to invite in.”
ASK US FOR IDEAS has introduced hundreds of marketers and brand leaders to their ideal agency for ongoing social content as well as PR, influencer and talent partnerships – and many other creative briefs. Get in touch to find out more.
Top image: still from The Journey to Paris 2024 with Team GB, produced by Chrome Productions
