Influencer marketing and user generated content (UGC) are rapidly becoming the most widely-used online marketing strategies. With rising rates of ad blocking, the adoption of mobile-first everything, social media app use, and declining rates of TV viewership, brands and marketers of all industries are realizing just how critical digital influencers are to an effective, comprehensive, and multi-platform marketing strategy. Budgets are growing fast, and marketers are seeing strong returns.

Here at Talkwalker, we understand the importance of a brand’s visual representation online and on social as we see the daily growth of engagement rates with our social media analytics tool. We also use our proprietary image recognition technology for visual social listening to understand the nature of user generated content and influencer marketing. We took some time to highlight three of the most compelling reasons why user generated content and influencer marketing is now a must-do for brands and how marketers can unearth these hidden gems of content.

Starbucks customers across the country were asked to doodle on their cups and submit pictures as entries for a ‘White Cup’ contest in 2015.

1. UGC Drives Purchase Decisions

According to a study by Dr. Jonah Berger from the Wharton School, influencers post user generated content about purchasing recommendations up to 22.2 times more online and in social conversations than the average user. Additionally, 82 percent of consumers said they were highly likely to follow a recommendation made by a micro-influencer. With that said, UGC can be a primary driver when it comes to capturing and targeting the right audiences for your brand and products.

Top beauty blogger and influencer, Mariana Hewitt, recommends some of her favorite hair brands.

2. Influencers Are the New Celebrity Spokespeople

The traditional route in the past was to employ a celebrity spokesperson as a strategic marketing tactic. But today, the bigger opportunity is in influencer outreach and the procurement of user generated images encompassing a brands products and services. Real life influencers who are passionate about the products they are recommending not only have a significant following but a higher number of buying conversations and conversions. With that said, consumers are more likely to trust and act on an influencer recommendation.

Coca-Cola created the “Share a Coke” campaign, throughout which the company produced Coke bottles with customers’ names on the labels.

3. UGC is Credible

Credibility is also a major reason UGC posted by influencers is key. According to the study, 74 percent of influencers encouraged their following to “buy or try it.” 94 percent of influencers were viewed as more credible and trustworthy vs. 83 percent of average people. Influencers are seen as more knowledgeable and best at detailing how a product works or could be used.

The growing importance of influencer marketing and user-generated content has made marketers rethink their social media marketing strategies. With over 1.8 billion photos being shared online and across social, it’s time for marketers to pay attention and adopt the best tools to strengthen their daily responsibilities. Word of mouth is just as impactful via digital channels as it is in the physical world, especially when it is coming from credible consumers who are just like their audiences.

How-To Find the Best UGC

New age technology tools are one way to discover UGC to boost influencer marketing strategy. Talkwalker’s latest image recognition technology can help marketers illuminate and activate who on the web or social is posting visual content that has the greatest impact on their brands and why. Here’s what the founder & president of the strategic communications agency, Peppercomm, had to say about Talkwalker’s image recognition technology in this Adweek post.

With the amount of images being shared on social each day, 1.8 billion to be exact, it is important for our clients to have a clear picture and understanding of how their brand is being used and visually represented across social and online mediums. As an agency using Talkwalker’s image recognition technology, our clients are confident we have a 360 view of what’s happening with their brand. My teams can now harness the clearest pictures possible of our clients’ online footprint.

With Talkwalker’s image recognition feature, brands now have a way to discover and employ user-generated content, and measure these visual impressions by the engagement they receive. A vast number of UGC posted by users typically never include a brand’s name in the caption or text — this is why using a discovery tool like image recognition is key.

These are just a few of the opportunities that image recognition offers to your company: track what your influencers, brand loyalists, and competition are doing, find Instagram posts when no hashtags are used, and gain insights into your customers’ experience. Image recognition can be a benefit to many departments – from marketing and PR to legal, product or customer care. User generated content is a new way to boost your influencer and social media marketing strategies and with Talkwalker’s image recognition technology, marketers can find the right content to help take your social media marketing to the next level.

Article Written By: Marissa Cazem