Digital technology has completely changed how we discover products, engage with brands and share our experiences with others. Amazon revolutionized customer feedback and product reviews. Social media transformed the way people share word-of-mouth recommendations, connecting shoppers to off-the-cuff opinions, compelling visual content and real-life experiences from peers and influencers they follow and admire.
Sure, TV, radio and print ads are still part of the mix but they hardly carry the same weight as they did in years passed. This statistic speaks volumes: 92% of consumers trust peer recommendations over branded advertising. With the advent of social media and digital technology, brands have a powerful new tool at their disposal that brings word-of-mouth to the masses: usergenerated content (UGC).