There’s no denying that pet owners love to showcase their furry, feathered, and scaled friends.
User-generated content featuring pets interacts extremely well across social media platforms.
For brands in the best pet products space, user-generated pet content represents a huge opportunity.
Why Pet User-Generated Content is King
User-generated content (UGC) focused on pets can help your brand in several ways:
- Attract Customers– Pet owners love talking about and seeing pets. UGC gives you great content to share that brings in animal lovers.
- Appeal to Emotions– Cute, funny pet UGC tugs at the heartstrings. It’s a powerful way to connect with customers emotionally.
- Enhance Brand Image– Associating your brand with adorable, enjoyable pet content gives your brand personality.
- Demonstrate Products– Pet owners love showing off products they use with their animals. It’s authentic proof your products are great.
- Increase Engagement– UGC gets more engagement than branded content. Pet UGC especially tends to go viral quickly when shared.
Strategies to Source Relevant Pet User-Generated Content
To fill your content pipeline with pet UGC, try these sourcing strategies:
Launch User-Generated Content Campaigns
Run contests or campaigns to get users posting about your products featuring their pets. Offer prizes and leverage hashtags like #MyPetLoves[YourBrand] to collect relevant content easily.
Monitor Social Media
Keep an eye on social platforms and hashtags related to your products and pets. When you find good UGC, ask the creator for permission to share it.
Check Reviews and Mentions
People often post photos of pets along with product reviews and brand mentions. Search for these across the web and reach out for sharing approval.
Connect with Pet Influencers
Partner with pet owners who have large followings. Get them to create UGC posts with your products. You can even ask them to encourage followers to do the same.
Utilize UGC Aggregator Platforms
Sites like Hootsuite, UpContent and Chapterful make it easy to find, approve, and share UGC. Their pet filters help you quickly find pet-related content.
Getting Permissions to Use Pet User-Generated Content
To legally share pet user-generated content, you need permission. Here are some tips:
- Add Details in Campaign Rules– When launching UGC campaigns requiring submissions, include permissions in the rules.
- Use Release Forms– Have pet owners sign release forms granting permission before sending in UGC.
- Ask Permission– If sharing UGC sourced elsewhere, reach out to the creator via a platform’s messaging system.
- Offer Compensation or Credit– To incentivize approval, offer small prizes, product discounts, or prominent credit in exchange for sharing rights.
Re-purposing Pet User-Generated Content
Once you’ve gotten approval to use pet UGC, leverage it across platforms:
- Share on social media using relevant hashtags like #CuteDogs and tagging the creator.
- Display UGC visuals prominently on your website and product pages.
- Turn pet UGC into testimonials, social proof and reviews.
- Reuse engaging pet UGC in ads, especially on Instagram and Facebook.
- Add UGC photos and videos to blog posts and guides to make them more engaging.
Pet Product Brand Examples Succeeding with UGC
Brands like Chewy, PetSmart and others have harnessed pet UGC:
- Chewy features pet UGC across its platforms in campaigns like #ChewySquad promoting engagement.
- PetSmart encourages shoppers to post pics of their pets trying on Halloween costumes using #PetSmartHalloween for user images.
- Bocce’s Bakery frequently reposts and engages with followers’ photos of dogs enjoying its treats.
The key is to make it easy and rewarding for users to share while asking for permissions to repurpose content. Encourage creativity and fun with pet images featuring your products.
Turn Your Brand Into a Pet UGC Powerhouse
Pet user-generated content represents an amazing opportunity for brands to appeal to emotions, demonstrate products, boost engagement and reshape their image.
Implement sourcing strategies like social listening, running UGC campaigns, leveraging reviews and working with pet influencers.
Make sure to secure sharing rights by adding release form details into your UGC campaign rules. Ask for permissions and offer compensation for repurposing rights.
Then get creative in reusing engaging pet UGC across your digital presence. The more you showcase authentic pet images and videos featuring your products, the more your brand will connect with pet lovers.
