What Is UGC? A Plain-English Guide for Creators and Brands

UGC stands for user-generated content. In its original sense it meant anything a regular customer posted about a product: a photo of a new pair of shoes, a quick review video, a comment about a hotel room. Over the last few years the term has taken on a second, more commercial meaning. Today "UGC" usually describes short videos and photos that look and feel like they were made by a real customer, but that a brand has commissioned from a creator and paid for.

This guide explains both meanings, how brands use UGC, how creators make it, and what a new creator or brand needs to understand before their first project.

The two kinds of UGC

Organic UGC

Organic UGC is content customers make on their own, without being asked or paid. A traveler posts a video of their hotel balcony at sunrise. A customer films themselves trying a new skincare product. Brands value this content because it is unprompted, but they do not own it. If a brand wants to reuse an organic post in its own marketing, it needs the original poster's permission.

Commissioned UGC

Commissioned UGC is made by a creator for a brand under an agreement. The creator films in a natural, everyday style, and the brand receives the finished files to post on its own channels or run as ads. The creator may never post the video on their own account at all. This is the part of the market most people mean when they talk about "UGC creators."

The key difference from traditional influencer marketing is that the brand is usually paying for the content itself rather than for access to the creator's audience. We cover that distinction in more depth in our guide to UGC vs influencer marketing.

Why brands use UGC

Brands commission UGC for a few practical reasons:

• It looks native to social feeds. A phone-filmed video of a person talking to camera fits naturally between posts from friends, so viewers are less likely to scroll past it as an obvious ad.
• It shows the product in real use. Hands opening a box, a face reacting to a taste, a room being used as intended. That kind of footage answers questions a polished studio ad often skips.
• It is flexible. One creator can deliver several hooks, angles or formats, which lets a brand test what resonates with its audience.
• It scales. Working with many creators gives a brand variety in faces, voices, settings and styles.

Hotels, restaurants, apps, consumer products and service businesses all use UGC. The format adapts well to almost any category where seeing a real person use something helps people decide.

What UGC looks like in practice

Common UGC formats include:

• Testimonials: the creator explains why they like a product and who it is for.
• Unboxings: first impressions as the product is opened.
• Demos and tutorials: step-by-step use, showing how something works.
• Problem-solution videos: a relatable frustration followed by the product as the fix.
• Before-and-after content: a visible change over time, used carefully and honestly.
• Lifestyle clips: the product in a real routine, such as a morning coffee or a hotel check-in.
• Photo sets: product photos in real environments rather than on a white background.

Most UGC is vertical (9:16), short, captioned, and designed to grab attention in the first one to three seconds.

What a UGC creator actually does

A UGC creator is part scriptwriter, part performer, part videographer and part editor. On a typical project they will:

1. Read the brand's brief and confirm the deliverables.
2. Receive the product or experience, if needed.
3. Plan a few hooks and a simple structure.
4. Film on a phone with good light and clean audio.
5. Edit, add captions and on-screen text, and export the files.
6. Deliver the files and handle any agreed revisions.

You do not need a large following to do this work. Brands hiring for commissioned UGC mainly care about the quality of the video, how well the creator follows a brief, and whether their style fits the brand. If you are starting from zero, our guide to building a UGC portfolio with no brand clients walks through a practical first step.

How UGC creators get paid

Payment models vary, and most creators use more than one:

• Flat fee per video or package. The most common structure for commissioned UGC.
• Gifted product or experience. The creator receives the product, a stay or a meal in exchange for content. This can be fair for small scopes, but it should be a clear, agreed trade.
• Commission or affiliate. The creator earns a share of sales driven through a link or code.
• Retainers. A set amount of content each month for an ongoing relationship.

What a creator charges depends on the deliverables, how the brand will use the content, how long it can be used, whether it will run as paid ads, and whether exclusivity is involved. Usage rights are one of the biggest factors, and they are worth understanding early.

Rights, disclosure and the basics of doing it properly

Two topics come up on almost every UGC project:

Usage rights. When a brand commissions a video, the agreement should say where the brand can use it (organic social, paid ads, website, email), for how long, and whether the creator can also post it. Leaving this vague causes most of the disputes in this industry.

Disclosure. If a creator posts sponsored content on their own account, the relationship with the brand must be clearly disclosed. In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission's Endorsement Guides apply to paid and gifted relationships alike. Platforms also offer built-in paid partnership labels.

Neither topic is complicated once you know the questions to ask, but both are easy to overlook on a first project.

Getting started

For creators: pick a few product categories you understand, film a handful of portfolio videos with things you already own, and start applying to briefs that match your style. Focus on clean lighting, clear audio and a strong first line.

For brands, agencies and hotels: decide what you want the content to do (build awareness, answer common questions, run as ads), write a short brief, and be clear about usage and timing from the start.

Unresourced is built for exactly this: connecting creators with brands, agencies and hotels so both sides can find the right fit and work together without the guesswork. Creators can create a free account and apply to open campaigns, and brands can post a brief to start finding creators.

The short version

UGC is content that looks and feels like it came from a real customer. Organic UGC is made freely by customers; commissioned UGC is made by creators under an agreement. Brands use it because it feels native, shows real use and is flexible to test. Creators get paid for their skills, not their follower count. Get clear on deliverables, usage rights and disclosure, and you are already ahead of most people starting out.