Why I quit User Generated Content (UGC)
As a neurodivergent person, my brutal honesty and sensitivity to my tone and words made me realize that I wasn’t a fit for scripted UGC videos. As I spoke to the camera, my tics and stims accelerated as I listened to the inauthenticity in my voice, paralyzing me to the point where I couldn’t produce a single video. So I quit.
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
My “Brutal” Honesty Couldn’t Handle the Scripted Videos
As a neurodivergent person, one of my defining traits is brutal honesty. However, this trait can sometimes border on insensitivity and callousness, which means I’m always hyper-aware of my tone and words to avoid being misunderstood or misconstrued. And when it comes to scripted UGC videos, my honesty just couldn’t handle the inauthenticity.
Paralysis by Analysis
When I would try to record scripted UGC videos, I could hear the fake tone in my voice and see my neurodivergent tics and stims accelerate. It was as if the inner narrator in my head, which sounds like the character Joe Goldberg from the Netflix series You (minus the axe murdering tendencies), was screaming at me to stop the charade. I knew that anyone watching would see through my fake review and my anxiety would paralyze me to the point where I could not produce a single video.
The harder I tried, the more upset I would get and the worse my stammering and circular thinking and skin tugging and finger twitching would become. And watching myself stim and struggle on camera was excruciating.
Don’t tell me what my opinion is.
For someone like me, who craves authenticity and honesty, the scripted UGC videos just didn’t cut it. I wanted to share my genuine experiences and opinions, but the scripts and shot lists felt like a barrier to me being able to do so. It was as if the brands were trying to control my voice and mold me into their ideal spokesperson, rather than letting me be myself.
After many attempts at creating scripted UGC videos, I finally realized that I just wasn’t a fit for this type of content creation. My brutal honesty just couldn’t handle the fake, scripted nature of these videos. So, I decided to take a step back and focus on what I truly enjoy – creating honest and authentic reviews of products I already use and love.
It’s not brutal to tell the truth
In the world of UGC, authenticity and honesty are highly valued, but it seems that scripted videos are becoming more and more common. For someone like me, who struggles with masking and hiding my true self, these types of videos just don’t work. And that’s okay. It’s important to know our limits and what we’re truly passionate about.
Creating solely for love of the Content
As I move forward from my experience with scripted UGC videos, I have decided to shift my focus towards creating content with the sole purpose of education and entertainment. Whether it’s sharing my knowledge on a particular subject or simply entertaining my audience, I want to create content that is authentic, honest, and relatable.
Of course, if the opportunity to monetize my content arises, that’s certainly a bonus. However, that won’t be my main focus. Instead, I want to create content that I am passionate about and that I believe will provide value to my audience.
By removing the pressure of monetization from my content, I can focus on creating something that is truly meaningful and engaging. So, instead of trying to fit into a mold that doesn’t suit me, I am embracing my neurodivergent traits and using them to create content that is uniquely me.
In the end, I realized that my authenticity and honesty are not only my greatest strengths but also the key to creating content that truly resonates with people and makes me sought after by brands. My goal is and has always been to create meaningful relationships with clients instead of multiple transactions with customers.
And with that, I can confidently say that I have quit UGC for good.
The Backstory…Welcome to Day One of Get to No University
As a professional photographer and marketing consultant, we are always on the lookout for new tools and technologies that can help businesses improve their online presence. That’s how Greg discovered the Iconasys product photography system, which provides high-quality 360-degree product photos that are perfect for Amazon and e-commerce listings.
Beyond E-commerce listing photos
The system was so impressive that we knew we had to get my hands on it, and once we did, I was blown away by the level of detail and clarity it provided. But I also realized that this tool could be used for much more than just product photography for e commerce listings.
It could also be a powerful asset for creating honest and engaging authentic reviews of our favorite products that we use in real life.
Struggling with UGC: When Passion and Practicality Clash
As an almost exclusive Amazon shopper I depend on realistic representation of the product through actual images and honest reviews. I skip first to the reviews with pictures and videos and only then go back and read the copy the brand wrote about the product. I trust my peers because as a professional photographer, I know how unrealistic many marketing photos are.
As an “old lady” who became TikTok user during the pandemic, I was familiar with the concept of UGC ads but wasn’t totally clear on the rules or how to get started. However, with 35 years of sales and marketing experience under my belt, I was confident in my ability to pitch the idea to businesses and get enthusiastic responses.
Struggling with UGC: When Passion and Practicality Clash
I got a response for almost every pitch I sent because I passionately believe that we can bring value to brands with our photography and I can sell anything I believe in passionately. I have 35 years of sales and marketing experience and have a husband who has a degree in commercial photography and more than 25 years experience earning 6 figures as a professional photographer. Of course everybody said yes!
But things didn’t go as planned. When I tried to record the UGC videos that matched the vision I had in my head, I sounded like a glitchy robot about to be beheaded on a hostage video. As a neurodivergent individual, I found it difficult to deliver the kind of scripted content that UGC often requires, and my attempts to do so left me feeling fake and insincere.
I knew that I could learn the logistics of producing content but there was no reason to pursue something that didn’t work with my values and strengths.
Just because I can doesn’t mean I should
It was a frustrating experience, and it took a toll on my mental health. But in the end, it taught me an important lesson. I realized that I didn’t need to keep pursuing UGC just because I thought it was something I should be doing or could learn to do moderately well. Instead, I could create content I am passionate about – just for fun and not worry about monetization.
So I shifted my focus and started creating content that was purely for a passion project and suddenly my engagement AND my enjoyment have skyrocketed. I share my life experiences on social media and began writing blog posts about how I created the life of my dreams by pursuing the life I deserve instead of the life I had come to settle for.
And while I am not currently making any extra money from these endeavors, I found that they brought me a sense of fulfillment and purpose that UGC never could. I already make a consistent six figure income doing hotel photography without doing any outreach or marketing! From that I have learned that when you are doing what you love, your market will find you.
Like always, I learned that it’s okay to say no to things that aren’t a fit for me, even if they seem like a good idea on paper. And I’m grateful for that lesson because it’s allowed me to focus on what truly matters to me and an opportunity to create content that I’m genuinely proud of.
Leave a Reply