Becoming a UGC creator isn’t for the faint of heart. But if you stick with it, you can create a flexible and rewarding career, try amazing products, and have fun along the way.
Today, we’ll cover everything you need to become a UGC content creator. If you’re asking any of the following questions, this article is for you:
- What is a UGC content creator, anyway?
- What do I need to become a UGC creator? And why should I become one?
- What steps can I take to launch my UGC career?
- Where can I find UGC jobs?
Plus, we’ll also share some tips to fast-track your first payday.
Are you ready to see if becoming a UGC creator is right for you? Then keep reading! 🎉
But first- what is a UGC creator?
A UGC creator is a person who creates user-generated content for brands.
This content can be videos, photos, or reviews, but the vast majority of it is videos. They can also be called UGC content creators or home studio creators.
UGC creators aren’t the same as influencers. The main difference is that UGC creators aren’t concerned with building a following on social media– they’re already working with brands and monetizing without all of that. The only skill they’re honing is making better content.
Many influencers start as content creators, but that’s not something you have to pursue. It boils down to how interested you are in social media and building a community– and whatever your answer is, that’s fine. You don’t have to have thousands of followers to make money with UGC content.
What do you need to become a UGC creator?
Because you don’t need a huge following on social media to get started with UGC, it’s something you can start as soon as you’d like. There are, however, a few things you’ll need:
- A camera. This doesn’t need to be an expensive camera– honestly, a newer phone will do the trick.
- Basic content editing skills. You don’t need to be an expert in Photoshop or Premiere Pro to become a UGC creator. You’ll just need simple skills like adding subtitles, music, or a voiceover to videos. For photos, edits you can make on your phone like adding light or contrast are enough to start.
- Comfort with the camera. We get a lot of questions from aspiring creators asking if they need to show their faces in the videos and photos they create– the short answer is YES. Some brands might look for videos where the creators don’t show up, but that’s a small percentage. The good news is, you can improve this. Practice speaking in front of your camera at home, and slowly get comfortable with that– don’t rush or overcomplicate it. Just practice until you’re not camera-shy.
- Willingness to consistently work and improve. Like any other skill, being a UGC creator requires time– especially in the beginning. There are many examples of content craters who started at 0, and now they get paid thousands of dollars to create content. Some of them even joined our team– How cool is that? So, we want you to get this: you’ll need to show up and be consistent. In the beginning, you’ll need a bit of grinding and motivation to keep going. But the results are worth it. We can say from personal experience that making a living from UGC is super cool– plus, you get to meet people, be part of communities, and get free products all the time!
Which brings us to…
Why should you become a UGC creator?
We’ve already touched on this, but it’s hard to figure out if you *want* to be a UGC creator if you don’t know what it’s like to be one. So let’s talk about it more!
Here are some of our favorite things about being a UGC creator:
- Lucrative pay: UGC can be a great source of income, especially as you polish your content skills. With a bit of work and dedication, you can eventually make it your main source of income!
- Flexibility: As a UGC creator, you aren’t tied to an office, job, or any specific location– you can do it from anywhere, as long as brands can ship products to you. We won’t lie: being your own boss comes with responsibility, but it’s fun, too.
- Free products: Although this isn’t the *main* reason to become a UGC content creator, you do get free products from brands all the time– which is awesome!
- Fun: As a UGC content creator, you can make friends doing the same thing, travel for events, and become part of UGC communities.
- Growth opportunities: UGC is trending upward, so if you hop on now you’ll be riding a good wave. More and more brands prefer UGC creators to influencers– it’s your chance to take advantage of that!
What do you think? Are those enough reasons to start?
How can I become a content creator? What steps do I need to take?
Before we get into the nitty-gritty, read the requirements we talked about earlier in this article:
Are you willing to embark on that journey and the time and effort it will take?
If the answer is yes, that’s great! Next, think about the kind of UGC creator you want to be.
What are you passionate about? Get out a pen or your notes app and make a short list– because the magic of UGC is that the creators are genuinely excited about the brands they work with. Your list of passions and things you care about will help you stay focused and find brands you love.
Once you have that list, here’s how we recommend starting your UGC journey, based on our experience:
Start researching and learning more about the industry
Blogs like the UGC Club and our blog will give you a good picture of what’s happening in the industry. Try to research and understand how this works from multiple sources.
You want to get an idea of:
- Why brands prefer UGC content (so you can deliver!)
- The kinds of UGC content that are out there
- Popular niches– see if you can find any that fit with your passions and interests
- How brands use UGC
- Formats and marketing principles that work in UGC– try to find examples of videos when you can. Case studies are one place you might be able to find examples, and we also have some later in this article!
Don’t overthink it or feel like you need to spend too much time on this step– the idea is to be up-to-date with the industry before you jump in.
Practice creating content– especially videos
Your ceiling will be determined by the quality of videos you create– so start practicing making them.
Seriously– find a quiet spot at home, and practice talking into your phone’s camera, or even in front of a mirror. This skill is crucial for UGC, so it’s worth investing some time to get it right.
If you’re already good at this– awesome! But if you’re uncomfortable at all, please practice.
In addition to talking to a camera, research how to create awesome videos and practice filming. The better your video creation skills are, the more money you can make.
Set up a portfolio and basic social media profiles
To set up your portfolio, use a free tool like Canva to create a portfolio with a bio of who you are and what you’re passionate about, content samples, and contact details.
If you don’t have videos to add, use this hack: buy some products you want to use (or grab some you have), and create videos with those.
This hack should work as you’re starting– although you’ll eventually want to replace them with videos you’ve made for brands. Just make sure you’re comfortable speaking in front of the camera and know how to film before you put together your portfolio! (We know we keep saying this, but it’s important– and we’ve seen some stuff)
Here’s a portfolio template from our friends at UGC Club that you can use as a starting point.
Once you have your portfolio set up, create some simple Instagram or TikTok profiles so brands can discover you and see more about you. You don’t need followers on these yet, just some good examples of content in case they look you up. After all, you’re not trying to be an influencer– you’re just trying to make UGC for brands you love.
Setting up social media profiles isn’t 100% necessary, but it sometimes helps. Our platform, for example, doesn’t require you to have a custom social media profile to sign up and start working with brands, and we have creators who don’t have social media handles at all. But, if you’re doing brand outreach by yourself, you’ll need one.
Aim to get UGC gigs ASAP
Once you’re comfortable in front of the camera, don’t wait to make everything *perfect* before you start landing jobs. That’s a great way to stop yourself before you even start.
Instead, start looking for UGC jobs. Here are some great places to find them:
- Clip - You can sign up as a creator for FREE, get paid per video, and get free products!
- UGC Club - These guys are awesome. Check out their job board and bookmark their blog because it’s a super good (and totally free!) resource. They even teach you how to become a UGC creator.
- Social media - You can also message brands on social media to ask if they’re looking for UGC creators. Pro tip, though: Start messaging smaller brands you care about first. Don’t start messaging brands like Nike or Adidas because they aren’t going to care. Keep track of all of the brands you message, follow up, and prepare to create some free content to get the ball rolling.
A word to the wise: Sending messages and applying to work with brands is a LOT of work. Many of these places will ask to see your portfolio, so make sure you have that ready before you start. If you don’t have videos to add to your portfolio yet, improvise with products you already own or just bought. (Check out the template we linked above for a starting point)
Practice, practice, practice
Once you’ve completed the steps above and booked gigs, keep it up! Keep learning and growing along the way. You’ll never outgrow improving your filming skills, speaking on-camera, and pitching to brands.
Remember, you’ll need to grind and be consistent in the beginning to learn and improve– so don’t quit!
And that’s it. That’s how to become a UGC creator. You might be disappointed to find no “secret sauce” to help you get better overnight, but we don’t want to sell you lies.
The creators who go full-time with UGC are the ones who followed all of the steps above, kept leveling up their content, and didn’t quit. And the good news is that you can do it, too!
Examples of videos created by UGC creators from Clip
What should a UGC video look like? To give you an idea, here are some amazing videos from creators on Clip. You’ll want your final videos to look something like these ones.
Don’t feel discouraged if you see some of these videos look super polished or professional. The creators that did some of those might have quite a bit of experience behind them.
We’ve showcased them for inspiration, so don't compare yourself to them. Be inspired, and know you’ll get there if you’re consistent.
Ready to become a UGC creator?
We’re biased, but becoming a UGC creator is a super rewarding side hustle– or career.
In how many jobs do you get the chance to have freedom and flexibility, be your own boss, express your creativity, receive free products, and get paid?
The closest thing we can think of is being an influencer– but becoming a UGC creator is way simpler. You don’t have to build a community or figure out the social media algorithm!
All you have to do is focus on making great content for brands you love.
Sound like you?
Then we’d love for you to apply to become a Clip creator!
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