Brand Guide
How to Hire UGC Creators: A Complete Guide for Brands
Everything you need to know about finding UGC creators, building a successful campaign, and creating authentic short-form content for your brand.
Are you a creator? Read the guide on how to become a UGC creator →
What is a UGC creator?
UGC stands for user-generated content. A UGC creator is someone who creates content that feels natural to social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, Facebook, and YouTube Shorts.
Unlike traditional advertising, UGC content is designed to feel more authentic and native to the platforms where people already spend their time. That might include:
- Product demonstrations
- Reviews
- Tutorials
- Day-in-the-life content
- Problem-and-solution videos
- Storytelling
- Trends
- Short-form videos
You don’t always need a creator with millions of followers to create valuable content. Sometimes what matters most is whether the creator can make a video that people actually want to watch.
Why are brands hiring UGC creators?
The way people consume advertising has changed. Traditional commercials interrupt content. Creator content is the content.
People spend hours scrolling through TikTok, Instagram Reels, Facebook, and YouTube Shorts. The content that performs best often doesn’t look like a traditional advertisement. It looks natural. It feels personal. It gets to the point quickly. And it gives people a reason to keep watching.
That’s why more brands are working with creators. Creators can help brands produce short-form content that feels native to the platforms where their customers already spend their time.
Do UGC creators need huge followings?
No. This is one of the biggest misconceptions about working with creators. A massive following can be valuable, but follower count isn’t the only thing that matters. When hiring creators, brands should also consider:
- Content quality
- Creativity
- Storytelling ability
- Platform experience
- Niche
- Engagement
- Personality
- Ability to create authentic content
A creator with a smaller audience may be excellent at making short-form videos. A creator with a huge audience may not necessarily be the right fit for your campaign.
The goal shouldn’t simply be to find the person with the most followers. The goal is to find creators who can help you create the right content.
Step by Step
How to hire UGC creators
Hiring UGC creators doesn’t have to be complicated. Here’s a simple process brands can follow.
Define your campaign goal
Before you start looking for creators, ask yourself what you’re actually trying to accomplish.
- Creating more short-form content
- Building brand awareness
- Testing different creative ideas
- Reaching new audiences
- Showing how your product or service works
- Generating authentic creator content
- Driving attention to a new launch
Create a clear campaign brief
Your campaign brief gives creators the information they need before they start creating.
Don’t script every single word. Give creators the important information, clear boundaries, and a direction—then give them room to create. The best creator content usually doesn’t feel like someone is reading a commercial.
- What your brand does
- What product or service the campaign is about
- The goal of the campaign
- Key messages
- Content requirements
- Platform requirements
- Deadlines
- Important things creators should include
- Things creators should avoid
Find creators who fit your brand
Don’t immediately sort everyone by follower count. Instead ask: would this person make content that fits our brand?
Look at content style, creativity, platform experience, brand fit, and storytelling. The best creator for your campaign isn’t always the biggest creator—it’s often the creator who is the best fit.
Give creators creative freedom
One of the biggest mistakes brands make is trying to control every second of a creator’s video. The brand writes the script, the creator reads it word for word, the final video looks like an advertisement—and people scroll past it.
Share your campaign goal, the important talking points, your requirements, and what to avoid. Then let them create. Direction should help creators make better content instead of turning them into an actor reading a commercial.
Make the requirements clear
Clear requirements help everyone. Before creators begin, make sure they understand what they’re creating, which platform to post on, campaign messaging, required disclosures, deadlines, submission requirements, and any content restrictions.
A good campaign makes it easy for a creator to answer: What am I creating? What do I need to include? When is it due? What happens after I submit it?
Review the content
Once creators begin submitting content, you need a clear review process to verify that the content meets campaign requirements, includes the required information, follows campaign guidelines, and was submitted correctly.
Review isn’t there to remove creativity. The best campaigns balance clear brand expectations with creator authenticity.
Track performance
Creating content is only part of the process. Look at which content performed well, which creative ideas worked, which hooks got attention, which creators produced strong content, and which messages connected with people.
Creator marketing shouldn’t always be treated as a one-time experiment. The more you learn from your campaigns, the better your future campaigns can become.
The NxtVybe way to hire UGC creators
NxtVybe is designed to make it easier for brands and creators to work together around short-form content campaigns. Here’s how it works.
- 01
Create your brand account
Create your brand account and set up your company on NxtVybe. This gives you a place to manage your creator campaigns and activity.
- 02
Build your campaign
Create a campaign around what you’re trying to accomplish. The more clearly you explain the campaign, the easier it is for creators to understand what you’re looking for.
- Your campaign goal
- Campaign requirements
- Platform
- Budget
- Creator opportunities
- Your campaign playbook
- 03
Create your campaign playbook
Your playbook gives creators the information they need to participate—what your brand does, what you’re promoting, the key message, content ideas, requirements, guidelines, and important things to include. Think of the playbook as the bridge between your brand’s goals and the creator’s content.
- 04
Connect with creators
Approved creators can discover opportunities that fit their content and participate in campaigns. Instead of spending hours manually trying to find individual creators, brands can build campaigns designed around the type of content they need.
- 05
Creators create and submit content
Creators follow the campaign requirements and create their content. Once their content is live and submitted according to the campaign instructions, it enters the campaign workflow for review and verification.
- 06
Review campaign submissions
Review submitted creator content and verify that it meets the campaign requirements. This helps keep the campaign organized while ensuring creators understand what happens after they submit.
- 07
Track eligible performance
Track campaign activity and eligible performance as creator content begins generating results. This gives brands a clearer picture of how their campaign is performing and helps them learn what works.
Why work with multiple UGC creators?
Working with multiple creators gives your brand something incredibly valuable: different creative perspectives.
Ten creators might approach the exact same product in ten completely different ways. One might create a tutorial. Another might tell a story. Another might use humor. Another might focus on solving a problem. Another might create content around a current trend.
You don’t always know which creative angle will connect best. That’s why testing different creators and different approaches can be valuable. Creator campaigns give brands the opportunity to learn from multiple creative perspectives instead of relying on one traditional advertisement.
What makes a good UGC campaign?
There isn’t one magic formula, but successful campaigns usually have a few things in common.
A clear goal
Everyone understands what the campaign is trying to accomplish.
A strong brief
Creators have the information they need to create confidently.
The right creators
The people creating the content are a good fit for the campaign.
Creative freedom
Creators can make content that feels natural to their style.
Clear requirements
Everyone knows what needs to happen before, during, and after the campaign.
Performance insights
The brand learns from the campaign and improves over time.
Common mistakes brands make when hiring UGC creators
Choosing creators only based on followers
Follower count can matter, but it shouldn’t be the only thing you look at. Content quality and creative ability can be just as important.
Over-scripting the content
If the creator sounds like they’re reading a commercial, people can tell. Give creators direction without removing their personality.
Giving creators unclear instructions
Confusing requirements lead to confusing results. Make your campaign expectations clear before creators begin.
Expecting every video to perform the same
Different creators will create different results. That’s part of the value of working with multiple people and testing different creative approaches.
Treating creator marketing as a one-time experiment
The best lessons often come after a campaign is complete. Pay attention to what worked, then use those insights to improve the next campaign.
Frequently asked questions
What is a UGC creator?
A UGC creator creates content designed to feel authentic and native to social platforms such as TikTok, Instagram Reels, Facebook, and YouTube Shorts.
Do UGC creators need a large following?
Not necessarily. Depending on the campaign, creativity, content quality, storytelling ability, and platform fit can all be important factors.
How do brands hire UGC creators?
Brands can find creators directly, work with agencies, or use creator marketing platforms like NxtVybe to create campaigns and connect with creators.
What should I include in a UGC campaign brief?
Include your campaign goal, brand information, key messaging, content requirements, deadlines, platform requirements, and anything creators need to know before they begin.
Should brands give UGC creators a script?
Usually, it’s better to provide clear messaging and requirements rather than scripting every word. Creators should have enough creative freedom to make the content feel natural.
How many UGC creators should a brand work with?
That depends on your campaign goals and budget. Working with multiple creators can give you different creative perspectives and allow you to test different types of content.
How do I know if a UGC campaign worked?
Look at the performance information available for your campaign and pay attention to which creative approaches, messages, and content performed best. Use those insights to improve future campaigns.
Ready to hire UGC creators?
Your brand doesn’t need to spend months sending cold messages, managing spreadsheets, and trying to coordinate creator campaigns manually.
NxtVybe gives brands a place to build creator campaigns, provide clear playbooks, manage submissions, and track eligible campaign performance.
Build your next creator campaign with NxtVybe
Connect with creators. Create better short-form content. Learn what works.
The bottom line
The best UGC campaigns aren’t about finding the person with the biggest follower count. They’re about finding creators who can create content people actually want to watch.
Give them a clear goal. Give them the information they need. Give them room to create. Then learn from the results.
That’s how brands can start building a smarter creator marketing strategy.
Curious what the other side of a campaign looks like? Read How to Become a UGC Creator to see the same workflow from a creator’s perspective.