Happy Tuesday!
In the creative process, we’ve found that there are TONS of little details and room for mistakes. We made those mistakes so hopefully, you don’t have to.
UGC creators: here are four questions that should be asked and answered before diving into a client project.
On the other hand, if you’re a brand owner or marketer, here are questions to keep in mind when beginning a new project with a UGC creator.
#1 How is the product supposed to be used?
There have been products in the past that seem self-explanatory, but we ended up needing to do revisions because of small details that were incorrect. For example, putting a powder mix in AFTER the liquid to prevent clumping, tying pants too tight so the elastic was showing a bit, or wearing something incorrectly.
Creators might think this is nit-picky or silly but it’s extremely important to brands that their products are demonstrated correctly and in the best way possible which is a very fair expectation!
Also, always ask how to pronounce the brand name (yes, we are saying this from experience).
#2 Where will the video be used?
A video being used for organic is going to be different than one that’s being used for paid. For example, you can most definitely use a well-known song or trending sound in organic, but we wouldn’t recommend doing this for paid. The overall concepts differ quite a bit as well.
The creator also needs to know what platforms the content will be used on since the sizes and aspect ratios can be different. Tiktok is vertical 9:16 while Facebook and Instagram might be a 1:1 square. This is super important when editing!
#3 What counts as a revision?
We can sit and watch a video over and over and continually find things that should be changed. It’s just the nature of this work. But that’s not fair to the creators. So it’s important to outline how many rounds of revisions are included in the scope of work as well as what counts as a revision.
A revision is when something is incorrect, illegible, misaligned from the approved outline, or there’s a typo. A revision isn’t a change of mind or preference. This is why it’s so important for brands to outline specific points and shots they want at the start of the project.
#4 Does the brand want the raw files?
Some brands have in-house editors who can spin up variations. Creators don’t have to include raw files, but if they do, this should be baked into their fee. The brand will have full rights to spin up as many variations as they want.
In case you missed it: We dropped our UGC Getting Started Guide! It covers:
- Researching and planning videos
- Script template
- Building UGC portfolio
- Website must-haves
- Filming/editing (including fav tools)
- Setting rates & invoicing
- How to grow on social and land your first client
