In today’s digital age, almost everyone is able to capture or create good content and share it online. As a result, the web is loaded with UGC or user-generated content.
By definition, user-generated content is contained in the form of text, video, photos, posts, reviews and similar that is generated by individuals (not brands) and shared online or on social media.
This form of content has become an important part, if not the most important, of content marketing strategy. Since UGC is authentic, builds customer trust and influences consumers (among others), many brands leverage it into their marketing strategy.
However, while user-generated content may be a great form of marketing, you need to be extra careful to comply with the legalities and regulations put in place.
Keep reading to find out all the pros and cons of UGC alongside the legal risks associated with leveraging user-generated content.
UGC legal issues
Some of the elements to consider when leveraging UGC for commercial purposes include the following:
- Intellectual property. Who owns the content you are using? Do you have the right to use it? As a business using UGC, you have to make sure the content is being used legally. This means getting permission from the users posting (owing) the content. Intellectual property and copyright is protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA 1988).
- Privacy. When businesses or consumers use UGC that contains personal data, they need to comply with UK data protection legislation and privacy laws. Failure to do so could constitute a criminal offence and lead to a claim for damages and/or the imposition of a fine of up to £500,000.
- Offensive and inappropriate content. UGC is public and some users may post offensive content as part of this marketing. Typically, the user posting inappropriate content is legally accountable for it. However, reposting such content can leave your company in violation of the law. To avoid this, you can pay better attention when choosing content to repost and share with others.
- Defamation. When posting and sharing user-generated content, you have to be very careful of defamatory content. While typically, it’s the user or the social media platform accountable for this activity, there have been cases where businesses and websites are held liable for defamatory content created by their users.
How to steer clear of litigation?
When using UGC for your marketing campaign, you should carefully create your approach by taking the following steps:
- Create clear terms and conditions. Such an agreement makes it clear that a business can use UGC as it sees fit.
- Include UGC in your Privacy Policy. Covering user-generated content in your Privacy Policy explains all the ways in which you collect, use, store, or share personal information. It should also include what types of personal information you collect via UGC.
- Use a license agreement. When your users accept a licensing agreement, it gives you certain rights to use and publish their content.
At K&K always look after our clients, and we want to make sure you don’t have to face considerable fines if you don’t follow regulations. For this reason, we have created a User Generated Content contract that includes variables so that you can adjust it to the specific needs of your business. It also comes with a handy guide for better comprehension.