why has UGC become an MLM?

I think is fake cause when I see the following base I’m like nah and they have course wich it doesn’t promise anything.

To be honest, as soon as i see someone showing off a product, i skip past their content so fast. I hate the fakeness of people zonline trying to peddle a product. Same with sponsor content i skip past it. I dont want to be peddled to so i hate that.

I am an Amazon Influencer, which I have been for quite some time. I have always been on the fence about UGC and as such, have not created this kind of content. I think it is disingenuous to have creators making content that is designed to 'feel authentic'. I have brands that approach me all the time about doing UGC work, as I have roughly 1,000 videos on Amazon and my answer is always the same. I make videos about products that I love and that I use organically in my life. If that was your product, which I paid for and you happened to like the video, we can talk. Otherwise, it's a no. Everyone has to decide where their line is, but I will have to say that I 1000% agree with how you feel about this, though I am sure that a lot of UGC creators will feel differently. It dilutes the customer experience for people who are natively enjoying content on their chosen social media platform to now have to question whether or not this individual actually likes this product or if they have simply been paid to say that they do. Thanks for filming this video. I have felt this way for a very long time.

I feel like its just like any other job. Yes of course different but its like okay do You wanna be a store front with your own hours and schedule or do you wanna slave away at a regular job with someone having power over you. Yeah maybe it’s not super personal but you probably don’t feel that personal working at any other job either

"Thats what people do... they commit shenanigans." Gotta get that on a bumper sticker.

Am I crazy naïve & optimistic to think more on the side that UGC feels so helpful for brands that are not big corporations or attached to big companies. I think UGC can be so helpful for new & independent businesses & brands. Cause there really are two sides to every story and I think it’s worth stating that yea hyper capitalist & big corporations suck ass when they take advantage, but I also don’t think it’s fair to take the opportunity of potential growth & outreach from independent new businesses because of THEM.
Ya know?…

Awesome video! Anyone upset is apart of the group wanting to deinfluence but have a social page for ugc and use it to influence.. alright 😂

I was so confused UGC is a French cinema chain 😂 so until it was defined as User Generated Content I thought we were mad at this random cinema chain 🙈

i came here to complain about something i see in obvious ugc ads or even in portfolios, often with skincare/body care/hair care: them obviously not using the products, placing subtle video edits and cuts to hide them transitioning between dispensing the product in their hands in one hand and using it in the following clip. it's a huge insult of our intelligence, even though it's sneaky and easy to miss if you're half asleep, i guess.

How do you become a millionaire?
Convince 10,000 people to pay $99.99 for How to Become a Millionaire: A Step-by-Step Guide

can someone break down the recession/ future recession for someone stupid

This reminds me of when people were selling courses on how to make money with passive income. They leave out that fact that their “passive income” is from selling the course on how to make passive income. And the course teaches you how to make courses and sell them … and usually the course they teach you to make is on… how to make passive income. 👁️👄👁️

I thought this was about UGG, the fleecey boots.

80% of jobs lost during the ongoing pandemic have been women’s; that’s why there’s so many new MLM-like micro-influencers, there a ton of desperate women trying to stay afloat. One of the MAMY treasons why we should have demanded UI when everyone was paying attention. But naw, the US has to keep sipping the imaginary “raw individualism” juice 🙄

Nope, still don't want an iPhone, sorry =oP

Oh Amanda, nobody can replace you!

my dad’s done two or three deals with brands - he gets discounted stuff for his truck, and they ask him to put a post or two on instagram and keep their brand sticker on his car for a year - 18 months. he reached out to them for the discount. its very strange being the adult child of someone who does brand deals for truck parts

Me feeling old not knowing what a micro influencer is

I got a Mr Beast Shopify ad before this video and uh..... what in the "your socks are Mr Beast socks, of course the business will take off in seconds you numpty" was that

Yea like you said it’s not technically an MLM but I get the connection. I think “ongoing grift” might be a better description.

Hi swell, I’m a small business owner and rely heavily on a mix of actual influencers and UGC creators. There’s a difference. Like you said, influencers are great for their personality and brand. But UGC creators are also creators and have a brand: editing ethos, mood, tone, photography. These are all things we used to have to pay professional studio or product photographers for. Now we as indie businesses can support other indie businesses. Not sure about courses and etc but at least functionally, I LOVE UGC creators.

Ps if anyone wants luxury Korean/Chinese nail art press ons that’s what I do!

Thank you for this. My tiktok is covered with “become a UGC” and I’m too tired to figure out the scam

Me, reading the title: Ah yes, Upright Gitizens Crigade

Dear Amanda Swell, the leagel departments from the "Commission On Acceptable Infant Shapes" aswell as the "Babies Are Not Triangles Campaign Executive Committee", will be contacting you this week.

“On Twitter I’m considered annoying” 😂

mother

Wait, so are those weird Instagram accounts that follow you that have like 200 followers and then you go to the page and it's like all these aesthetic photos and like a girl with her boyfriend but all you see is their hands and like a coffee cup, and like a view of a European city. And that's all they have on there Page. Nothing that helps. You figure out who they actually are, or like any purpose to it and sometimes randomly one of their posts will have like an extremely large amount of engagements even though they only have like 22 followers - those accounts always confused me

Oof I just got an MLM ad on this video.

got a very creepy ad for another mlm on this video lmao

you're so right. we see the top 0.1% of creators winning, and it looks easy because we don't see the literal hundreds of millions of people who aren't winning!

Why do I get the feeling you're about to launch a course about how to protect yourself as a UGC creator?😁

BRB, buying an iPhone because Amanda has one

So, UGC creators are just the new Amway stooges?

Amanda, I've been seeing a lot of rave about eco sheets for laundry. Could you please try it and see if its fr?

the irony of getting an MLM ad on this video 💀

The courses are KILLING ME LMFAO and why would anyone buy them

Swell this title annoyed me so much. Like wow the greater fool scheme is a greater fool scheme? Who would have guessed lmao

Go on girl — shake the table!

Generally you make good points.
And I think the Amish are a cult. People don't generally go there for whatever reason, but, they really are.

I misread the title as "UGG" but I stayed when I realized that there's something I"m not aware about and....it's a swell video

I love how this video reveals that you think we refer to you in our own minds as “Swell”. 😂

I don’t think you have that much context in terms of UGC. I work for an agency and we pay creators every single day.
Barely any videos we make don’t include the face and voice of the creator.

UGC creators need to be well versed in Marketing, Psychology, and be all round entertaining.
The content isn’t replaceable - you can’t replace someone’s personality, editing style, filming style.

I don’t know what you expect brands to do to sell their products. Influencer marketing isn’t performing as well on TikTok. That’s just a fact.

Some creators are very hard working and don’t create courses to make more money, I know someone who has retainers and makes 5k per month.

It’s much more of a case of “if you can’t play, you teach”. I disagree with creators who have been doing ugc for 2 minutes making courses. But I do think some of the arguments made in this video are from an outside perspective with a fairly big gap in terms of context

You really shouldn’t promote this cult of ability or skill tbh nobody deserves to be famous

I was interested but i am unfamiliar with social media inner workings. This video was a little inside baseball for a noob, couldn't follow at all.

I find it crazy that people buy followers and engagements just because they think they can make money. I would also never give anyone permission to use my photos or vedios with out getting compensated.

I honestly think you are spot on with this video. So many people want to focus on only making money off content for sponsors and do not think of the fine lines of the law and the do's and don'ts of the actual job of advertising. It's never always that simple as everyone tries to make it out to be.

YOU clearly don’t know what the fuck UGC is hahaha also everyone in every niche sells digital products to make extra money. This isn’t anything new. Why are you hating on people for being entrepreneurs LOL are you serious?