What is User-generated content (UGC)?

It carries weight because you did not make it. A customer photo of your product in their own kitchen reads as real in a way a studio shot cannot, because the audience knows who paid for each one.

You get more of it by asking and by making it easy. A tag to use, a prompt in the packaging, a question in the follow-up email. Reposting what people send is the cheapest encouragement there is.

Ask permission before you reuse it. A public post is not a license to put someone in your advertising. Get a clear yes, credit the creator, and keep a record of it.