CGC, more than just digital fun...

On hearing the term consumer generated content (CGC) one wouldn’t be wrong for automatically thinking, comments / videos / pictures left by those on the internet feeling the need to express something. But it’s been around in more mainstream channels for years.

Think, the BBC’s Points of View programme and talk shows with the likes of  Jeremy Kyle. The audience dictates, at least to some extent, how the shows pan out. The run Cactus Kid run campaign for Oasis, by Mother and Glue through it’s wonderfully integrated approach, created consumer interaction if not strictly CGC by allowing viewers to decide the ending of the Cactus Kid story. So interaction doesn’t have to be confined to a digital space.

Channel 4 has taken CGC to a whole New level with estings their competition for views to create adverts for E4 or E4 music.

 
It's interesting how much better the entrys are for this than for say the Doritos you make it we play it

Getting people to write, star in, make the music for their hit programme Skins.

So channel for is not only recruiting brand / company advocates by encouraging its audience to interact with them, they're directly employing their audience to write their story. 

There is lots of talk about companies needing to tell interesting stories. And lots of talk about how companies need to listen to customers. Surely then the future of our industry will partly depend on our ability to turn CGC into consumer generated stories. I for one would defiantly by a story I wrote!