Interview: Galaxy Entertainment Group's Tony Chow on how to turn UGC into real ROI

Given its powerful force in shaping brand identity and consumer trust, user-generated content (UGC) has long been part of the KPI marketers look at when measuring returns on investment. What transforms a casual post or review into a truly valuable asset for a brand is often a mix of emotional resonance, shareability, and authenticity.  
 
UGC is also widely used by brands in Hong Kong as part of the marketing mix. For example, recently, footwear brand Crocs has partnered with retailer Lane Crawford to launch its first-ever pop-up store in Hong Kong, featuring an Instagrammable LED wall that provides a distinctive setting for photos.  
 
Meanwhile, Chinese lifestyle brand MINISO’s new Stitch-themed flagship store in Hong Kong gathered 600 pieces MINISO Stitch Vinyl Plush blind box collection to offer an immersive experience for visitors. In terms of the measurement of returns on investment, the brand will track product sales, user-generated content and social engagement.   

To produce a piece of UGC content truly valuable for a brand, Tony Chow (pictured), vice president, digital marketing, Galaxy Entertainment Group, said in a conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, that a UGC content should be authentic and not a piece of advertising, reposting or sharing a brand's fans or followers' content that resonates will engender greater engagement and impact.  
 
“This is why the term KOC- key opinion consumers has gained more traction than KOL- key opinion leaders. Consumers tend to believe fellow consumers- there is a certain degree of credibility- which has been the cornerstone of 'review' sites by users,” he added. 
 
User-generated content (UGC) thrives on authenticity, but to be truly effective for a brand, it must also align with brand values. Chow said that Galaxy Entertainment Group,  operates on two levels- owned brand channels- which it has more control of the brand image, tone and manner - and the brand can hence create the content that speaks of its own brand.  

“For 'UGC' or consumer-led content, we will leverage on KOCs who create content from their own personalities, characteristics that are authentic and less 'staged'- but still showcase the experiences- the storytelling,” he said, adding that the brand will provide the experiences from its brand perspectives and encourage targeted consumers- such as KOCs, to create experiential content for us, and share on their channels and platforms. 
 
Taking the brand’s recent 'Wave' campaign for example, Chow said this comes upon the reopening of its Grand Deck Resort, one of the world's longest skytop aquatic adventure river rides and longest skytop wave pool.  
 
As part of the campaign, the brand invited 100 KOLs to immerse themselves in the experience of its Great Resort Deck and share their stories on their social media platforms such as Xiaohongshu and Douyin.  
 
“With authentic content on Xiaohongshu coupled with the seeding of keywords and the brand attributes as well as leveraging on how our targeted consumers search on social media, we can use these 'UGC' to amplify our campaign as well as deepen our engagement,” he added.

Join us this coming 17 June for #Content360 Hong Kong, an insightful one-day event centered around responsible AI, creativity VS influencers, Xiaohongshu and more. Let's dive into the art of curating content with creativity, critical thinking and confidence!

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