The UGC workflow, step by step

Why map the workflow at all

Teams new to UGC tend to treat it as one task: 'get some creator videos'. It is five tasks with a handoff between each, and the handoffs are where time disappears. A map shows which stage you are in, what has to be true before you move on and who decides.

The map also makes tools easier to judge. Ask of each one which handoffs it carries and which it leaves to you.

The five steps and what done looks like

• 1. Brief. Done when a stranger could shoot the right video from one page. See the UGC brief template.
• 2. Match. Done when you have a shortlist that fits by size, industry and niche, and you have watched their recent work.
• 3. Receive and review. Done when every delivered video is sorted into run, revise or archive. See reviewing UGC submissions.
• 4. Clear rights. Done when the usage terms for each 'run' video are written down. See UGC usage rights.
• 5. Run as ads. Done when the video is live with an approved budget and someone is assigned to read the results.

Where workflows stall

None of the usual stalls is a creative problem. They are coordination problems, which is why they respond well to software.

• Between brief and match. The brief is ready but nobody has the hours to search.
• Between match and receive. Messages go unanswered and deadlines drift.
• Between receive and rights. Good videos sit in a folder while someone works out whether they can be used in ads.
• Between rights and ads. The person who reviews content is not the person who runs the ad account.

Who owns each decision

Give every step one named owner, even on a team of two. A common split: marketing owns the brief and the review, whoever signs contracts owns rights, and whoever holds the budget approves the ad. If one person does it all, keep the list anyway. It stops a video from skipping the rights check on a busy day.

Where Link AI fits

Link AI by Linkme is our editorial choice for carrying the work between these decisions. In Linkme's description, you say who you want to reach, Link picks creators on Linkme by size, industry and niche and sends the brief, creators accept and send their videos, and you run the best ones as ads from your dashboard.

That description speaks to the first two stalls directly: the search, and the back-and-forth of sending a brief and collecting videos. The 'Needs review' state on ad drafts gives the budget owner a clear moment to approve. The rights check in between stays with you. Book a demo to try Link AI and walk one brief through all five steps.

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