UGC video formats: the types that work, and when to use each

Published 30 September 2026 · updated 26 October 2026 · by UGC Pocket · ~11 min read

How to choose a UGC video format

Two questions settle the format before anyone writes a script.

1. The goal. To get seen: gameplay, POV, green screen. To convince: on-screen demo, app walkthrough, tutorial. To convert: testimonial, objection handling, before/after of a workflow.
2. The placement. An organic post has to fit the creator's feed. An ad states its idea in the first seconds, with captions and one call to action.

Match the format to what is on screen. A SaaS or web app is one task in the interface. A mobile app is that task on a phone. A game is a session or a level. An online course is a short extract and the learner applying it. A service company is one situation, then the booking or the deliverable on screen.

TikTok's best practices for performance ads give useful benchmarks for any format: vertical 9:16 with sound, a DIY look that is not overly polished, and real people on screen. On the opening, TikTok separates the two: the key message within the first 3 seconds, the hook prioritised within the first 6. It also advises testing creatives with big differences: in practice, several formats rather than several versions of one.

Source: TikTok Ads Manager, Creative best practices for performance ads (last updated June 2025), checked 30 September 2026

The chosen format then goes into the brief, with its structure and hook: see our UGC brief template. To write it shot by shot, use our UGC video script template.

The 15 UGC video formats

The hooks below are templates: a good creator says them in their own words. For 50 more, sorted by type, see our UGC hooks list.

1. On-screen demo

One task, from the empty state to the result, with the screen in frame and a voice explaining. Use it when the product has a visible “how”: a SaaS workflow, a web app, a mobile screen.

• Structure: the task, the product doing it, the result.
• Hook: “This is how I [task] now.”
• Trap: listing features. Show one task from start to finish, on a filled demo account, with notifications and personal data hidden.

2. App walkthrough

The phone fills the frame. The creator opens the app, passes onboarding or one core screen, and lands on the result. It is the core format for mobile apps and mobile games that need a first session explained.

• Structure: the open, three taps at most, the result.
• Hook: “The app that [result] in three taps.”
• Trap: a tour of every menu. One job, one path.

3. Before / after of a workflow

The same task before the product and after it: a spreadsheet against a dashboard, a manual handoff against the automated one, a level before the clear and after. Use it when the change is visible on screen.

• Structure: the before, a few seconds of the product, the after in the same framing.
• Hook: open on the after, then “This was the same task [period] ago.” Only if you can show it.
• Trap: an unfair cut (a different account, hidden steps, a result you cannot reproduce).

4. Tutorial

The steps to reach one result with the product. Use it for software with a learning curve, for a course module, and for videos people save.

• Structure: the result first, three steps at most, the result again.
• Hook: “How to [result] in 3 steps.”
• Trap: too many steps. One tutorial, one result.

5. Problem / solution

The video opens on a frustration the viewer knows, then brings in the product as the answer. A strong fit for B2B software and for service companies, where the pain is a situation rather than a screen full of features.

• Structure: the problem acted out, the product, the problem gone.
• Hook: “If you still [painful task] by hand, watch this.”
• Trap: a vague problem like “save time”. Name a situation the viewer has lived.

6. Review or testimonial

The creator tells their own experience of the product, after really using it. Use it to convert people who know the category and want a peer's opinion: a founder, a user of the app, a learner partway through a course.

• Structure: the situation before, what changed, an honest verdict with one limit.
• Hook: “I've used [product] for [period]. Honest verdict.”
• Trap: a script read word for word. And, as the FTC puts it, a creator can't talk about their experience with a product they haven't tried. For a course, no income promise.

7. Founder or expert talking head

A person who knows the subject speaks to camera: the founder, an instructor, a practitioner in the service. Use it when trust sits in the explanation, and the screen is there as proof, not as the whole video.

• Structure: the claim, the proof on screen, the limit.
• Hook: “I build [product]. Here is the one thing people get wrong.”
• Trap: a keynote with no screen. Cut to the product doing the thing you just said.

8. Course excerpt

A short slice of the lesson, then the learner applying it. Use it for online courses and training. The video shows the teaching, not a promised outcome.

• Structure: the lesson in a few lines, the exercise on screen, what the learner produced.
• Hook: “One minute from module [n], and what I did with it.”
• Trap: an income, job or grade claim you cannot prove. Show the module and the exercise.

9. Gameplay clip

A real session: the first minutes, a level, a result on screen. Use it for video games and mobile games. The creator plays, and the voice says what just happened.

• Structure: the situation in game, the decision, the outcome.
• Hook: “I did not expect [moment] in the first session.”
• Trap: a highlight with no context. Name the mode or the level so a new player can follow.

10. Comparison with the old way

The product next to the previous method, on the same criteria: time, clicks, what the user still has to do. Use it when people are about to switch tools. “The old way” is the safe rival.

• Structure: the criteria, the side-by-side on screen, the verdict.
• Hook: “A week the old way, a week with [product].”
• Trap: naming a competitor without an objective, verifiable comparison. In France, comparative advertising that identifies a competitor must not mislead and must objectively compare essential, relevant, verifiable and representative features.

Source: Légifrance, article L122-1 of the French Consumer Code, checked 30 September 2026

11. Green screen over a screenshot

The creator comments in front of a screenshot, a dashboard, a review or a changelog. Use it for a figure, a release, or a screen that is hard to narrate while also driving it.

• Structure: the image, the comment, the takeaway.
• Hook: “This dashboard number is the one I check on Monday.”
• Trap: a background nobody can read. Zoom in, hide personal data, and stay inside the safe zone.

12. A workday with the tool

A real workday, with the product in the one moment it belongs. Use it for apps and services used at work, and for a course someone follows between other tasks.

• Structure: the morning task, the product in use, the end of the task with the result.
• Hook: “A day as a [job], and the one tool I open for [task].”
• Trap: the product on screen for one second. Give it one real moment of use.

13. The “3 reasons” list

A numbered list: reasons, mistakes, ways to use it. Use it to convince, and for content people save.

• Structure: announce the list, three points, the call to action.
• Hook: “3 reasons I switched to [product].”
• Trap: reasons that would fit any product. Each reason needs a screen or a situation.

14. Objection handling

The creator answers the doubt that blocks the signup: price, switching cost, “will I understand it”, “is this for my team”. Real comments are the best material. Use it at the bottom of the funnel.

• Structure: the objection, the honest answer, the proof on screen.
• Hook: “You asked if it's worth the price. Honest answer.”
• Trap: dodging. If the answer is “not for you”, say so.

15. POV of one task

A short scene from the viewer's seat, with on-screen text that starts with “POV:”. Use it to get seen, when the task is familiar and the product is the punchline.

• Structure: the situation in text, the twist, the product as the punchline.
• Hook: “POV: you finally closed [task] before lunch.”
• Trap: a long setup where the product arrives as an afterthought.

Rules that apply to every format

• Disclose. In France, a creator's commercial intent must be flagged (“publicité”, “collaboration commerciale” or an equivalent mention) unless the context already makes it obvious. In the US, the FTC wants the disclosure in the video itself, not only in the description.
• Label retouching and AI. In France, creator content that slims or thickens a silhouette or changes a face must carry “Images retouchées”; faces or silhouettes produced by AI, “Images virtuelles”.
• Keep claims provable. A before/after, a testimonial and a course excerpt only say what the screen and the creator's real use can support.

Sources: Légifrance, law 2023-451, article 5-2 and article 5; FTC; checked 30 September 2026

UGC video formats by sector

Each sector has its codes. Here is where we would start.

• B2B SaaS and web apps. On-screen demo of one task, before/after of a workflow, problem then the fix. See tech UGC and B2B UGC.
• Mobile apps. App walkthrough: onboarding and one core task, recorded on a phone. See UGC for mobile apps.
• Video games and mobile games. Gameplay clips, a first session, before and after a level. See gaming UGC and mobile games.
• Online courses. A course excerpt and how the learner applies it, with no income promise. See UGC for online courses.
• Service companies. One situation, then the booking or the deliverable on screen. See UGC for small businesses.

The same formats, written as scripts for software, are in our guide to promoting software with creators.

Organic or ads: same format, different edit

Organically, the video fits the creator's feed and tone. As an ad, the idea lands in the first seconds, captions carry the message for people watching without sound, and one call to action closes it. For on-screen text, TikTok suggests 5 to 10 words per second.

On Meta, partnership ads let a brand run ads with creators, and a creator's testimonial can appear as a featured comment, currently on Instagram feed and reels placements only. Running a creator's video as an ad depends on the usage rights you agreed: see usage rights and whitelisting. Specs by platform are in our UGC ads guide.

Sources: Meta Business Help Center, About testimonials in partnership ads; TikTok Ads Manager, Creative best practices; checked 30 September 2026

The 15 formats at a glance

An editorial grid, not a performance ranking: results depend on the product, the creator and the hook.

How UGC Pocket uses these formats

UGC Pocket is an automated matching platform for campaigns at scale. You set the objectives with us, the campaign is broadcast to hundreds of creators, and they post on their own accounts, paid on performance. Our team builds the campaign and writes the video scripts, following the codes of the formats that work in your sector. It pushes the campaign to hundreds of creators in our network, then reviews every video. Views are read from public statistics. Reuse of the videos in ads or on your website is defined in the commercial proposal. Brands use it for visibility, awareness, traffic and downloads.

From €2,000 per campaign, no subscription, price and terms set out in the commercial proposal. Nothing is billed by an AI agent or before acceptance. To compare budgets by model, see our UGC pricing guide.

When UGC Pocket is not the right choice

• A test of a few videos, or a budget under €2,000. A per-video platform fits better.
• Raw files needed fast. Production-focused platforms are built for it.

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