r/UGCs

When I made my first UGC portfolio, I overcomplicated everything.

I added a long intro, too much text, random photos and basically tried to make it look like a personal website. Looking back, most brands probably only cared about one thing: can this person make content we could actually use?

So if you're building yours, I'd keep it pretty simple.

1. Put your best videos first:

Don't make people scroll forever before they get to the good stuff. The first 2-3 videos should be the ones that make you look the most natural on camera and show that you understand how UGC works.

2. Show some variety:

You don't need 20 examples, but they shouldn't all be the same video with a different product.

I'd include a talking video, a voiceover, a product demo, a testimonial and maybe something more casual or lifestyle-based.

3. Use products you already have:

You don't need paid collabs to build a portfolio. I made some of my first examples with skincare, apps and random products I already used.

Just film them like a brand had actually hired you.

4. Keep the design clean:

Brands aren't hiring you because your Canva page has fancy animations. Make it easy to open, easy to watch and easy to find your contact info.

5. Don't add every video you've ever made

A few strong examples are way better than a massive portfolio with loads of average content. People reviewing creators usually aren't spending ten minutes on each one.

I'd also add a short intro, the niches you're comfortable with, your location, languages and your email. That's pretty much it.

Your portfolio just needs to show that you can make content that feels natural and fits a brand

A brand recently reached out to me for a pretty normal UGC video. The original plan was for them to use it in their ads, but they also asked if I could post it on one of my Instagram pages.

I normally keep UGC work and my own profiles separate, but the video actually fit the content I was already posting, so I agreed.

They paid me $100 for creating the video, plus a $2 CPM based on the views it generated after I posted it.

I wasn't expecting much from it, but for some reason the reel took off and reached around 200k views. That added another $400, so I ended up making about $500 from a single video.

Definitely not something that happens with every reel, but it was the first time I got paid both for creating the content and for how well it performed.

Now I'm starting to understand why performance-based UGC deals can be so good when the product actually fits your audience.