If user-generated content (UGC) is going to power modern advertising, it needs to function less like a one-off creative asset and more like a measurable, scalable performance engine, according to Elijah Khasabo, co-founder of creator marketplace Vidovo. 

Elijah believes that shift is already underway. “The most important thing is that UGC has become a volume game,” he says. “It’s about who’s testing the most creative, the most iterations, the most variations. Those are the people winning.”

A 22-year-old founder currently finishing college, Elijah launched Vidovo in 2023 after earlier ventures in UGC and digital marketing. Today, he reports that his company connects more than 200 brands with a network of over 20,000 vetted creators. The company is fully bootstrapped and recently made its first full-time hire after operating lean for its first two years.

Vidovo’s core thesis is that brands no longer ask whether UGC works. Instead, they ask how to scale it efficiently and tie it directly to performance metrics such as conversions, customer acquisition cost (CAC), and return on ad spend (ROAS). 

For Elijah, the opportunity lies in professionalizing a segment of the Creator Economy that, until recently, was often treated as low-cost content production, rather than a strategic growth lever.

From Selling the Concept to Selling the Partner

When Elijah first entered the space in 2022, the pitch was different.

“I had to sell why UGC was important,” he recalls. “Then I had to sell why we were the best partner. If I couldn’t sell them on UGC, they wouldn’t even look at us.”

That dynamic, he notes, has shifted. Today, brands approach Vidovo already convinced that UGC belongs in their media mix. The challenge now is differentiation. “Now it’s more like, why are you the best partner?” he says.

As Elijah explains, brands typically come to Vidovo with one of three problems: they lack a clear creative strategy, but know UGC performs, their creative production process is too slow, or they struggle with content quality and iteration.

“It always links back to quality,” he says. “Whether it’s internal processes, how they source content, or the content itself, it’s a quality issue.”

Vidovo positions itself as both a marketplace and a managed service. Brands can access creators directly or engage the company’s internal creative strategists to develop briefs and oversee production. “We usually start brands at about 10 assets per month,” Elijah explains. “Then they scale. We’ve had clients go from eight videos to saying, ‘We want 20 next month.’”

The underlying logic? Find one winning creative, then iterate.

“All a brand needs to make their money back is one winner,” he says. “Once they get that, they want more.”

UGC as a Performance Channel

One of the central questions facing marketers in 2026 is whether UGC is still primarily top-of-funnel awareness or whether it has matured into a core performance channel.

Elijah sees it as both: “Brands mix and match. UGC and influencer campaigns complement each other.”

In practice, Vidovo often works with brands that use UGC to test creative angles before scaling them with influencer partnerships. In other cases, brands come with proven influencer content and want to “test it at scale at a lower cost.”

What unites both scenarios is performance measurement. According to Elijah, the vast majority of Vidovo’s clients evaluate campaigns based on conversions. “Nine out of ten brands we work with care about conversions,” he says. “Conversions always tie back to performance.”

Elijah notes that awareness-focused campaigns are common among larger brands, but less so in Vidovo’s portfolio. For most clients, UGC must justify itself in hard metrics. “You can’t measure ROI purely on the creative itself,” he notes. “A video can be high quality and still flop. So you measure it on performance.”

Although the Creator Economy may have professionalized at large, Elijah argues that UGC has had to grow even faster.

“A couple of years ago, you could get away with an easy video,” he says. “Now a lot more goes into creative.”

The Volume Imperative

If there is one theme that defines Elijah’s outlook, it is volume.

“We’ll have brands say, ‘We need a hundred ads a month,’” he says. “That’s who’s winning.”

Consumers scroll through short-form content feeds daily, encountering dozens of branded messages. In that environment, Elijah notes that repetition and creative diversity matter. “If I see a brand eight or nine times on TikTok, I start paying attention,” he explains. “I make purchasing decisions because I’ve seen them consistently.”

For Vidovo, this means optimizing for iteration. Brands test multiple hooks, angles, and formats within each batch of assets. A recent example involved food brand Mid-Day Squares. The campaign leaned into “hook stacking,” a tactic in which creators deliver multiple opening hooks within a single video.

“They wanted the creator to say five different hooks in one video,” Elijah says. “If the first doesn’t catch attention, maybe the second will.”

The approach was new for Vidovo, but Elijah reveals that “the ad performed really well, and it’s still running.”

The broader lesson, he says, is creative experimentation.

“Successful campaigns come from being open to testing,” he says. “We’re always willing to try new approaches.”

The Quality and Usage Rights Debate

Despite industry progress, Elijah believes parts of the UGC ecosystem remain immature, particularly around usage rights.

“I’ve never been a fan of usage rights,” he says. “Most ads flop within seven days. Some don’t make it a month.”

Elijah notes that Vidovo offers brands full usage rights by default and encourages creators to price accordingly. “If you’re not comfortable with that, charge more,” he says. “Charge a rate that accounts for the asset potentially being used in perpetuity.”

In his view, long-term relationships outweigh short-term rate maximization. “Some creators are too short-term focused,” he says. “This is a long-term game.”

That philosophy aligns with Vidovo’s emphasis on vetting and creator quality. Elijah still personally reviews creator applications. “You have to meet the criteria,” he says. “Put your best foot forward. Pitch yourself. Sell yourself to brands.”

For brands evaluating UGC vendors, he recommends focusing heavily on creator sourcing and quality controls.

“I would tie everything back to creators,” he says. “They’re the cornerstone of this industry.”

Bootstrapped Growth and Scale

Elijah sees Vidovo’s bootstrapped status as a competitive advantage.

“If we had raised money, we probably would have blown it,” he says. “Bootstrapping worked in our favor.”

Operating lean forced the team to prioritize sustainable growth. Over two years, Vidovo has generated over a billion impressions for brands and more than $50 million in attributed revenue, according to Elijah.

Internally, the company has grown from two founders to a broader team of full-time staff, contractors, and interns. “We finally have the roles that directly drive growth,” he says.

The next stage, he adds, is aggressive but measured growth and hiring.

AI and the Next Phase of UGC

Elijah sees artificial intelligence as the biggest variable in UGC’s development.

“I’m interested to see how AI disrupts content,” he says. “It’s getting better.”

He is unsure whether platforms will restrict AI-generated ads or require stricter disclosures. For now, he says, AI has actually driven demand for human creators. “People want real content,” he says.

For Vidovo, that means doubling down on human-generated content. “Brands care about their image,” he says. “I don’t think consumers will respond well to a feed full of AI content.”

As UGC continues to professionalize, Elijah believes its future will depend on balancing scale with authenticity.

“It always comes back to performance,” he says. “At the end of the day, it’s about who can test the most.”

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