Use case
A UGC product review video leads with your verdict and keeps the product on screen
A good UGC product review video opens on what you think of the product, shows it while you explain why and ends by telling people what to do. Here's that structure, shown on one blender review.
In short
- A UGC product review video is a creator's honest take on a product, filmed on a phone: the verdict first, then the reasons with the product on screen, then a call to action.
- A review should open on a specific claim, not "I tried this product". Captions' guide to UGC examples gives the same advice.
- TikTok's ad guide puts the hook in the first 6 seconds and asks for captions or text, sound, upright 9:16 video and a strong call to action.
- Cutroom's Magic Editor has a style made for reviews called Verdict: you stay full screen for your opinion, shrink into a small card while your screenshots play on a laptop, and the video ends on a typed call to action and a follow card.
What makes a good UGC product review video?
A good review sounds like a person who used the product, not like an ad being read out. It gives one clear opinion, the reasons behind it and proof on screen.
- It opens on a specific claim, such as "It crushes ice better than my old one", rather than "I tried this blender".
- It shows the product whenever you name it or one of its parts, so people see what you mean.
- It mentions what you didn't love, if anything. A review with no downside at all sounds like an ad.
- It has captions or text on screen, which TikTok's ad guide recommends to give the video context.
- It's filmed upright and kept a little rough. TikTok recommends a DIY, not overly polished style, so the ad fits in with what people post.
- It ends with one clear ask, such as tapping the link in your bio.
The structure of an 'I tried it' video
Most review videos follow the same five parts. The verdict comes first, because the first seconds decide whether people keep watching, and the reasons come after it.
The five parts of an 'I tried it' review
Lines from the example blender review used on this page.
| Part | What you say | What's on screen |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | "It crushes ice better than my old one." | You, full screen, with the claim as text |
| How long you tried it | "I've used it every morning for a month." | You, full screen |
| Reasons | Two or three, each naming a part of the product | A photo or clip of each part as you name it |
| The catch | One thing you'd change, if there is one | You, full screen |
| Ask | "If you make smoothies, the link is in my bio." | The call to action as text |
Part: Verdict
- What you say
- "It crushes ice better than my old one."
- What's on screen
- You, full screen, with the claim as text
Part: How long you tried it
- What you say
- "I've used it every morning for a month."
- What's on screen
- You, full screen
Part: Reasons
- What you say
- Two or three, each naming a part of the product
- What's on screen
- A photo or clip of each part as you name it
Part: The catch
- What you say
- One thing you'd change, if there is one
- What's on screen
- You, full screen
Part: Ask
- What you say
- "If you make smoothies, the link is in my bio."
- What's on screen
- The call to action as text
How Cutroom's Magic Editor edits a video like this
Jacob is the AI editor inside Cutroom's Magic Editor: it edits your video for you, then changes it when you ask in a chat.
The 4 styles, as example edits
Steps
Three steps, four angles
Skit
Hook, hard stop, demo card
Verdict
The tester's verdict
Poster
Typography does the talking
Hover or tap an example to play it, without sound. These are example edits of each style; the presenters in them are generated with AI.
- Your take: one video of you talking, up to 3 minutes
- Your style: one of 4: Steps, Skit, Verdict or Poster
- Your files: screenshots, a screen recording or a logo, if you have them
- Your goal: what the video is for, in a few words, if you like
- Jacob makes it: normally 10 to 15 minutes, and you get an email
- Your edit: ask Jacob for changes in a chat, then export
Then you ask Jacob, for example
- “Make this about 10 seconds shorter”
- “Put a clip on the strongest sentence”
- “Change the music to something calmer”
Each change is a new version, and going back is free. First cut 250 credits, each change 40, questions free, export 30 credits per started minute.
Showing the product while you give your verdict
People believe a review more when they can see the thing. Before you film yourself talking, take a few photos or short clips of each part you'll mention.
In the Magic Editor you add them in the "Your files" step, up to 20. Product photos are cut in on the word that names them. Verdict, the style built for reviews, shows your screenshots on a laptop while you shrink into a small card.
- Shoot the whole product on a clean surface, plus close-ups of the parts you'll talk about.
- Film the product in use for a few seconds, such as ice going into the jar.
- Show the result, like the finished smoothie in a glass.
- Pictures can be PNG, JPEG or WebP up to 25 MB; recordings can be MP4, MOV or WebM up to 200 MB.
- With no files, Jacob uses stock clips from Pexels and Pixabay. For a review, your own photos of the real product work better.
A blender review, before and after the Verdict edit
Verdict keeps you full screen for the opinion, cuts in the product photos on the words that name them and ends on a typed call to action and a follow card.
Drawing of an example clip, not a customer video
Before · the clip as filmed
A 50-second phone video of a creator reviewing a blender in her kitchen
“Okay, so, um, I've used this blender every morning for a month, and honestly, it crushes ice better than my old one. The blades are still sharp, and the, uh, and the jar goes straight in the dishwasher. … (pause) If you make smoothies, the link is in my bio.”
struck through = what Jacob cuts
After · Jacob's first edit, Verdict style
“I've used this blender every morning for a month, and honestly, it crushes ice better than my old one. The blades are still sharp, and the jar goes straight in the dishwasher. If you make smoothies, the link is in my bio.”
- On “ice”: your claim typed on screen while you stay full screen
- On “blades”: your product photo blades.jpg, cut in on this word, with you in a small card
- On “jar”: your photo jar.jpg, cut in on this word
- Under the whole video: calm music under your voice
- On “bio”: you full screen again, the typed call to action "Tap the link in my bio" and a follow card
window: blades.jpg
Then you ask Jacob
- “Put a clip on the strongest sentence”v2a stock b-roll clip on the line about crushing ice, with the rest of the edit unchanged
- “Make this about 10 seconds shorter”v3the same review about 10 seconds shorter, with the verdict and the call to action kept
Ending a review video
End on one clear ask, said out loud and shown as text. TikTok's ad guide tells advertisers to guide viewers with a strong call to action.
- Pick one ask, such as tapping the link, using a code or commenting a question. Two asks at once split attention.
- In the Magic Editor, your answer to "What should people do after watching?" in the "Your goal" step becomes the ending. The line on screen can be up to 48 characters.
- In Verdict, the video ends with you full screen, the call to action typed out and a follow card.
- To try another ending, ask Jacob, for example "Change the call to action to Try it free". Every change Jacob makes is a new version. The earlier versions stay, and going back to one is free.
- If you give no call to action and upload no logo, the video simply ends on your last word.
Limits to know before you film a review
A few things the Magic Editor can't do matter for reviews in particular. Knowing them before you film saves you a second recording.
- Your clip can be up to 3 minutes long, as an MP4, MOV or WebM file.
- Jacob can't remove background noise, so turn the blender off while you talk. Its noise stays in the sound.
- Jacob can't move a sentence to another place, so say your verdict first when you film.
- The export is a vertical MP4, 1080 by 1920, 30 frames a second, with the sound levelled. If a brand also wants a 4:5 or square version, that needs another editor.
- Cutroom doesn't post the video for you; you download the MP4. Free exports carry a Cutroom mark across the middle, and Lite at $19.99 a month removes it.
Questions people ask
- How do you make a UGC product review video?
- Film yourself giving your verdict first, then two or three reasons with the product on screen as you name each part, and end with one clear ask. Film it upright in 9:16 and add captions.
- How do you start an 'I tried it' video?
- With a specific claim, not "I tried this product". Say what the product did for you in one sentence, such as "It crushes ice better than my old one", then say how long you used it.
- What is the difference between a UGC review and a testimonial?
- A UGC review is a creator's own take on a product, often made for a brand to post or run as an ad. A testimonial is a customer's story about something they bought, usually in their own words and setting.
- Do I need product photos for a review video?
- No, but they help. In Cutroom's Magic Editor, product photos you add are cut in on the word that names them. Without them, Jacob uses stock clips from Pexels and Pixabay, which never show your exact product.
- Can AI edit a product review video for me?
- Yes. Cutroom's Magic Editor turns one clip of you talking into a finished vertical video: Jacob, its AI editor, makes the whole edit, and you change it by asking in a chat. Its Verdict style is made for reviews and "I tried it" videos.
- Can I change the review after the first edit?
- Yes, by asking Jacob in the chat, for example "Make this about 10 seconds shorter". A message that changes the video costs 40 credits, and every change is a new version you can go back from.
Film your verdict in one go, ums and all, and let Jacob turn it into a review video. Your first video is free.