Bringing the Comments Section Into the Lab / Vaseline "Vaseline Verified"

The problem

TikTok and Instagram were full of more than 6,000 different uses for Vaseline, from preventing blisters to softening camera focus to soothing dogs' paws. Some of these hacks were genuinely useful, but mixed in were dangerous pieces of misinformation too. Unilever couldn't just let that sit there.

The insight

It all comes down to one line from the company's Chief Creative Officer: "We don't need to make content. There's already 3.5 million pieces of it." Instead of handing creators a script, the brand stepped into people's existing conversations as a verifier.

The idea

Scientists in white coats tested the hacks one by one. If a hack actually worked, it got a "Verified" sticker. If it was false, they debunked it on the spot. Using Vaseline as a base before hair dye? Passed. Using it to whiten teeth? Failed. In the UK, the brand teamed up with Doritos on a "Heat Hack"—applying Vaseline to your lips before eating spicy snacks—and turned it into a limited-edition package. For the misuse of Vaseline as a sexual lubricant, they put up a warning in Piccadilly Circus that read "It's Not What You Think."

What happened

The campaign racked up 136 million views in three months and won nine awards at Cannes, including a Titanium Lion and two Grand Prix. It was the first Titanium Lion ever won by a piece of work made in Singapore.

Afterthought

What's wild about this project is that the brand shifted from being the one who "creates" to the one who "verifies." All they really did was confirm what consumers had already decided on their own—that Vaseline was their go-to gel for everything—and in the process, they even picked up ideas for new products. It makes you realize that an ad agency's real job can be designing a structure like this.

Awards

• Cannes Lions Titanium 2025

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