Colgate

The Objective

December 12 (12.12) is a major shopping holiday in Southeast Asia, equivalent to Black Friday in the US. In 2019, Colgate wanted to do something different for the 12.12 shopping season. The company was looking to boost sales of its special “Love” toothpaste, but needed to stand out during a time when all brands are competing for eyeballs through large discounts. They were looking for a different approach — one that would increase long-term product affinity for something as unique as “Love”.

The Solution

Colgate turned to TikTok to launch a #colgatekiss Hashtag Challenge campaign in Thailand. They knew that it would be one of the few ways to truly stand out from their competitors and go beyond just offering discounts for a short-term boost in sales.

To instill a lasting product impression, Colgate designed a clickable Branded Effect with the user’s “kissy face” as the trigger and exploding hearts as the main visual effect to complement the challenge. This Branded Effect brought out the product concept of “Love” and allowed users to establish a connection with the product. A “click” hint appeared on the biggest beating heart, guiding users to click and enter Colgate’s product page, where they could then purchase the product.

To maximize the ROI of the campaign, Colgate also tapped TikTok's TopView, Brand Takeover and In-Feed Ads solutions to boost the campaign beyond its organic reach. What makes advertising unique on TikTok is that, when executed well, it feels native to the platform and is genuinely enjoyed by viewers.

The Results

The campaign led to more than 43K submissions with the Branded Effect, with more than 42,000 creators participating to generate nearly 63,000 videos. This helped Colgate greatly elevate its brand and product awareness in the country. In addition to generating awareness, the campaign was also effective at converting viewers into potential buyers, with more than 764,000 click-throughs to its product landing page. This allowed the brand to track the effectiveness of the campaign from a performance perspective. Coupled with an overall engagement rate of 4.42% for the campaign, it showcased genuine interest in the brand and product.