The WARC Podcast Most Contagious: Vaseline Verified turns UGC on its head, and more
Dec 11, 2025
Leandro Bejeto, Unilever's CMO for Beauty, discusses how Vaseline Verified transformed user-generated content into a community-driven fact-checking initiative. Juliana Richter from Ogilvy reveals the importance of amplifying creator content across various channels while ensuring authenticity. Nils Leonard of The Ordinary challenges beauty marketing norms with a transparency-first approach, promoting real-life engagement over celebrity endorsements. Asad Dunner emphasizes the need to distinguish meaningful DEI conversations from noise, urging clarity and relevance in cultural discussions.
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Brands Must Join, Not Control, Conversations
- Vaseline found 3.5 million online mentions but zero rigorous fact checks on creator hacks.
- The brand shifted from controlling the message to joining communities and verifying claims.
Fact‑Check Product Claims Proactively
- When platforms reduce moderation, brands should proactively combat product misinformation.
- Work with experts or run your own fact‑checks to educate consumers and dispel dangerous myths.
Lab‑Testing Creator Hacks Revealed Surprises
- Unilever set up a social R&D lab to lab‑test creator hacks and learned many surprising results.
- For example, Vaseline did not protect plants as creators claimed when bees and flies flew over it.