Colgate 12 Month Case Study
The Brief
The Brief
Colgate Palmolive partnered with We Are SNS, a leading social media agency, to fundamentally evolve Colgate’s social media content model. The brief was clear: to transform content creation into a faster, more scalable and more cost-effective without sacrificing quality, creativity or brand integrity.
The core objective was to turbocharge social media content production by delivering three times the monthly volume. This required a complete refresh in strategy around the end to end content from in-house assets through to creator partnerships.
With our support and recommendation, we shifted the content strategy to be highly UGC focused, ensuring an authentic feel across Instagram and TikTok. This shift to a UGC focus was a responsibility We Are SNS managed across Palmolive and Sanex too.
The evolution was driven by the need for greater scale and impact. The existing approach limited creator scalability, relied on overly engineered briefs that constrained creativity, and required high production budgets, slowing turnaround times. Colgate needed a new way of working that allowed creators to move quickly, tell authentic stories and deliver content that felt native to each platform.
What We Did
UGC
Influencer
TikTokS
Social
The Approach
We Are SNS rebuilt Colgate’s UGC creator strategy from the ground up, introducing an agile, creator-first operating model designed for volume, speed and cultural relevance. The new approach prioritised simplicity in briefing, empowering UGC creators to bring their own voice and perspective to each piece of content while remaining aligned with brand guidelines.
By shifting from high-production, centrally managed assets to a shoot-and-share creator model, creators were able to unlock a significant increase in content output, faster speed to market and deliver final assets without incurring additional production costs. Over the year, this approach enabled us to deliver 869 assets, exceeding our target of 70 assets per month.
Content was developed with a platform native mindset, designed specifically for how audiences consume Instagram and TikTok. Strong hooks within the first few seconds, emotional and relatable storytelling, and authentic product integration became central creative principles. Rather than forcing trends, the focus was on responding quickly to culturally relevant moments that naturally aligned with the brand.
Colgate soon recognised our creative ability to make impactful content, which then soon led us to creating an additional 60 assets for the launch of Colgate Purple Serum, which was for paid boosting, performance marketing projects, as well as reactive editing support for key moments, such as the Bluey x Colgate toothpaste launch at Boots in Westfield.
The Results
At the start of the campaign, Colgate and We Are SNS set an ambitious goal to reach 12.7M people across Instagram and TikTok through a large-scale UGC and creator-led content strategy. Over the course of 12 months, the partnership significantly exceeded expectations, delivering a total audience reach of 31.6M, outperforming the original target by 18.9M and achieving a 40% uplift against projected results. The campaign demonstrated the power of authentic creator storytelling combined with a consistent, social-first content approach.
On Instagram alone, the campaign generated more than 4M in reach, more than doubling the original target, alongside over 6M engagements and an impressive average engagement rate of 144%. TikTok also delivered strong performance, with creator content driving more than 27.8M post views and over 147,000 interactions across the platform, helping to build awareness and engagement at scale.
From an operational perspective, the campaign also showcased strong collaboration between creators, agency teams, and the brand. A total of 92% of contracted content was approved for posting, while overall content output exceeded the original plan by 6%, reflecting efficient campaign management and strong creator alignment throughout the partnership.
Looking Ahead
As the partnership moves into Q1 2026, Colgate is well-positioned to build on a strong foundation of scalable processes, trusted creator relationships and a content engine designed for speed and relevance. Throughout the first year, We Are SNS encouraged Colgate to step outside its comfort zone, engage more deeply with organic content and use social listening to better understand the evolving social landscape.
For insights into some great creator partnerships, check our blog on the ‘Top 4 UK UGC creators to collaborate with in 2026’
If you’re ready to unlock creator partnerships that deliver million-plus reach and meaningful engagement, let’s talk.
