Over the past year, the TikTok community has truly embraced the #CleanTok revolution, with everyone from seasoned cleaners to cleaning novices coming together to swap helpful hacks, share incredible transformations, learn professional tips and find top cleaning product recommendations on our platform. The #CleanTok hashtag has been viewed nearly 98.5B times, showing just how CleanTokers have transformed cleaning from a chore to therapeutic hobby for people around the world.
Following the launch of a global partnership in June 2023, TikTok and Unilever are introducing two new campaigns to the platform. The first ever #CleanTok Awards will celebrate and reward the very best #CleanTok content and creators of the year, while ‘Dirty Deeds: A Kitchen Crime’ – a soap opera video series – will provide more ‘cleantertainment’ to a growing audience of people who are passionate about cleaning.
Throughout November, the TikTok community in the UK will be invited to vote for their favourite nominees and choose the inaugural #CleanTok Awards winners from a sparkling shortlist of creators across four different categories:
- Most Helpful Hack: Highlighting the unexpected tips and tricks that will level up your cleaning routine
- Most Motivational Sunday Reset: Celebrating content that provides much-needed inspiration to get things in order ahead of the working week
- Most OMG Extreme Clean: Rewarding the ultimate cleaning transformations
- Most Satisfying ASMR: Recognising pure sensory cleaning enjoyment on TikTok
The winning creators will receive an official #CleanTok Awards trophy and a variety of Unilever Home Care cleaning products to help them continue raising the #CleanTok bar.
Running at the same time, the Spotless Creator competition, is where cleaning fans all over the UK are encouraged to show off their most creative cleaning transformations for a chance to win a cash prize of £4,000. Everyone can enter by tagging @cleanipedia_uk and using the hashtag #CleanTokAwards in their before and after videos, with the winners chosen by our special #CleanTok judging panel.
All this will be housed in a tidy #CleanTok Awards Hub within the TikTok app, where the community will be able to vote for their favourites and enter the Spotless Creator competition. The #CleanTok Awards is also being supported by cleaning royalty Lynsey Queen of Clean @lynsey_queenofclean and Ann Russell @annrussell03, who will both be UK ambassadors for the awards.
Winners will be announced in-app on 1 December.
In partnership with Unilever, The #CleanTok community has gone from strength to strength this year, washing, scrubbing, polishing and tidying their way to even more creative content, which has inspired us all to embrace the joy of cleaning. From jaw-dropping transformations to satisfying ASMR Sunday resets, we can’t wait to celebrate all of our immaculate creators through the CleanTok Awards, while giving cleaning fans across the UK a unique opportunity to get involved and be recognised.
– Khartoon Weiss, Head of Global Agencies and Accounts, TikTok
Unilever’s Cleanipedia website, which provides tips and advice on cleaning, is the exclusive sponsor of #CleanTok. Cleanipedia has seen traffic grow by a third (30%) since the start of its sponsorship, which has consisted of paid media, unique content and use of ‘Proud Supporter of #CleanTok in and off the TikTok app, including point of sale materials.
Now, combining branded entertainment and the demand for mood-boosting videos on TikTok, an original soap opera series comprising five short episodes plus trailer, will air on the #CleanTok hub and Cleanipedia across 10 markets. Co-created alongside TikTok star, Sam Cotton, who has 56 million likes across his video content, products from Dirt Is Good (known as OMO, Persil, Surf Excel, Breeze, Rinso, Ala or Skip), Cif and Comfort will star as fun, animated characters. In true soap-opera style, they will bring to life a classic love rivalry with a comedic twist.
Throughout the pandemic, we saw Gen Z engage with cleaning in a way it hadn’t done before, and the rise of #CleanTok. This demographic is only becoming more engaged and, with over half (56%) of TikTok users choosing to watch comedy sketches, we want to bring more branded entertainment to them in a format that they find appealing. But we also want to recognise the fresh, creative ideas that cleanfluencers on the platform have been sharing and whose work has expanded the #CleanTok movement even further. It’s been fascinating to see their ideas and, as a result, understand more about what this audience wants from their home care products, as well as how they use them.
– Eduardo Campanella, Home Care Chief Marketing Officer, Unilever
The organic content produced on TikTok has provided unique insights into how consumers use Unilever’s products. Cleanfluencers have sparked a trend for cleaning white trainers with Cif Cream Cleaner, contributing to a rise in 18-28-year-olds buying Cif in the UK (uplift of 38%) and #CleanTok becoming the most popular hashtag on TikTok.
The #CleanTok Awards Shortlist
Most OMG Extreme Clean
This garden furniture clean-up from @outgrownourhome is pure scrubbing, foaming, and hosing satisfaction.
From scraping to wet vacuuming, @cleaningcorner shows us her methodical carpet clean and the results are incredible.
#CleanTok hero @thep00lguy demonstrates a classic pool step clean, taking it from gross green to bright blue clean.
Most Satisfying ASMR
@jack.designs shows just how satisfying and therapeutic a good scrub of the sink can be.
This sped-up reset from @raniamvr leaves her kitchen a sparkling delight, with a particularly satisfying dishwasher stack towards the end. If only it were that quick in reality!
Self-confessed cleanaholic @lauracleanaholic shares some of her best speed kitchen-cleaning hacks for the time-poor cleaners among us. https://www.tiktok.com/@lauracleanaholic/video/7275684770011548961
Most Helpful Hack
@lucykalice shares her verdict on the most viral CleanTok cleaning hacks, this time using oil as a dust repellent.
@anna_louisa_at_home shares top unusual hacks for achieving a sparkling bathroom, from denture tablets in the toilet to shaving foam on mirrors.
Shower doors can be tricky to clean, so we’ll definitely be trying out @renovation_44‘s remedy using white wine vinegar.
Most Motivational Sunday Reset
This longer video from @channonmooney covers all the Sunday reset bases, from fresh laundry to hoovering top to bottom.
@lemonsandlucy‘s Sunday reset is pure relaxation, with some incredible transformations and particularly satisfying vacuum cleaning.
@mialaurengreen kicks off her Sunday reset with a delicious-looking coffee, followed by some unboxing, laundry and lots more.
Together with Unilever and key partners, Gravity Road and Mindshare, TikTok will continue releasing a variety of dedicated #CleanTok content and activations specifically for cleaning fans across the globe.
Visit the #CleanTok Awards Hub on the TikTok app to get involved.
People’s Choice Awards Rules
- One vote per category, per day
- You must be 18+ and reside in UK to vote
- Winner of that category will win a physical trophy!
- Open from 1st to 22nd November 2023
Spotless Creator Award Rules
- You must be 18+ and reside in the UK to enter
- You must only use Cif in your video
- You must produce the post in a safe and responsible manner, complying with health and safety requirements
- Open 1st to 22nd November 2023
