Vaseline Sunitizer was a brand-funded initiative to promote health awareness and encourage proactive personal care. The campaign educates the public about the importance of sun protection and challenges common misconceptions about sunscreen. By repurposing hand sanitizer dispensers to distribute sunscreen, the campaign creatively engages with consumers and provides easily accessible information about sun protection, alongside promoting and facilitating proactive personal care.

The habit of applying sunscreen on skin has not yet been adopted among Indonesians, let alone reapplying it every time they go out under the sun.

As a country located on the equator, Indonesia gets more than abundant sunlight throughout the year. In recent years, the UV Index has reached ‘High Risk’ to ‘Extreme’ level, making Indonesians more prone to skin cancer due to longer UV exposure. The simplest way to prevent this, as dermatologists suggest, is to apply and reapply sunscreen, such as Vaseline sunscreen lotion containing SPF, every time we go outside.

Vaseline’s brand purpose within Indonesia is to “Provide everyone with healthy skin so they can live life without limits”, this is realized through their products, including a range of SPF lotions that are lighter, more comfortable and nourishing than regular sunscreen, allowing them to be applied more regularly to protect skin.

The problem: SPF usage is uncommon in Indonesia, with perceptions of Sunscreen being thick & sticky hindering these products in becoming part of daily skin care routines, only be used occasionally, such as going to the beach.

How might we change these perceptions AND create a daily habit?

The Sunitizer - Replacing an old habit, with a new one. We collected unused and forgotten hand sanitizer dispensers from Covid times at building entrances, then we cleaned and refilled them with Vaseline SPF Sunscreen, giving them a fresh new look, so that every time people left a building, they were encouraged to apply (and reapply) Vaseline sunscreen to protect their skin. Alongside this, the dispensers became a perfect, non-invasive, sampling campaign, that would help us change perceptions of sunscreen as thick and uncomfortable.

We needed to show consumers who generally live and work indoors, that sunscreen is necessary (even if you are not going to the beach). In order to do this, there were two key challenges to overcome, 1. We needed to seek ways to disrupt current behavior in order to create habit. 2. Allow for easy sampling of the product in order to change perceptions of sunscreen as sticky and uncomfortable.

Insight: During Covid, Indonesians rapidly got into the habit of sanitizing their hands before or after any activity. Sanitizer dispensers became ubiquitous at the entrance to all buildings, helping to ingrain the habit.

The Strategy:


Get: People


Who: Don’t feel the need to apply sunscreen regularly and perceive sunscreen as an annoyance
To: Apply sunscreen every time they go outside

By: Disrupting the moments when they leave buildings

Vaseline Sunitizer is made from up-cycled abandoned hand sanitizer dispensers.

After collecting the unused ones, the Vaseline team cleaned and refilled them with Vaseline SPF sunscreen. With a simple rebranding, the brand then reinstalled them back at the original locations. However, instead of facing outward, they were placed facing inward to protect people when they go outdoors.

Each Sunitizer featured a QR code leading to Sunitizer landing page of the Vaseline website. Here, people can learn more about sun protection protocol and how to prevent V exposure, alongside direct links to purchase the product for themselves through Ecommerce.

Vaseline Sunitizers are now placed at various office buildings, tourist areas, and other public places.

An Influencer campaign was used to spread the word.

Furthermore, the brand has committed to create more Sunitizers throughout Indonesia to educate and provide skin protection to all Indonesians.

Vaseline Sunitizer successfully created word-of-mouth on the topic of UV exposure, with many consumers expressing the adoption of new habits in social media posts and breaking the stigma surrounding sunscreen usage in general.

More than 32% people when surveyed about using the Suntizers at the respective building/public space/hotel entrance, responded that they actively use it and another 27% saying that they have used it at least once.

And more than 52% of people who used it at least once confirmed that they will continue using Sunscreen.

The client has committed to continue the up-cycling of hand sanitizers and placing them in areas with high footfall in multiple cities throughout Indonesia in 20024/25.