Eighteen months ago, Unilever CEO Fernando Fernandez committed 50% of its $9 billion ad budget to social marketing and vowed to work with 20 times as many creators.
While those dollars have shifted, “it varies by brand, marketing, business group,” Unilever CMO Leandro Barreto said during an exclusive press event attended by ADWEEK last week.
The Dove and Hellmann’s owner still spends around $4.5 billion on broad reach channels like TV.
And while some were critical of the CPG’s big social bet, Barreto — who was appointed in January — insisted that internally, there’s “conviction this is the right direction of travel.”
