Who you pay becomes part of your name
- Proactiv built its brand on celebrities for years. Skincare YouTuber James Welsh went through that history in a September 2026 video.
- Lindsay Lohan's ads ran in 2006, right before her DUIs, drug charges and jail sentences. Britney Spears signed in 2005, and the material she filmed was never widely aired.
- Then came Kendall Jenner's ad.
“Reports say that Jenner's ad did give the brand a brief boost in sales, but the backlash and criticism they received around the authenticity of the partnership really killed Proactiv's credibility for a lot of people.”
The Downfall Of Acne Brand Proactiv, September 2026
- Sales went up for a while. What buyers believed about the brand went down, and stayed down.
A light mistake can be laughed off
- In August 2026, Tate McCrae, a Neutrogena global ambassador since early 2025, posted a TikTok ad of her after show routine. Viewers could see she barely used the products, and the ad was mocked everywhere.
- Neutrogena waited, then answered on August 13 with a joking post. Welsh says people liked it, and the brand said its sales went up.
- A silly ad, answered lightly, cost the brand very little.
How you end a deal comes back years later
- Days later, an older story spread again. Neutrogena had worked with actress Hayden Panettiere for 10 years, until 2015.
- On a podcast in May 2026 she said the brand chose not to renew her after she spoke about postpartum depression, and that nobody from it reached out afterwards.
- Neutrogena said nothing in May. After her death in August 2026, it took four days to post this:
“We are proud to have partnered with her and understand that we made her feel unsupported during a difficult time. This is not what Neutrogena stands for or who we want to be.”
- The comments filled with calls for a boycott. Welsh's summary of that week:
“With how Neutrogena had behaved finally coming to light and the amount of backlash they've received because of it, it's not surprising that their reputation has taken a massive hit in recent weeks.”
The BEST And WORST Week Of Neutrogena's Life, August 2026
- People laughed at the ad and moved on. The old exit was a story about how the brand treats people, and that kind stays.
What to watch every week
- Every creator you pay: what they post besides your ad, and what their comments say about you.
- Creators who mention you without being paid, good and bad. They warn you first, and they're your first call in a rebuild.
- The comments under your own ads. A complaint shows up there before the press has it.
- Past partners. Anyone you ended a deal with can tell the story their way, years later.
- Every creator post before it goes live. We review every word for the brands we work with, with the disclosure done properly.