The pandemic has either helped the tooth-whitening business by forcing people to notice their teeth during Zoom calls or hurt by covering their smiles up with masks in public. Either way, the potential market is a lot bigger than the actual one, leading Procter & Gamble Co. to launch what it’s billing as the biggest thing in tooth whitening since Crest Whitestrips two decades ago.

P&G is turning to ABC’s "The Bachelor" to help Whitening Emulsions, which is going into broad rollout after limited distribution in drug stores and online. Product kits priced just under $40 and up offer a high-concentration hydrogen peroxide that can be applied directly to teeth, requiring only an applicator but no plastic strips that need to be left on for 45 minutes. And the gel also prevents sensitivity that can come from teeth whiteners, says Carlos DeJesus, senior VP of North American Oral Care at P&G, who believes the product can vastly expand a category that 85% of people say they need but only a single-digit percentage actually use.

A 30-second spot from Publicis to back the rollout airs Feb. 15, and a spot showing Chris Harrison of “The Bachelor” prepping for a big night with Crest Whitening Emulsions will hit next month, a sequel to spot last year featuring Harrison.

A coalition of influencers, including Chris Lin and Brock Williams of Yummertime, have played a big role in designing the product, its packaging and marketing, DeJesus says, through an effort led by Zeno Group. Influencer Melissa Alatorre is featured on in-store displays for Whitening Expressions and did a virtual integration with Jimmy Kimmel Live. And Dixie D’Amelio did a TikTok video for Emulsions that has generated more than 20 million views to date.

New product activity in packaged goods has been slower during the pandemic as brands and retailers have trimmed assortments and focused more on just keeping existing items in stock. But pandemic or no, the potential market for Whitening Emulsions is huge, DeJesus says.

“People are spending hours a day on screen time, and your face is in the center of that screen time, and your smile is in the center of your face,” he says. “And people are really starting to notice. And when we wake up one day and can get out from behind our masks, I think smiles are going to play a huge part.”

The relative inconvenience of products like Whitestrips has led to what DeJesus calls “occasion-based whitening” where people only use them in advance of big events like proms, weddings and job interviews. Emulsions, with kits priced similarly to Whitestrips, is meant for use up to four times daily over an extended period because it’s easier to put on and doesn’t cause tooth sensitivity.

“It can be as effective as Whitestrips with the right usage,” DeJesus says. “We feel we’ve created a step change in consumer appeal that we think is going to change the whitening category.”