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As a product discovered over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the modest tin of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, seeing big businesses investing heavily in content creators and devoting less capital to marketing items in traditional media.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers rubbing their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Currently, a wave of amateur-created clips have documented the product’s widespread use in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a fix for dirty sneakers or making fragrance last longer, and also a remedy for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to stop the scourge of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Detecting the product’s new life online, marketers at Unilever boosted the tips by asking their own scientists to test them and sharing the findings with influencers.

Assertions that it diminished the burn from hot food on the lips were confirmed. Similarly supported were ideas it could prolong perfume and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could whiten teeth or make eyelashes longer were disproven.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. But the Vaseline phenomenon has helped convince executives to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This observation of social channels to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend half of its colossal advertising budget on platform-based material.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

The company's social media lead, who is leading the online push, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of engaging audiences. She said interacting online “without spoiling the atmosphere” was essential.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? This remains our core objective as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and sharing usage tips.

“There’s this moving away from a one-to-many model, where we would just transmit messages … Now it’s many conversations, diverse communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, recommended by peers, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Creators are critical to that. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The approach indicates profound shifts occurring in how media is consumed, with younger consumers devoting greater hours to social media platforms than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The transition is visible in falling revenues for TV and print advertising. Within the United Kingdom, ad revenues for primary networks have dropped substantially in actual value since the end of the last decade.

The Creator Economy Boom

It also reflects a merging of functions as brands effectively act as media producers, collaborating with a multitude of digital creators to promote their goods.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers from conventional channels and they are dedicating far more hours to Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Many companies report to us people trust recommendations from the creators they engage with compared to commercial messages. This is a persistent pattern.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by investing in creators over expensive broadcast campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to test effectiveness.

The approach is growing. Marketing investment on influencer marketing is increasing four times faster than the broader media sector. In the US, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is forecast to attain substantial figures in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Regardless of the massive shift, industry figures said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as networks still held the capability to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still the Super Bowl. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”