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Originally found over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an obvious target for digital platform algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, in which large companies are allocating substantial funds to content creators and devoting less capital to marketing items in traditional media.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers applying to their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Today, a spree of user-generated videos have chronicled its broad application in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a fix for dirty sneakers or extending perfume longevity, along with a cure for creaky hinges. It has even been deployed to prevent the annoyance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Spotting its digital renaissance, executives at the multinational boosted the tips by tasking their in-house experts with verification and letting the content creators in on the results.

Suggestions that it lessened the burn from hot food on the lips were validated. This was also the case for ideas it could prolong perfume and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might whiten teeth or extend lashes were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Outdoor advertising and television commercials would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. But the Vaseline phenomenon has led decision-makers to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been dubbed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, recently appointed, has indicated the goal is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on digital creator content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of reaching consumers. She said interacting online “without killing the party” was paramount.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, since the era of community gossip and sharing usage tips.

“The trend is shifting from a one-to-many model, where we would just transmit messages … Today, it's numerous dialogues, various groups. Changes in digital feeds means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

“Having your brand advocated by consumers, recommended by peers, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Creators are critical to that. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The approach indicates seismic changes taking place in media consumption, with younger consumers devoting greater hours to digital networks than legacy broadcast and print media.

This change is evidenced by drops in TV and print advertising. Across Britain, advertising income for major broadcasters have declined by over six hundred million pounds in real terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

Additionally, it points to a merging of functions as brands effectively act as media producers, partnering with a multitude of digital creators to boost their products.

Leon Harlow said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences away from some legacy media and they are dedicating far more hours to Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the personalities they subscribe to more than they trust ads. That’s a consistent trend.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by targeting content creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also enables easier content adjustment to see what works.

The approach is growing. Marketing investment on digital creator partnerships is growing fourfold quicker than the broader media sector. Stateside, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is forecast to attain multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Despite the huge changes, experts said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to frame public debate.

She added: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still major broadcast spectacles. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”