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Originally found over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an natural focus for online content feeds.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, where major corporations are investing heavily in content creators and reducing expenditure on promoting products in conventional outlets.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers rubbing their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Now, a flood of content from users have recorded its extensive utilization in “everyday tips”.

Hailed as a fix for dirty sneakers or making fragrance last longer, along with a cure for squeaky doors. Users have even applied it to prevent the annoyance of snack dust adhering to hands.

Leveraging the Buzz

Detecting the product’s new life online, strategists within the corporation boosted the tips by tasking their in-house experts with verification and providing creators with the outcome data.

Assertions that it diminished the burn from hot food on the lips were validated. This was also the case for ideas it could lengthen scent duration and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could whiten teeth or extend lashes were refuted.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. But the Vaseline phenomenon has helped convince executives to ramp up funding for content creators.

This observation of social channels to guide corporate planning has been labeled “social listening”. The company's chief executive, newly named, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

Selina Sykes, who is leading the online push, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of connecting with customers. She said interacting online “without dampening the fun” was crucial.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and discussing household products.

“We are witnessing a departure from a broadcast model, where we would just broadcast out … Today, it's numerous dialogues, various groups. The shift of the algorithms means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by users, recommended by peers, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Creators are critical to that. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

This plan mirrors profound shifts taking place in media consumption, with younger consumers spending more time on social media platforms than television, magazines or radio.

The shift is reflected in declines in TV and print advertising. Within the United Kingdom, commercial funding for leading TV channels have dropped substantially in real terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

Additionally, it points to a blurring of media roles as large companies almost become production houses themselves, linking up with a multitude of digital creators to promote their goods.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention away from some legacy media and their time is increasingly on digital video and image apps than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“Many companies report to us people trust recommendations from the creators they engage with compared to commercial messages. That’s a consistent trend.”

He said brands could also save money by targeting content creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also permits simpler message refinement to gauge performance.

The approach is growing. Advertising spending on digital creator partnerships is increasing four times faster than total media spending. In the US, it has over doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit substantial figures in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Even with this transformation, experts said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to drive countrywide discourse.

Sykes said: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still events like the Super Bowl. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”