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First identified more than 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an natural focus for digital platform algorithms.

However, its rise as a popular subject on TikTok has placed it at the forefront of an marketing transformation, in which large companies are investing heavily in content creators and reducing expenditure on marketing items in traditional media.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers applying to their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Currently, a wave of content from users have documented the product’s widespread use in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a fix for dirty sneakers or extending perfume longevity, along with a cure for squeaky doors. Users have even applied it to combat the nuisance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Noticing its viral resurgence, strategists within the corporation amplified the hacks by having their research teams evaluate the claims and providing creators with the outcome data.

Assertions that it diminished the sting of chili on the mouth were confirmed. Similarly supported were ideas it could extend fragrance and rejuvenate purses. Proposals that it might brighten smiles or extend lashes were disproven.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Billboards and TV ads would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. Yet this viral episode has helped convince executives to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This observation of social channels to shape commercial tactics has been dubbed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, newly named, has stated the intention is to spend half of its colossal advertising budget 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 engaging audiences. She said engaging on social media “without killing the party” was crucial.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and talking about what they used.

“We are witnessing a departure from a one-to-many model, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these communities feel niche, but they’re not.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by users, mentioned by individuals, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Influencers are vital for this. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The strategy reflects seismic changes occurring in how media is consumed, with Gen Z and millennial audiences allocating more attention to digital networks than legacy broadcast and print media.

This change is evidenced by falling revenues for traditional media advertising. In the UK, advertising income for leading TV channels have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

It also reflects a media convergence as large companies almost become production houses themselves, collaborating with hundreds of content creators to enhance their items.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention away from some legacy media and they’re spending a lot more time on digital video and image apps than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Numerous corporations inform us audiences believe endorsements from the individuals they follow over traditional advertisements. It's an ongoing shift.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by investing in creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also enables easier content adjustment to gauge performance.

Such methods are increasing. Marketing investment on the creator economy is increasing four times faster than total media spending. Stateside, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach substantial figures in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, industry figures said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as networks still held the capability to shape the national conversation.

Sykes said: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still major broadcast spectacles. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”