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As a product discovered over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline could hardly be considered an obvious target for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a TikTok talking point has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, where major corporations are spending big on content creators and putting fewer resources into marketing items in traditional media.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers applying to their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Today, a spree of user-generated videos have recorded its extensive utilization in “everyday tips”.

Promoted as a solution for polishing footwear or extending perfume longevity, as well as a fix for squeaky doors. Its use has even extended to stop the scourge of snack dust adhering to hands.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Spotting its digital renaissance, executives at the multinational enhanced the tricks by asking their own scientists to test them and providing creators with the outcome data.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sensation of spicy food on lips were confirmed. So too were ideas it could extend fragrance and revive leather bags. Suggestions it could whiten teeth or lengthen eyelashes were debunked.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. But the Vaseline phenomenon has persuaded leaders to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to guide corporate planning has been dubbed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, newly named, has suggested it is aiming 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 simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said interacting online “without dampening the fun” was essential.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and talking about what they used.

“There’s this moving away from a one-to-many model, where we would just transmit messages … Currently, it's countless discussions, various groups. The shift of the algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, however, they are large.

“Having your brand advocated by users, mentioned by individuals, this builds credibility and connection. Creators are critical to that. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The strategy reflects seismic changes happening in audience habits, with Gen Z and millennial audiences devoting greater hours to social media platforms than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The transition is visible in drops in broadcast and newspaper ads. In the UK, ad revenues for leading TV channels have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

The Creator Economy Boom

Additionally, it points to a merging of functions as brands effectively act as media producers, linking up with hundreds of content creators to boost their products.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers from conventional channels and their time is increasingly on social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube 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. It's an ongoing shift.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by investing in creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to see what works.

The approach is growing. Marketing investment on influencer marketing is growing fourfold quicker than the media industry overall. In the US, it has over doubled since 2021 and is forecast to attain substantial figures in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, executives said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still events like the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”