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Originally found over 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the modest tin of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for digital platform algorithms.

However, its rise as a viral TikTok topic has positioned it at the vanguard of an marketing transformation, seeing big businesses allocating substantial funds to content creators and putting fewer resources into promoting products in traditional media.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers using on their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Today, a spree of amateur-created clips have documented the product’s widespread use in “life hacks”.

It has been touted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or making fragrance last longer, 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, strategists within the corporation enhanced the tricks by asking their own scientists to test them and sharing the findings with influencers.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sting of chili on the mouth were confirmed. So too were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and revive leather bags. Claims that it would bleach teeth or make eyelashes longer were disproven.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. Yet this viral episode has persuaded leaders to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on social media content.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of reaching consumers. She said engaging on social media “without spoiling the atmosphere” was paramount.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and talking about what they used.

“The trend is shifting from a broadcast model, where we would just transmit messages … Currently, it's countless discussions, many communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

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

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects seismic changes taking place in media consumption, with the youth demographic spending more time on social media platforms than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The transition is visible in falling revenues for broadcast and newspaper ads. In the UK, commercial funding for leading TV channels have dropped substantially in actual value since the end of the last decade.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a merging of functions as large companies almost become production houses themselves, collaborating with a multitude of digital creators to boost their products.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers out of certain traditional media outlets and they’re spending a lot more time on digital video and image apps than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the personalities they subscribe to over traditional advertisements. This is a persistent pattern.”

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

Such methods are increasing. Promotional expenditure on the creator economy 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.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Even with this transformation, experts said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as networks still held the capability to frame public debate.

Sykes said: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still major broadcast spectacles. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”