🔗 Share this article

First identified over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an clear candidate for digital platform algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a TikTok talking point has positioned it at the vanguard of an promotional upheaval, in which large companies are investing heavily in content creators and putting fewer resources into promoting products in conventional outlets.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

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

It has been touted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or making fragrance last longer, along with a cure for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to combat the nuisance of snack dust adhering to hands.

Harnessing the Hype

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

Claims that Vaseline reduced the burn from hot food on the lips were validated. This was also the case for ideas it could extend fragrance and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could whiten teeth or extend lashes were debunked.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. However, this online trend has persuaded leaders to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to shape commercial tactics has been dubbed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, newly named, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on digital creator content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

The company's social media lead, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said engaging on social media “without spoiling the atmosphere” was crucial.

“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 discussing household products.

“There’s this moving away from a one-to-many model, where we would just transmit messages … Now it’s many conversations, many communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these communities feel niche, but they’re not.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, talked about by other people, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Content makers are key. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects dramatic transformations taking place in media consumption, with younger consumers allocating more attention to apps like TikTok and Instagram than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The transition is visible in falling revenues for traditional media advertising. Within the United Kingdom, ad revenues for major broadcasters have fallen by more than £600m in real terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

Additionally, it points to a media convergence as large companies almost become production houses themselves, linking up with hundreds of content creators to promote their goods.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers out of certain traditional media outlets and they’re spending a lot more time on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“Many companies report to us consumers have more faith in suggestions from the creators they engage with over traditional advertisements. It's an ongoing shift.”

He said brands could also save money by investing in creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also permits simpler message refinement to see what works.

Such methods are increasing. Marketing investment on digital creator partnerships is growing fourfold quicker than the media industry overall. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is projected to reach substantial figures in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, executives said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as networks still held the capability to drive countrywide discourse.

Sykes said: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still the Super Bowl. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”