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As a product discovered more than 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an natural focus for social media algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, seeing big businesses spending big on content creators and putting fewer resources into marketing items in traditional media.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers using on their skin with a derivative of drilling. Today, a spree of user-generated videos have recorded its extensive utilization in “life hacks”.

Hailed as a remedy for cleaning shoes or making fragrance last longer, as well as a fix for creaky hinges. It has even been deployed to combat the nuisance of snack dust adhering to hands.

Capitalising on the Conversation

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

Claims that Vaseline reduced the burn from hot food on the lips were given the thumbs up. So too were ideas it could extend fragrance and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could whiten teeth or make eyelashes longer were disproven.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. But the Vaseline phenomenon has helped convince executives to ramp up funding for content creators.

This observation of social channels to inform business strategy has been termed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, recently appointed, has indicated the goal is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on platform-based material.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

A leading Unilever executive, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of connecting with customers. She said interacting online “without killing the party” was crucial.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This remains our core objective as brands, since the era of community gossip and discussing household products.

“There’s this moving away from a mass communication approach, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. The shift of the algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, but they’re not.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, recommended by peers, this builds credibility and connection. Creators are critical to that. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects seismic changes happening in audience habits, with younger consumers allocating more attention to digital networks than television, magazines or radio.

The shift is reflected in declines in traditional media advertising. In the UK, ad revenues for leading TV channels have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

It also reflects a media convergence 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: “Naturally, an exodus of attention away from some legacy media and they are dedicating far more hours to social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“A lot of brands are telling us consumers have more faith in suggestions from the personalities they subscribe to over traditional advertisements. That’s a consistent trend.”

He said brands could also save money by focusing on influencers over expensive broadcast campaigns, which also permits simpler message refinement to gauge performance.

The approach is growing. Promotional expenditure on influencer marketing is increasing four times faster than total media spending. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is expected to hit multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Despite the huge changes, executives said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as networks still held the capability to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still events like the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”