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As a product discovered over 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the modest tin of Vaseline could hardly be considered an obvious target for social media algorithms.

However, its rise as a viral TikTok topic has placed it at the forefront of an promotional upheaval, seeing big businesses spending big on content creators and putting fewer resources into marketing items in traditional media.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers applying to their skin with a residue from oil extraction. 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 extending perfume longevity, and also a remedy for squeaky doors. Users have even applied it to prevent the annoyance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Detecting the product’s new life online, marketers at Unilever enhanced the tricks by tasking their in-house experts with verification and providing creators with the outcome data.

Assertions that it diminished the sensation of spicy food on lips were confirmed. So too were ideas it could extend fragrance and revive leather bags. Suggestions it could brighten smiles or make eyelashes longer were debunked.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. But the Vaseline phenomenon has led decision-makers to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to guide corporate planning has been dubbed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, recently appointed, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on platform-based material.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

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 killing the party” was paramount.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and discussing household products.

“There’s this moving away from a mass communication approach, where we would just send out ads … Currently, it's countless discussions, various groups. Changes in digital feeds means that these audiences appear specific, however, they are large.

“If you can make sure your brand is shared by users, recommended by peers, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Influencers are vital for this. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

This plan mirrors seismic changes taking place in media consumption, with the youth demographic devoting greater hours to apps like TikTok and Instagram than television, magazines or radio.

The transition is visible in declines in broadcast and newspaper ads. In the UK, advertising income for major broadcasters have dropped substantially in real terms since 2019.

The Creator Economy Boom

Additionally, it points to a merging of functions as corporations essentially turn into content studios, partnering with hundreds of content creators to promote their goods.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers away from some legacy media and they’re spending a lot more time on social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

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

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

Such methods are increasing. Marketing investment on the creator economy is rising at quadruple the rate than the media industry overall. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is forecast to attain tens of billions in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Regardless of the massive shift, executives said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as networks still held the capability to shape the national conversation.

She added: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”