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As a product discovered over 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an clear candidate for digital platform algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a viral TikTok topic has positioned it at the vanguard of an marketing transformation, in which large companies are spending big on content creators and reducing expenditure on advertising goods in traditional media.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers using on their skin with a derivative of drilling. Today, a spree of content from users have recorded its extensive utilization in “everyday tips”.

Promoted as a solution for polishing footwear or prolonging the scent of perfume, along with a cure for noisy doorways. Its use has even extended to stop the scourge of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Noticing its viral resurgence, marketers at Unilever boosted the tips by asking their own scientists to test them and providing creators with the outcome data.

Suggestions that it lessened the sensation of spicy food on lips were given the thumbs up. Similarly supported were ideas it could extend fragrance and restore leather handbags. Claims that it would bleach teeth or lengthen eyelashes were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Billboards and TV ads would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. But the Vaseline phenomenon has led decision-makers to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, newly named, 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 merely adjusting to novel methods of engaging audiences. She said participating on platforms “without killing the party” was crucial.

“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 discussing household products.

“There’s this moving away from a mass communication approach, where we would just transmit messages … Currently, it's countless discussions, diverse communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these communities feel niche, yet they are vast.

“If you can make sure your brand is shared by users, talked about by other people, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Creators are critical to that. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The approach indicates profound shifts happening in audience habits, with younger consumers spending more time on social media platforms than traditional TV, print, or radio.

This change is evidenced by declines in TV and print advertising. In the UK, commercial funding for primary networks have dropped substantially in real terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a merging of functions as brands effectively act as media producers, partnering with a multitude of digital creators to enhance their items.

Leon Harlow said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers away from some legacy media and they’re spending a lot more time on digital video and image apps than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“A lot of brands are telling us consumers have more faith in suggestions from the personalities they subscribe to over traditional advertisements. It's an ongoing shift.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by investing in creators over expensive broadcast campaigns, which also permits simpler message refinement to test effectiveness.

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 expected to hit tens of billions in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Regardless of the massive shift, industry figures said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as broadcasters retained the power to shape the national conversation.

She added: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still major broadcast spectacles. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”