🔗 Share this article

Originally found over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the simple jar of Vaseline might not appear as an obvious target for digital platform algorithms.

However, its rise as a TikTok talking point has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, in which large companies are investing heavily in content creators and reducing expenditure on marketing items in legacy broadcasters.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers rubbing their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Now, a flood of content from users have chronicled its broad application in “everyday tips”.

Promoted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or prolonging the scent of perfume, along with a cure for squeaky doors. Users have even applied it to combat the nuisance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Noticing its viral resurgence, marketers at Unilever enhanced the tricks by asking their own scientists to test them and letting the content creators in on the results.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sensation of spicy food on lips were given the thumbs up. This was also the case for ideas it could prolong perfume and revive leather bags. Suggestions it could brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were disproven.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. However, this online trend has persuaded leaders to ramp up funding for content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

A leading Unilever executive, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of connecting with customers. She said interacting online “without killing the party” was crucial.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and sharing usage tips.

“The trend is shifting from a mass communication approach, where we would just send out ads … Today, it's numerous dialogues, various groups. Changes in digital feeds means that these audiences appear specific, however, they are large.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by other people, recommended by peers, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Influencers are vital for this. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Seismic Media Shift

This plan mirrors profound shifts occurring in how media is consumed, with Gen Z and millennial audiences spending more time on social media platforms than television, magazines or radio.

This change is evidenced by drops in traditional media advertising. Across Britain, advertising income for primary networks have declined by over six hundred million pounds in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a blurring of media roles as brands effectively act as media producers, linking up with a multitude of digital creators to boost their products.

Leon Harlow said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences away from some legacy media and their time is increasingly on digital video and image apps than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Numerous corporations inform us audiences believe endorsements from the creators they engage with over traditional advertisements. This is a persistent pattern.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by focusing on influencers over expensive broadcast campaigns, which also enables easier content adjustment to test effectiveness.

Such methods are increasing. Promotional expenditure on the creator economy is growing fourfold quicker than the broader media sector. Stateside, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, industry figures said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as broadcasters retained the power to shape the national conversation.

Sykes said: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still the Super Bowl. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”