🔗 Share this article

As a product discovered over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for digital platform algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a TikTok talking point has placed it at the forefront of an marketing transformation, in which large companies are allocating substantial funds to content creators and devoting less capital to advertising goods in traditional media.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers using on their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Currently, a wave of user-generated videos have documented the product’s widespread use in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a solution for polishing footwear or making fragrance last longer, and also a remedy for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to prevent the annoyance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Spotting its digital renaissance, executives at the multinational amplified the hacks by asking their own scientists to test them and letting the content creators in on the results.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sting of chili on the mouth were confirmed. So too were ideas it could extend fragrance and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might bleach teeth or extend lashes were refuted.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. But the Vaseline phenomenon has persuaded leaders to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to guide corporate planning has been termed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, recently appointed, has stated the intention is to spend half of its colossal advertising budget on social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

The company's social media lead, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of reaching consumers. She said engaging on social media “without dampening the fun” was paramount.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? This remains our core objective as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and discussing household products.

“There’s this moving away from a broadcast model, where we would just transmit messages … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. Changes in digital feeds means that these audiences appear specific, yet they are vast.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, recommended by peers, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Content makers are key. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The strategy reflects dramatic transformations happening in audience habits, with the youth demographic devoting greater hours to digital networks than traditional TV, print, or radio.

This change is evidenced by declines in broadcast and newspaper ads. In the UK, advertising income for leading TV channels have declined by over six hundred million pounds in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a merging of functions as large companies almost become production houses themselves, collaborating with numerous influencers to enhance their items.

Leon Harlow said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers out of certain traditional media outlets and they are dedicating far more hours to Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

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

He added firms may also cut expenditures by investing in creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also enables easier content adjustment to test effectiveness.

The approach is growing. Advertising spending on influencer marketing is growing fourfold quicker than total media spending. Across the United States, it has over doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Regardless of the massive shift, industry figures said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as networks still held the capability to frame public debate.

Sykes said: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still major broadcast spectacles. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”