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Originally found more than 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an obvious target for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, where major corporations are investing heavily in content creators and putting fewer resources into marketing items in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers rubbing their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Now, a flood of user-generated videos have recorded its extensive utilization in “life hacks”.

It has been touted as a fix for dirty sneakers or extending perfume longevity, as well as a fix for squeaky doors. Its use has even extended to prevent the annoyance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Detecting the product’s new life online, marketers at Unilever amplified the hacks by tasking their in-house experts with verification and letting the content creators in on the results.

Suggestions that it lessened the burn from hot food on the lips were validated. So too were ideas it could prolong perfume and revive leather bags. Claims that it would whiten teeth or make eyelashes longer were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. However, this online trend has helped convince executives to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This observation of social channels to inform business strategy 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

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of engaging audiences. She said participating on platforms “without killing the party” was paramount.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, since the era of community gossip and sharing usage tips.

“There’s this moving away from a broadcast model, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, diverse communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

“Having your brand advocated by other people, talked about by other people, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Content makers are key. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The strategy reflects profound shifts happening in audience habits, with younger consumers devoting greater hours to apps like TikTok and Instagram than legacy broadcast and print media.

This change is evidenced by declines in TV and print advertising. Within the United Kingdom, ad revenues for major broadcasters have dropped substantially in actual value since the end of the last decade.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

Additionally, it points to a blurring of media roles as corporations essentially turn into content studios, linking up with numerous influencers to enhance their items.

Leon Harlow said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention away from some legacy media and they are dedicating far more hours to 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 compared to commercial messages. It's an ongoing shift.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by focusing on influencers over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also permits simpler message refinement to see what works.

This strategy is expanding. Promotional expenditure on the creator economy is rising at quadruple the rate than the broader media sector. Stateside, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is expected to hit multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, 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: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still major broadcast spectacles. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”