🔗 Share this article

As a product discovered more than 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for social media algorithms.

However, its rise as a viral TikTok topic has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, seeing big businesses investing heavily in content creators and devoting less capital to advertising goods in legacy broadcasters.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers applying to their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Currently, a wave of amateur-created clips have documented the product’s widespread use in “life hacks”.

Promoted as a fix for dirty sneakers or making fragrance last longer, as well as a fix for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to prevent the annoyance of snack dust adhering to hands.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Detecting the product’s new life online, strategists within the corporation boosted the tips by tasking their in-house experts with verification and providing creators with the outcome data.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sting of chili on the mouth were validated. So too were ideas it could prolong perfume and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could brighten smiles or make eyelashes longer were debunked.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

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

This observation of social channels to inform business strategy has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, newly named, has indicated the goal is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on digital creator content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

The company's social media lead, who is leading the online push, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of reaching consumers. She said participating on platforms “without spoiling the atmosphere” 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.

“The trend is shifting from a broadcast model, where we would just send out ads … Currently, it's countless discussions, many communities. The shift of the algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, however, they are large.

“If you can make sure your brand is shared by other people, recommended by peers, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Creators are critical to that. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Seismic Media Shift

This plan mirrors profound shifts taking place in media consumption, with younger consumers spending more time on digital networks than legacy broadcast and print media.

The transition is visible in drops in TV and print advertising. Within the United Kingdom, advertising income for leading TV channels have fallen by more than £600m in actual value since the end of the last decade.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

Additionally, it points to a merging of functions as corporations essentially turn into content studios, linking up with hundreds of content creators to boost their products.

Leon Harlow said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention from conventional channels and they are dedicating far more hours to social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“A lot of brands are telling us audiences believe endorsements from the creators they engage with more than they trust ads. It's an ongoing shift.”

He said brands could also save money by targeting content creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also permits simpler message refinement to test effectiveness.

This strategy is expanding. Advertising spending on the creator economy is growing fourfold quicker than the broader media sector. In the US, it has over doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach tens of billions in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Regardless of the massive shift, executives said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as broadcasters retained the power to drive countrywide discourse.

Sykes said: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still the Super Bowl. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”