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As a product discovered more than 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an obvious target for online content feeds.

However, its rise as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, where major corporations are spending big on content creators and devoting less capital to promoting products in traditional media.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

First created commercially in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers rubbing 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”.

Hailed as a solution for polishing footwear or prolonging the scent of perfume, and also a remedy for noisy doorways. Users have even applied it to combat the nuisance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Noticing its viral resurgence, marketers at Unilever enhanced the tricks by tasking their in-house experts with verification and providing creators with the outcome data.

Assertions that it diminished the sting of chili on the mouth were validated. Similarly supported were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were disproven.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. However, this online trend has helped convince executives to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to shape commercial tactics has been dubbed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, newly named, has indicated the goal is to spend half of its colossal advertising budget on platform-based material.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

Selina Sykes, who is leading the online push, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said participating on platforms “without spoiling the atmosphere” was essential.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and talking about what they used.

“The trend is shifting from a broadcast model, where we would just broadcast out … Today, it's numerous dialogues, various groups. The shift of the algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, yet they are vast.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by users, mentioned by individuals, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Content makers are key. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The approach indicates dramatic transformations taking place in media consumption, with the youth demographic allocating more attention to digital networks than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The transition is visible in declines in broadcast and newspaper ads. In the UK, ad revenues for major broadcasters have dropped substantially in real terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a blurring of media roles as large companies almost become production houses themselves, linking up with numerous influencers to promote their goods.

Leon Harlow said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention from conventional channels and their time is increasingly on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the individuals they follow over traditional advertisements. That’s a consistent trend.”

He said brands could also save money by focusing on influencers over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also enables easier content adjustment to gauge performance.

This strategy is expanding. Promotional expenditure on digital creator partnerships is increasing four times faster than total media spending. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is projected to reach multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Despite the huge changes, industry figures said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as networks still held the capability to drive countrywide discourse.

She added: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still major broadcast spectacles. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”