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Originally found over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the simple jar of Vaseline might not appear as an clear candidate for social media algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent 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 reducing expenditure on promoting products in traditional media.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers rubbing their skin with a derivative of drilling. Today, a spree of amateur-created clips have documented the product’s widespread use in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or prolonging the scent of perfume, and also a remedy for squeaky doors. Its use has even extended to combat the nuisance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Noticing its viral resurgence, marketers at Unilever amplified the hacks by having their research teams evaluate the claims and providing creators with the outcome data.

Assertions that it diminished the burn from hot food on the lips were confirmed. Similarly supported were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might whiten teeth or lengthen eyelashes were debunked.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Billboards and TV ads would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. However, this online trend has led decision-makers to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been termed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, freshly instated, has indicated the goal is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on digital creator content.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

The company's social media lead, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said participating on platforms “without dampening the fun” was essential.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and sharing usage tips.

“The trend is shifting from a one-to-many model, where we would just send out ads … Currently, it's countless discussions, diverse communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these audiences appear specific, but they’re not.

“Having your brand advocated by consumers, talked about by other people, this builds credibility and connection. Creators are critical to that. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

This plan mirrors dramatic transformations happening in audience habits, with younger consumers spending more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram than television, magazines or radio.

This change is evidenced by falling revenues for broadcast and newspaper ads. Across Britain, commercial funding for primary networks have fallen by more than £600m in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

Additionally, it points to a blurring of media roles as corporations essentially turn into content studios, linking up with a multitude of digital creators to promote their goods.

Leon Harlow said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences out of certain traditional media outlets and they’re spending a lot more time on digital video and image apps than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“A lot of brands are telling us audiences believe endorsements from the personalities they subscribe to compared to commercial messages. This is a persistent pattern.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by focusing on influencers over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also permits simpler message refinement to gauge performance.

Such methods are increasing. Advertising spending on digital creator partnerships is rising at quadruple the rate than the broader media sector. In the US, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is forecast to attain tens of billions in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Even with this transformation, experts said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to frame public debate.

The executive noted: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still events like the Super Bowl. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”