🔗 Share this article

As a product discovered over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an clear candidate for digital platform algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has placed it at the forefront of an promotional upheaval, seeing big businesses investing heavily in content creators and devoting less capital to promoting products in legacy broadcasters.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

First created commercially in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers rubbing their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Today, a spree of amateur-created clips have recorded its extensive utilization in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a fix for dirty sneakers or extending perfume longevity, along with a cure for noisy doorways. It has even been deployed to prevent the annoyance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Noticing its viral resurgence, 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 burn from hot food on the lips were confirmed. This was also the case for ideas it could extend fragrance and rejuvenate purses. Suggestions it could brighten smiles or make eyelashes longer were debunked.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Outdoor advertising and television commercials would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. Yet this viral episode has led decision-makers to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to guide corporate planning has been dubbed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, newly named, has indicated the goal is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on digital creator content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

A leading Unilever executive, who is leading the online push, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said engaging on social media “without dampening the fun” was crucial.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and talking about what they used.

“There’s this moving away from a mass communication approach, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, but they’re not.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, mentioned by individuals, this builds credibility and connection. Influencers are vital for this. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The approach indicates profound shifts taking place in media consumption, with Gen Z and millennial audiences spending more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram than television, magazines or radio.

This change is evidenced by drops in traditional media advertising. In the UK, 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

This further signifies a media convergence as corporations essentially turn into content studios, collaborating with hundreds of content creators to promote their goods.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences out of certain traditional media outlets and they are dedicating far more hours to social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Many companies report to us people trust recommendations from the personalities they subscribe to over traditional advertisements. It's an ongoing shift.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by targeting content creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to test effectiveness.

Such methods are increasing. Marketing investment on digital creator partnerships is rising at quadruple the rate than total media spending. In the US, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach substantial figures in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Regardless of the massive shift, experts said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as networks still held the capability to drive countrywide discourse.

The executive noted: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still events like the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”