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Originally found more than 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for online content feeds.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a viral TikTok topic has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, where major corporations are allocating substantial funds to content creators and reducing expenditure on promoting products in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers applying to their skin with a derivative of drilling. Now, a flood of amateur-created clips have chronicled its broad application in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or making fragrance last longer, along with a cure for squeaky doors. It has even been deployed to stop the scourge of snack dust adhering to hands.

Capitalising on the Conversation

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

Assertions that it diminished the burn from hot food on the lips were confirmed. This was also the case for ideas it could lengthen scent duration and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might bleach teeth or extend lashes were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Outdoor advertising and television commercials would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. But the Vaseline phenomenon has helped convince executives to ramp up funding for content creators.

This observation of social channels to inform business strategy 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 social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

A leading Unilever executive, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of reaching consumers. She said participating on platforms “without killing the party” was paramount.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and sharing usage tips.

“There’s this moving away from a broadcast model, where we would just send out ads … Currently, it's countless discussions, many communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these groups seem specialized, yet they are vast.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by other people, talked about by other people, this builds credibility and connection. Creators are critical to that. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The approach indicates seismic changes occurring in how media is consumed, with Gen Z and millennial audiences allocating more attention to digital networks than legacy broadcast and print media.

This change is evidenced by drops in TV and print advertising. In the UK, ad revenues for leading TV channels have fallen by more than £600m in real terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a blurring of media roles as brands effectively act as media producers, partnering with a multitude of digital creators to promote their goods.

Leon Harlow said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention out of certain traditional media outlets and they’re spending a lot more time on social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Many companies report to us people trust recommendations from the individuals they follow compared to commercial messages. This is a persistent pattern.”

He said brands could also save money by investing in creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also permits simpler message refinement to see what works.

Such methods are increasing. Promotional expenditure on the creator economy is increasing four times faster than the broader media sector. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is expected to hit multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Despite the huge changes, experts said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as broadcasters retained the power to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still the Super Bowl. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”