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As a product discovered more than 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the modest tin of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for digital platform algorithms.

However, its rise as a TikTok talking point has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, seeing big businesses investing heavily in content creators and putting fewer resources into marketing items in traditional media.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers using on their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Today, a spree of content from users have documented the product’s widespread use in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a solution for polishing footwear or making fragrance last longer, and also a remedy for noisy doorways. It has even been deployed to prevent the annoyance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Spotting its digital renaissance, marketers at Unilever amplified the hacks by having their research teams evaluate the claims and letting the content creators in on the results.

Suggestions that it lessened the sting of chili on the mouth were confirmed. This was also the case for ideas it could extend fragrance and restore leather handbags. Claims that it would brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were refuted.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. Yet this viral episode 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”. Unilever's CEO, newly named, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on digital creator content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

The company's social media lead, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of connecting with customers. She said interacting online “without dampening the fun” was essential.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, since the era of community gossip and talking about what they used.

“The trend is shifting from a mass communication approach, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, many communities. The shift of the algorithms means that these communities feel niche, yet they are vast.

“Having your brand advocated by consumers, talked about by other people, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Creators are critical to that. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The approach indicates dramatic transformations occurring in how media is consumed, with the youth demographic devoting greater hours to social media platforms than traditional TV, print, or radio.

This change is evidenced by drops in traditional media advertising. In the UK, ad revenues for leading TV channels have fallen by more than £600m in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a media convergence as corporations essentially turn into content studios, partnering with numerous influencers to promote their goods.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention from conventional channels and their time is increasingly on digital video and image apps than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the individuals they follow more than they trust ads. It's an ongoing shift.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by focusing on influencers over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to gauge performance.

The approach is growing. Advertising spending on digital creator partnerships is increasing four times faster than the media industry overall. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is forecast to attain multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Despite the huge changes, executives said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as broadcasters retained the power to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still major broadcast spectacles. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”