🔗 Share this article

As a product discovered over 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the simple jar of Vaseline may not seem like an obvious target for digital platform algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a popular subject on TikTok has placed it at the forefront of an promotional upheaval, where major corporations are allocating substantial funds to content creators and devoting less capital to marketing items in traditional media.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

The petroleum jelly was first manufactured in the 1870s by chemist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers 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 “everyday tips”.

It has been touted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or extending perfume longevity, along with a cure for creaky hinges. Its use has even extended to combat the nuisance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Noticing its viral resurgence, executives at the multinational boosted the tips by having their research teams evaluate the claims and letting the content creators in on the results.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sensation of spicy food on lips were given the thumbs up. Similarly supported were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and restore leather handbags. 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. Yet this viral episode has persuaded leaders to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, freshly instated, has suggested it is aiming to spend half of its colossal advertising budget on platform-based material.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

A leading Unilever executive, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of connecting with customers. She said participating on platforms “without spoiling the atmosphere” was essential.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and discussing household products.

“We are witnessing a departure from a mass communication approach, where we would just send out ads … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. Changes in digital feeds means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

“Having your brand advocated by users, mentioned by individuals, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Influencers are vital for this. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects seismic changes happening in audience habits, with younger consumers devoting greater hours to social media platforms than traditional TV, print, or radio.

This change is evidenced by drops in TV and print advertising. In the UK, advertising income for primary networks have declined by over six hundred million pounds in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

Additionally, it points to a merging of functions as corporations essentially turn into content studios, partnering with hundreds of content creators to promote their goods.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers out of certain traditional media outlets and their time is increasingly on digital video and image apps than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the creators they engage with more than they trust ads. This is a persistent pattern.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by focusing on influencers over big traditional media campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to see what works.

The approach is growing. Promotional expenditure on the creator economy is growing fourfold quicker than the broader media sector. Stateside, it has over doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit tens of billions in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Despite the huge changes, executives said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as broadcasters retained the power to drive countrywide discourse.

Sykes said: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still the Super Bowl. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”