🔗 Share this article

Originally found over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the humble pot of Vaseline might not appear as an clear candidate for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, in which large companies are allocating substantial funds to content creators and devoting less capital to marketing items in conventional outlets.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers using on their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Now, a flood of user-generated videos have recorded its extensive utilization in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a fix for dirty sneakers or extending perfume longevity, as well as a fix for noisy doorways. Users have even applied it to prevent the annoyance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Noticing its viral resurgence, executives at the multinational enhanced the tricks by tasking their in-house experts with verification and letting the content creators in on the results.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the burn from hot food on the lips were given the thumbs up. So too were ideas it could extend fragrance and revive leather bags. Suggestions it could whiten teeth or extend lashes were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Billboards and TV ads would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. However, this online trend has helped convince executives to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been termed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, newly named, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on digital creator content.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

Selina Sykes, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of reaching consumers. She said participating on platforms “without spoiling the atmosphere” 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 talking about what they used.

“We are witnessing a departure from a one-to-many model, where we would just transmit messages … Now it’s many conversations, many communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, but they’re not.

“If you can make sure your brand is shared by other people, 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 dramatic transformations taking place in media consumption, with the youth demographic spending more time on digital networks than television, magazines or radio.

The transition is visible in falling revenues for traditional media advertising. Across Britain, advertising income for leading TV channels have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

The Creator Economy Boom

Additionally, it points to a media convergence as large companies almost become production houses themselves, collaborating with numerous influencers to boost their products.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention out of certain traditional media outlets and their time is increasingly on digital video and image apps than they are watching live TV or reading print.

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

He added firms may also cut expenditures by investing in creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also enables easier content adjustment to see what works.

The approach is growing. Promotional expenditure on the creator economy is increasing four times faster than the broader media sector. In the US, it has over doubled since 2021 and is forecast to attain multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Despite the huge changes, industry figures said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to frame public debate.

Sykes said: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”