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First identified over 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an natural focus for digital platform algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a viral TikTok topic has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, in which large companies are investing heavily in content creators and putting fewer resources into advertising goods in legacy broadcasters.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers rubbing their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Currently, a wave of user-generated videos have chronicled its broad application in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or extending perfume longevity, and also a remedy for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to stop the scourge of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Noticing its viral resurgence, marketers at Unilever boosted the tips by asking their own scientists to test them and sharing the findings with influencers.

Assertions that it diminished the burn from hot food on the lips were given the thumbs up. Similarly supported were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were refuted.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Outdoor advertising and television commercials would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. But the Vaseline phenomenon has led decision-makers to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on social media content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of connecting with customers. She said interacting online “without spoiling the atmosphere” was paramount.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, since the era of community gossip and talking about what they used.

“We are witnessing a departure from a broadcast model, where we would just transmit messages … Currently, it's countless discussions, diverse communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these audiences appear specific, however, they are large.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by other people, talked about by other people, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Influencers are vital for this. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The approach indicates profound shifts happening in audience habits, with Gen Z and millennial audiences spending more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The shift is reflected in drops in TV and print advertising. In the UK, ad revenues for leading TV channels have declined by over six hundred million pounds in actual value since the end of the last decade.

The Creator Economy Boom

Additionally, it points to a merging of functions as corporations essentially turn into content studios, linking up with hundreds of content creators to boost their products.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences away from some legacy media and they’re spending a lot more time on digital video and image apps than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the creators they engage with compared to commercial messages. That’s a consistent trend.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by focusing on influencers over expensive broadcast campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to test effectiveness.

Such methods are increasing. Advertising spending on the creator economy is rising at quadruple the rate than the media industry overall. Stateside, it has over doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Even with this transformation, experts said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to frame public debate.

Sykes said: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still events like the Super Bowl. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”