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Originally found over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the modest tin of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for online content feeds.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a viral TikTok topic has positioned it at the vanguard of an marketing transformation, where major corporations are allocating substantial funds to content creators and putting fewer resources into promoting products in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

The petroleum jelly was first manufactured in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers rubbing their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Now, a flood of amateur-created clips have recorded its extensive utilization in “everyday tips”.

Hailed as a fix for dirty sneakers or making fragrance last longer, along with a cure for squeaky doors. It has even been deployed to stop the scourge of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Spotting its digital renaissance, marketers at Unilever boosted the tips by having their research teams evaluate the claims and providing creators with the outcome data.

Assertions that it diminished the sting of chili on the mouth were given the thumbs up. This was also the case for ideas it could extend fragrance and rejuvenate purses. Proposals that it might brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. Yet this viral episode has helped convince executives to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This observation of social channels to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on digital creator content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

Selina Sykes, who is leading the online push, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of engaging audiences. She said participating on platforms “without dampening the fun” was crucial.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? This remains our core objective as brands, since the era of community gossip and talking about what they used.

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

“Having your brand advocated by other people, recommended by peers, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Content makers are key. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

This plan mirrors seismic changes taking place in media consumption, with Gen Z and millennial audiences devoting greater hours to apps like TikTok and Instagram than legacy broadcast and print media.

The transition is visible in drops in TV and print advertising. Across Britain, commercial funding for major broadcasters have declined by over six hundred million pounds in real terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

Additionally, it points to a media convergence as brands effectively act as media producers, collaborating with hundreds of content creators to promote their goods.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention out of certain traditional media outlets and they are dedicating far more hours to 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. That’s a consistent trend.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by focusing on influencers over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also permits simpler message refinement to gauge performance.

The approach is growing. Promotional expenditure on digital creator partnerships is increasing four times faster than total media spending. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is expected to hit substantial figures in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Despite the huge changes, executives said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as networks still held the capability to shape the national conversation.

Sykes said: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still events like the Super Bowl. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”