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Originally found more than 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an clear candidate for online content feeds.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a viral TikTok topic has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, seeing big businesses spending big on content creators and putting fewer resources into advertising goods in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers applying to their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Today, a spree of content from users have recorded its extensive utilization in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a fix for dirty sneakers or extending perfume longevity, along with a cure for noisy doorways. Its use has even extended to stop the scourge of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Detecting the product’s new life online, 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 sensation of spicy food on lips were validated. This was also the case for ideas it could extend fragrance and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might whiten teeth or make eyelashes longer were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. Yet this viral episode has led decision-makers to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, newly named, has suggested it is aiming to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

A leading Unilever executive, 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 killing the party” was paramount.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This remains our core objective as brands, since the era of community gossip and sharing usage tips.

“We are witnessing a departure from a one-to-many model, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, many communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these groups seem specialized, however, they are large.

“Having your brand advocated by other people, mentioned by individuals, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Creators are critical to that. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects dramatic transformations occurring in how media is consumed, with Gen Z and millennial audiences devoting greater hours to apps like TikTok and Instagram than legacy broadcast and print media.

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

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a blurring of media roles as large companies almost become production houses themselves, collaborating with numerous influencers to promote their goods.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers away from some legacy media and their time is increasingly on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Numerous corporations inform us consumers have more faith in suggestions from the individuals they follow more than they trust ads. It's an ongoing shift.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by investing in creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also permits simpler message refinement to see what works.

The approach is growing. Advertising spending on digital creator partnerships is rising at quadruple the rate than the media industry overall. In the US, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is projected to reach 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 frame public debate.

Sykes said: “A top-tier ROI marketing event 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 … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”