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As a product discovered over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has positioned it at the vanguard of an marketing transformation, where major corporations are allocating substantial funds to content creators and reducing expenditure on marketing items in traditional media.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

The petroleum jelly was first manufactured in the 1870s by chemist Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers using on their skin with a derivative of drilling. Today, a spree of content from users have recorded its extensive utilization in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a solution for polishing footwear or prolonging the scent of perfume, as well as a fix for squeaky doors. Users have even applied it to stop the scourge of snack dust adhering to hands.

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.

Suggestions that it lessened the sensation of spicy food on lips were given the thumbs up. This was also the case for ideas it could lengthen scent duration and revive leather bags. Claims that it would brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were debunked.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. But the Vaseline phenomenon has helped convince executives to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to inform business strategy has been labeled “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on digital creator content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said engaging on social media “without killing the party” was crucial.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and talking about what they used.

“The trend is shifting from a broadcast model, where we would just transmit messages … Today, it's numerous dialogues, many communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these audiences appear specific, however, they are large.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, recommended by peers, this builds credibility and connection. Creators are critical to that. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

This plan mirrors dramatic transformations taking place in media consumption, with Gen Z and millennial audiences spending more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram than traditional TV, print, or radio.

This change is evidenced by declines in traditional media advertising. Within the United Kingdom, advertising income for major broadcasters have fallen by more than £600m in real terms since 2019.

The Creator Economy Boom

This further signifies a blurring of media roles as corporations essentially turn into content studios, linking up with hundreds of content creators to boost their products.

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention from conventional channels and they’re spending a lot more time on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Numerous corporations inform us consumers have more faith in suggestions from the personalities they subscribe to compared to commercial messages. This is a persistent pattern.”

He said brands could also save money by investing in creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to gauge performance.

This strategy is expanding. Advertising spending on digital creator partnerships is rising at quadruple the rate 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

Regardless of the massive shift, experts said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to drive countrywide discourse.

She added: “Among the most effective advertising investments 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.”