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Originally found over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline could hardly be considered an obvious target for online content feeds.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has placed it at the forefront of an promotional upheaval, where major corporations are spending big on content creators and putting fewer resources into promoting products in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers rubbing their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Currently, a wave of content from users have chronicled its broad application in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a fix for dirty sneakers or extending perfume longevity, as well as a fix for creaky hinges. Its use has even extended to prevent the annoyance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Noticing its viral resurgence, executives at the multinational enhanced the tricks by having their research teams evaluate the claims and letting the content creators in on the results.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sensation of spicy food on lips were given the thumbs up. So too were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could whiten teeth or make eyelashes longer were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. Yet this viral episode has helped convince executives to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This observation of social channels to guide corporate planning has been labeled “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on platform-based material.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

A leading Unilever executive, who is leading the online push, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said interacting online “without spoiling the atmosphere” was essential.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and discussing household products.

“The trend is shifting from a broadcast model, where we would just broadcast out … Currently, it's countless discussions, many communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these audiences appear specific, yet they are vast.

“If you can make sure your brand is shared by other people, talked about by other people, this builds credibility and connection. Content makers are key. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects profound shifts occurring in how media is consumed, with younger consumers allocating more attention to social media platforms than legacy broadcast and print media.

The transition is visible in falling revenues for broadcast and newspaper ads. Within the United Kingdom, ad revenues for major broadcasters have fallen by more than £600m in actual value since the end of the last decade.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

Additionally, it points to a media convergence as brands effectively act as media producers, linking up with hundreds of content creators to enhance their items.

Leon Harlow said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers out of certain traditional media outlets and they’re spending a lot more time on social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the personalities they subscribe to over traditional advertisements. That’s a consistent trend.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by focusing on influencers over big traditional media campaigns, which also enables easier content adjustment to test effectiveness.

This strategy is expanding. Marketing investment on the creator economy is growing fourfold quicker than total media spending. Across the United States, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, executives said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still the Super Bowl. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”