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Originally found more than 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an obvious target for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a TikTok talking point has positioned it at the vanguard of an marketing transformation, seeing big businesses 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 a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers using on their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Currently, a wave of content from users have documented the product’s widespread use in “life hacks”.

Promoted as a solution for polishing footwear or making fragrance last longer, along with a cure for creaky hinges. It has even been deployed to stop the scourge of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Detecting the product’s new life online, marketers at Unilever amplified the hacks by having their research teams evaluate the claims and providing creators with the outcome data.

Assertions that it diminished the burn from hot food on the lips were validated. This was also the case for ideas it could prolong perfume and rejuvenate purses. Suggestions it could bleach 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. However, this online trend has persuaded leaders to turbocharge spending on content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been labeled “social listening”. The company's chief executive, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

The company's social media lead, who is leading the online push, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of engaging audiences. She said interacting online “without spoiling the atmosphere” was crucial.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do 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 send out ads … Currently, it's countless discussions, many communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these groups seem specialized, yet they are vast.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by other people, mentioned by individuals, this builds credibility and connection. Creators are critical to that. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

This plan mirrors profound shifts taking place in media consumption, with younger consumers devoting greater hours to social media platforms than legacy broadcast and print media.

This change is evidenced by falling revenues for broadcast and newspaper ads. Within the United Kingdom, advertising income 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 merging of functions as brands effectively act as media producers, linking up with hundreds of content creators to enhance their items.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences from conventional channels and they’re spending a lot more time on social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“A lot of brands are telling us audiences believe endorsements from the personalities they subscribe to compared to commercial messages. It's an ongoing shift.”

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 test effectiveness.

This strategy is expanding. Marketing investment on digital creator partnerships is increasing four times faster than the media industry overall. Across the United States, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach tens of billions in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Despite the huge changes, industry figures said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to drive countrywide discourse.

Sykes said: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still major broadcast spectacles. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”