🔗 Share this article

As a product discovered more than 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the humble pot of Vaseline may not seem like an clear candidate for digital platform algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a TikTok talking point has placed it at the forefront of an marketing transformation, where major corporations are allocating substantial funds to content creators and putting fewer resources into marketing items in traditional media.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

First created commercially in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers applying to their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Now, a flood of user-generated videos have documented the product’s widespread use in “life hacks”.

Hailed as a fix for dirty sneakers or prolonging the scent of perfume, along with a cure for squeaky doors. It has even been deployed to combat the nuisance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Noticing its viral resurgence, 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 sting of chili on the mouth were validated. So too were ideas it could extend fragrance and rejuvenate purses. Proposals that it might brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were disproven.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. However, this online trend has helped convince executives to ramp up funding for content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, newly named, has stated the intention is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on social media content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

Selina Sykes, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of connecting with customers. She said participating on platforms “without dampening the fun” was paramount.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and sharing usage tips.

“The trend is shifting from a mass communication approach, where we would just send out ads … Now it’s many conversations, diverse communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these audiences appear specific, yet they are vast.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, recommended by peers, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Content makers are key. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects seismic changes taking place in media consumption, with the youth demographic spending more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram than traditional TV, print, or radio.

This change is evidenced by drops in broadcast and newspaper ads. 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 media convergence as large companies almost become production houses themselves, collaborating with a multitude of digital creators to enhance their items.

Leon Harlow said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences from conventional channels and their time is increasingly on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the individuals they follow compared to commercial messages. That’s a consistent trend.”

He said brands could also save money by investing in creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to gauge performance.

Such methods are increasing. Marketing investment on the creator economy is increasing four times faster than the media industry overall. Stateside, it has over doubled since 2021 and is forecast to attain tens of billions in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Regardless of the massive shift, experts said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as broadcasters retained the power to drive countrywide discourse.

She added: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”