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Originally found over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline may not seem like an natural focus for online content feeds.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a popular subject on TikTok has positioned it at the vanguard of an advertising revolution, seeing big businesses spending big on content creators and devoting less capital to promoting products in traditional media.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers applying to their skin with a derivative of drilling. Today, a spree of content from users have documented the product’s widespread use in “life hacks”.

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

Capitalising on the Conversation

Detecting the product’s new life online, marketers at Unilever boosted the tips by tasking their in-house experts with verification and sharing the findings with influencers.

Assertions that it diminished the sting of chili on the mouth were confirmed. This was also the case for ideas it could extend fragrance and restore leather handbags. Proposals that it might brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were debunked.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. Yet this viral episode has led decision-makers to ramp up funding for content creators.

This monitoring of online platforms to inform business strategy has been termed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, recently appointed, has stated the intention is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on digital creator content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

A leading Unilever executive, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of reaching consumers. She said interacting online “without dampening the fun” was crucial.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and discussing household products.

“The trend is shifting from a one-to-many model, where we would just broadcast out … Today, it's numerous dialogues, diverse communities. The shift of the algorithms means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

“If you can make sure your brand is shared by users, mentioned by individuals, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Influencers are vital for this. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The strategy reflects profound shifts occurring in how media is consumed, with Gen Z and millennial audiences allocating more attention to social media platforms than television, magazines or radio.

This change is evidenced by drops in broadcast and newspaper ads. In the UK, advertising income for primary networks have fallen by more than £600m in actual value since the end of the last decade.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a blurring of media roles as brands effectively act as media producers, partnering with numerous influencers to enhance their items.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention from conventional channels and their time is increasingly on social platforms like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“Numerous corporations inform us audiences believe endorsements from the individuals they follow more than they trust ads. This is a persistent pattern.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by investing in creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also enables easier content adjustment to gauge performance.

The approach is growing. Marketing investment on digital creator partnerships is rising at quadruple the rate than the media industry overall. Across the United States, it has over doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit substantial figures in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, experts said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as networks still held the capability to shape the national conversation.

She added: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still major broadcast spectacles. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”