🔗 Share this article

First identified over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an natural focus for social media algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an promotional upheaval, seeing big businesses allocating substantial funds to content creators and reducing expenditure on promoting products in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers applying to their skin with a residue from oil extraction. Now, a flood of user-generated videos have recorded its extensive utilization in “practical tricks”.

Hailed as a fix for dirty sneakers or making fragrance last longer, as well as a fix for creaky hinges. It has even been deployed to prevent the annoyance of snack dust adhering to hands.

Harnessing the Hype

Spotting its digital renaissance, executives at the multinational enhanced the tricks by tasking their in-house experts with verification and sharing the findings with influencers.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the burn from hot food on the lips were confirmed. So too were ideas it could extend fragrance and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might brighten smiles or extend lashes were disproven.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. Yet this viral episode has helped convince executives to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to inform business strategy has been dubbed “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.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of reaching consumers. She said participating on platforms “without killing the party” was paramount.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, since the era of community gossip and discussing household products.

“There’s this moving away from a one-to-many model, where we would just broadcast out … Today, it's numerous dialogues, various groups. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these communities feel niche, yet they are vast.

“Having your brand advocated by users, recommended by peers, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Influencers are vital for this. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The approach indicates dramatic transformations happening in audience habits, with Gen Z and millennial audiences devoting greater hours to apps like TikTok and Instagram than legacy broadcast and print media.

The transition is visible in declines in traditional media advertising. In the UK, ad revenues for leading TV channels have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

The Creator Economy Boom

Additionally, it points to a media convergence as corporations essentially turn into content studios, partnering with a multitude of digital creators to enhance their items.

Leon Harlow said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers from conventional channels and they’re spending a lot more time on digital video and image apps than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“Many companies report to us audiences believe endorsements from the creators they engage with compared to commercial messages. This is a persistent pattern.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by targeting content creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also enables easier content adjustment to gauge performance.

Such methods are increasing. Advertising spending on the creator economy is increasing four times faster than the broader media sector. Stateside, it has over doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit tens of billions in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

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

Sykes said: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”