🔗 Share this article

First identified over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the modest tin of Vaseline could hardly be considered an clear candidate for social media algorithms.

However, its rise as a TikTok talking point has positioned it at the vanguard of an promotional upheaval, where major corporations are investing heavily in content creators and putting fewer resources into marketing items in traditional media.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

The petroleum jelly was first manufactured in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers applying to their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Today, a spree of amateur-created clips have chronicled its broad application in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or prolonging the scent of perfume, as well as a fix for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to combat the nuisance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Spotting its digital renaissance, strategists within the corporation boosted the tips 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 confirmed. Similarly supported were ideas it could prolong perfume and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could bleach teeth or lengthen eyelashes were disproven.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. Yet this viral episode has persuaded leaders to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been termed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, freshly instated, has suggested it is aiming to spend half of its colossal advertising budget on digital creator content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

The company's social media lead, who is leading the online push, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of engaging audiences. She said participating on platforms “without spoiling the atmosphere” was paramount.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and discussing household products.

“We are witnessing a departure from a one-to-many model, where we would just send out ads … Today, it's numerous dialogues, various groups. The shift of the algorithms means that these audiences appear specific, but they’re not.

“Having your brand advocated by users, mentioned by individuals, this builds credibility and connection. Influencers are vital for this. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The strategy reflects profound shifts taking place in media consumption, 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, commercial funding for primary networks have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

It also reflects a merging of functions as brands effectively act as media producers, collaborating with numerous influencers to promote their goods.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences from conventional channels and they are dedicating far more hours to Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“A lot of brands are telling us audiences believe endorsements from the individuals they follow more than they trust ads. That’s a consistent trend.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by targeting content creators over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to see what works.

Such methods are increasing. Advertising spending on the creator economy is rising at quadruple the rate than the media industry overall. Stateside, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit substantial figures in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Even with this transformation, executives said they believed TV advertising still had a prominent role to play, as networks still held the capability to drive countrywide discourse.

The executive noted: “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.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”