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As a product discovered over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the modest tin of Vaseline may not seem like an clear candidate for online content feeds.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a TikTok talking point has positioned it at the vanguard of an advertising revolution, in which large companies are spending big on content creators and reducing expenditure on advertising goods in traditional media.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

First created commercially in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers using on their skin with a derivative of drilling. Today, a spree of amateur-created clips have documented the product’s widespread use in “everyday tips”.

Promoted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or making fragrance last longer, along with a cure for squeaky doors. Its use has even extended to combat the nuisance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

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

Suggestions that it lessened the sensation of spicy food on lips were validated. Similarly supported were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and restore leather handbags. Proposals that it might whiten teeth or make eyelashes longer were disproven.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. Yet this viral episode has persuaded leaders to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, newly named, has indicated the goal is to spend half of its colossal advertising budget on social media content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said interacting online “without killing the party” was paramount.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and discussing household products.

“We are witnessing a departure from a mass communication approach, where we would just transmit messages … Now it’s many conversations, many communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these communities feel niche, however, they are large.

“Having your brand advocated by consumers, mentioned by individuals, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Creators are critical to that. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The approach indicates seismic changes occurring in how media is consumed, with Gen Z and millennial audiences spending more time on digital networks than legacy broadcast and print media.

This change is evidenced by declines in traditional media advertising. In the UK, advertising income for primary networks have dropped substantially in real terms since 2019.

The Creator Economy Boom

Additionally, it points to a blurring of media roles as brands effectively act as media producers, linking up with numerous influencers 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 Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Many companies report to us consumers have more faith in suggestions from the personalities they subscribe to more than they trust ads. It's an ongoing shift.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by targeting content creators over expensive broadcast campaigns, which also enables easier content adjustment to gauge performance.

Such methods are increasing. Promotional expenditure on influencer marketing is rising at quadruple the rate than the media industry overall. Stateside, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is forecast to attain multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Even with this transformation, experts said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as broadcasters retained the power to shape the national conversation.

She added: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”