🔗 Share this article

First identified more than 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline could hardly be considered an clear candidate for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a TikTok talking point has thrust it into the lead of an advertising revolution, where major corporations are spending big on content creators and devoting less capital to advertising goods in legacy broadcasters.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

First created commercially in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers rubbing their skin with a derivative of drilling. Now, a flood of amateur-created clips have recorded its extensive utilization in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or prolonging the scent of perfume, along with a cure for squeaky doors. It has even been deployed to prevent the annoyance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Detecting the product’s new life online, executives at the multinational amplified the hacks by asking their own scientists to test them and sharing the findings with influencers.

Suggestions that it lessened the burn from hot food on the lips were given the thumbs up. Similarly supported were ideas it could prolong perfume and rejuvenate purses. Suggestions it could bleach teeth or make eyelashes longer were refuted.

The ‘Digital Ear’ Approach

Print ads and broadcast spots would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. However, this online trend has persuaded leaders to ramp up funding for content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on digital creator content.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

The company's social media lead, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of reaching consumers. She said participating on platforms “without spoiling the atmosphere” was essential.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and sharing usage tips.

“The trend is shifting from a broadcast model, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. Changes in digital feeds means that these communities feel niche, but they’re not.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by consumers, talked about by other people, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Content makers are key. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The strategy reflects profound shifts occurring in how media is consumed, with the youth demographic spending more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram than legacy broadcast and print media.

The transition is visible in declines in traditional media advertising. Across Britain, advertising income for primary networks have fallen by more than £600m in actual value since the end of the last decade.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

Additionally, it points to a media convergence as corporations essentially turn into content studios, partnering with hundreds of content creators to boost their products.

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 consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“A lot of brands are telling 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 focusing on influencers over expensive broadcast campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to see what works.

Such methods are increasing. Advertising spending on influencer marketing is growing fourfold quicker than total media spending. Across the United States, it has increased by over 100% since 2021 and is projected to reach tens of billions in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Despite the huge changes, industry figures said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as broadcasters retained the power to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still the Super Bowl. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘Our relevance has faded.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”