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First identified more than 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the simple jar of Vaseline may not seem like an obvious target for digital platform algorithms.

However, its rise as a TikTok talking point has placed it at the forefront of an marketing transformation, seeing big businesses investing heavily in content creators and reducing expenditure on marketing items in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers rubbing their skin with a derivative of drilling. Currently, a wave of user-generated videos have chronicled its broad application in “practical tricks”.

Promoted as a fix for dirty sneakers or prolonging the scent of perfume, as well as a fix for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to prevent the annoyance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

Detecting the product’s new life online, strategists within the corporation boosted the tips by tasking their in-house experts with verification and providing creators with the outcome data.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the burn from hot food on the lips were validated. Similarly supported were ideas it could prolong perfume and revive leather bags. Proposals that it might whiten 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 inform business strategy has been dubbed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, recently appointed, has suggested it is aiming to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on digital creator content.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

Selina Sykes, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of engaging audiences. She said engaging on social media “without dampening the fun” was essential.

“How do brands authentically become part of the conversation? That’s always what we’ve been trying to do as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and talking about what they used.

“The trend is shifting from a mass communication approach, where we would just broadcast out … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. Changes in digital feeds means that these audiences appear specific, yet they are vast.

“If you can make sure your brand is shared by users, talked about by other people, that is how you can build trust and relevance. Content makers are key. This word-of-mouth strategy is being amplified.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The approach indicates profound shifts 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 falling revenues for broadcast and newspaper ads. Across Britain, advertising income for primary networks have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

This further signifies a media convergence as large companies almost become production houses themselves, partnering with a multitude of digital creators to enhance their items.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers out of certain traditional media outlets and their time is increasingly on 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 investing in creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also permits simpler message refinement to see what works.

This strategy is expanding. Marketing investment on influencer marketing is increasing four times faster than total media spending. Across the United States, it has over doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit substantial figures in 2025.

Traditional Media's Continued Place

Regardless of the massive shift, industry figures said they believed broadcast ads retained significant importance to play, as networks still held the capability to frame public debate.

She added: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still events like the Super Bowl. It’s not about those broadcasters saying: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”