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First identified more than 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline might not appear as an obvious target for digital platform algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a viral TikTok topic has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, where major corporations are investing heavily in content creators and reducing expenditure on promoting products in traditional media.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

The petroleum jelly was first manufactured in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who saw laborers rubbing their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Now, a flood of content from users have documented the product’s widespread use in “life hacks”.

Promoted as a fix for dirty sneakers or making fragrance last longer, and also a remedy for noisy doorways. Its use has even extended to combat the nuisance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Leveraging the Buzz

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

Suggestions that it lessened the sting of chili on the mouth were validated. This was also the case for ideas it could extend fragrance and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could bleach teeth or extend lashes were debunked.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Print ads and broadcast spots 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 monitoring of online platforms to shape commercial tactics has been termed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, recently appointed, has indicated the goal is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on social media content.

Adapting to New Consumer Habits

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 spoiling the atmosphere” was crucial.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? This remains our core objective as brands, back to when people were hanging out their laundry and sharing usage tips.

“The trend is shifting from a mass communication approach, where we would just broadcast out … Currently, it's countless discussions, various groups. The shift of the algorithms means that these audiences appear specific, however, they are large.

“Having your brand advocated by other people, talked about by other people, this builds credibility and connection. Creators are critical to that. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Revolutionary Change in Media

The strategy reflects seismic changes happening in audience habits, with the youth demographic allocating more attention to apps like TikTok and Instagram than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The shift is reflected in falling revenues for traditional media advertising. In the UK, advertising income for primary networks have dropped substantially in inflation-adjusted terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

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

A commercial director at a major talent agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention from conventional channels and their time is increasingly on digital video and image apps than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Many companies report to us consumers have more faith in suggestions from the creators they engage with over traditional advertisements. It's an ongoing shift.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by targeting content creators over big traditional media campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to test effectiveness.

Such methods are increasing. Promotional expenditure on the creator economy is increasing four times faster than total media spending. Across the United States, it has over doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach substantial figures in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

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

Sykes said: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still major broadcast spectacles. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ It’s about who’s capturing attention … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”