‘Online Monitoring’: The Consumer Goods Giant Looks to Exploit Vaseline’s Viral TikTok Trend.

First identified over 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the humble pot of Vaseline could hardly be considered an clear candidate for online content feeds.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a popular subject on TikTok has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, seeing big businesses investing heavily in content creators and putting fewer resources into advertising goods in legacy broadcasters.

The Path from Petroleum to Platforms

Originally produced in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers applying to their skin with a derivative of drilling. Currently, a wave of content from users have documented the product’s widespread use in “life hacks”.

Promoted as a solution for polishing footwear or making fragrance last longer, as well as a fix for creaky hinges. Users have even applied it to stop the scourge of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Spotting its digital renaissance, marketers at Unilever enhanced the tricks by having their research teams evaluate the claims and providing creators with the outcome data.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sting of chili on the mouth were validated. Similarly supported were ideas it could prolong perfume and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could brighten smiles or lengthen eyelashes were disproven.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Outdoor advertising and television commercials would once have been the cornerstone of its marketing push. But the Vaseline phenomenon has led decision-makers to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This observation of social channels to guide corporate planning has been dubbed “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

A leading Unilever executive, who is heading the digital initiative, said the company was simply adapting to new ways of connecting with customers. She said participating on platforms “without killing the party” was paramount.

“How can companies join discussions credibly? 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 … Now it’s many conversations, various groups. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, yet they are vast.

“Having your brand advocated by other people, talked about by other people, this builds credibility and connection. Influencers are vital for this. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Seismic Media Shift

The strategy reflects profound shifts taking place in media consumption, with the youth demographic spending more time on social media platforms than legacy broadcast and print media.

The shift is reflected in declines in traditional media advertising. In the UK, ad revenues for leading TV channels have declined by over six hundred million pounds in real terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

Additionally, it points to a blurring of media roles as brands effectively act as media producers, linking up with numerous influencers to promote their goods.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Clearly, there is a migration of viewers from conventional channels and they are dedicating far more hours to digital video and image apps than they are consuming linear broadcasts or printed matter.

“Numerous corporations inform us audiences believe endorsements from the personalities they subscribe to compared to commercial messages. It's an ongoing shift.”

He added firms may also cut expenditures by focusing on influencers over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also enables easier content adjustment to gauge performance.

This strategy is expanding. Promotional expenditure on digital creator partnerships is growing fourfold quicker than the media industry overall. In the US, it has over doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit multi-billion dollar sums in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

Regardless of the massive shift, executives said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as TV channels continued to possess the influence to drive countrywide discourse.

The executive noted: “A top-tier ROI marketing event is still major broadcast spectacles. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I believe there is absolutely a role for them.”