‘Online Monitoring’: The Consumer Goods Giant Seeks to Capitalise On Vaseline’s Viral TikTok Trend.

As a product discovered over 150 years ago in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, the modest tin of Vaseline might not appear as an clear candidate for digital platform algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a TikTok talking point has placed it at the forefront of an promotional upheaval, in which large companies are investing heavily in content creators and putting fewer resources into advertising goods in legacy broadcasters.

From Oil Rigs to Online Hacks

The petroleum jelly was first manufactured in the 1870s by a chemist, Robert Cheeseborough, who noticed oil rig workers using on their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Today, a spree of user-generated videos have recorded its extensive utilization in “practical tricks”.

It has been touted as a solution for polishing footwear or prolonging the scent of perfume, along with a cure for creaky hinges. Its use has even extended to combat the nuisance of crisp flavouring sticking to fingers.

Harnessing the Hype

Spotting its digital renaissance, executives at the multinational enhanced the tricks by asking their own scientists to test them and letting the content creators in on the results.

Assertions that it diminished 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 bleach teeth or extend lashes were refuted.

The ‘Social Listening’ Strategy

Billboards and TV ads would once have dominated Unilever’s advertising drive. Yet this viral episode has helped convince executives to dramatically increase investment in content creators.

This observation of social channels to guide corporate planning has been termed “social listening”. Fernando Fernández, freshly instated, has indicated the goal is to spend 50% of its massive marketing spend on social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

Selina Sykes, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was merely adjusting to novel methods of connecting with customers. She said participating on platforms “without spoiling the atmosphere” was paramount.

“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 discussing household products.

“There’s this moving away from a one-to-many model, where we would just transmit messages … Now it’s many conversations, diverse communities. The evolution of platform algorithms means that these communities feel niche, yet they are vast.

“Having your brand advocated by consumers, mentioned by individuals, this builds credibility and connection. Content makers are key. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The approach indicates seismic changes occurring in how media is consumed, with younger consumers allocating more attention to digital networks than legacy broadcast and print media.

The shift is reflected in drops in broadcast and newspaper ads. In the UK, ad revenues for major broadcasters have fallen by more than £600m in actual value since the end of the last decade.

The Creator Economy Boom

This further signifies a blurring of media roles as brands effectively act as media producers, collaborating with hundreds of content creators to boost their products.

Leon Harlow said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences out of certain traditional media outlets and they are dedicating far more hours to digital video and image apps than they are viewing scheduled television or reading physical magazines.

“Numerous corporations inform us people trust recommendations from the personalities they subscribe to more than they trust ads. This is a persistent pattern.”

He noted companies can reduce costs by focusing on influencers over large-scale legacy ad buys, which also permits simpler message refinement to gauge performance.

This strategy is expanding. Advertising spending on digital creator partnerships is growing fourfold quicker than total media spending. Stateside, it has more than doubled since 2021 and is expected to hit tens of billions in 2025.

The Enduring Power of Broadcast

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

Sykes said: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still the Super Bowl. It's not a matter of networks declaring: ‘We are no longer pertinent.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … There is undoubtedly a future for traditional media.”