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

Originally found over 150 years ago within a Pennsylvania drilling site, the modest tin of Vaseline might not appear as an clear candidate for digital platform algorithms.

Nonetheless, its ascent as a TikTok talking point has thrust it into the lead of an marketing transformation, seeing big businesses investing heavily in content creators and devoting less capital to promoting products in traditional media.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

Originally produced in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers applying to their skin with a byproduct of the drilling process. Today, a spree of amateur-created clips have documented the product’s widespread use in “everyday tips”.

Promoted as a remedy for cleaning shoes or making fragrance last longer, along with a cure for squeaky doors. Users have even applied it to prevent the annoyance of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Spotting its digital renaissance, marketers at Unilever boosted the tips by asking their own scientists to test them and letting the content creators in on the results.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the burn from hot food on the lips were confirmed. Similarly supported were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and restore leather handbags. Suggestions it could bleach teeth or extend lashes were refuted.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

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

This tracking of digital spaces to inform business strategy has been dubbed “social listening”. Unilever's CEO, freshly instated, has stated the intention is to spend half of its colossal advertising budget on platform-based material.

Evolving With Audience Behavior

A leading Unilever executive, who is spearheading the social media effort, said the company was just evolving with contemporary approaches of connecting with customers. She said participating on platforms “without killing the party” was essential.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This has perpetually been our aim as brands, since the era of community gossip and sharing usage tips.

“The trend is shifting from a mass communication approach, where we would just send out ads … Currently, it's countless discussions, various groups. The shift of the algorithms means that these groups seem specialized, yet they are vast.

“Having your brand advocated by other people, recommended by peers, this builds credibility and connection. Influencers are vital for this. We are expanding this endorsement system.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

This plan mirrors profound shifts happening in audience habits, with Gen Z and millennial audiences devoting greater hours to apps like TikTok and Instagram than traditional TV, print, or radio.

The shift is reflected in drops in traditional media advertising. In the UK, commercial funding for major broadcasters have declined by over six hundred million pounds in real terms since 2019.

Influencer Marketing Expansion

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

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Naturally, an exodus of attention away from some legacy media and they’re spending a lot more time on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube than they are watching live TV or reading print.

“A lot of brands are telling us people trust recommendations from the personalities they subscribe to compared to commercial messages. That’s a consistent trend.”

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

This strategy is expanding. Marketing investment on the creator economy is increasing four times faster than total media spending. Stateside, it has over doubled since 2021 and is projected to reach tens of billions in 2025.

TV's Lasting Role

Even with this transformation, executives said they believed television commercials still played a key part to play, as broadcasters retained the power to frame public debate.

Sykes said: “Among the most effective advertising investments is still major broadcast spectacles. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ It concerns who commands eyeballs … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”