‘Social Listening’: The Consumer Goods Giant Aims to Harness Vaseline’s Social Media Breakthrough.

First identified over 150 years ago on a Pennsylvania oilfield, the simple jar of Vaseline might not appear as an clear candidate for social media algorithms.

Yet the brand’s emergence as a TikTok talking point has positioned it at the vanguard of an advertising revolution, in which large companies are investing heavily in content creators and reducing expenditure on marketing items in legacy broadcasters.

A Journey from Drilling to Digital

The petroleum jelly was first manufactured in the 1870s by scientist Robert Cheeseborough, who observed drillers rubbing their skin with a derivative of drilling. Currently, a wave of amateur-created clips have chronicled its broad application in “everyday tips”.

Promoted as a solution for polishing footwear or prolonging the scent of perfume, along with a cure for noisy doorways. Users have even applied it to stop the scourge of chip seasoning clinging to fingers.

Capitalising on the Conversation

Noticing its viral resurgence, marketers at Unilever enhanced the tricks by asking their own scientists to test them and providing creators with the outcome data.

Claims that Vaseline reduced the sensation of spicy food on lips were confirmed. So too were ideas it could lengthen scent duration and rejuvenate purses. Claims that it would whiten teeth or make eyelashes longer were disproven.

A Plan Built on ‘Social Listening’

Billboards and TV ads would once have formed the bulk of its promotional efforts. However, this online trend has helped convince executives to ramp up funding for content creators.

This tracking of digital spaces to guide corporate planning has been dubbed “social listening”. The company's chief executive, freshly instated, has indicated the goal is to spend a full fifty percent of its huge ad budget on social media content.

Shifting to Modern Engagement

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 engaging on social media “without dampening the fun” was crucial.

“What is the key to genuine brand integration? This remains our core objective as brands, dating to when neighbors chatted over fences and discussing household products.

“We are witnessing a departure from a mass communication approach, where we would just send out ads … Now it’s many conversations, many communities. Changes in digital feeds means that these groups seem specialized, but they’re not.

“Ensuring your product is discussed by users, talked about by other people, that fosters reliability and pertinence. Content makers are key. We’re really scaling this advocacy model.”

A Fundamental Consumption Turn

The strategy reflects profound shifts happening in audience habits, with younger consumers spending more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram than legacy broadcast and print media.

The transition is visible in declines in traditional media advertising. In the UK, commercial funding for major broadcasters have dropped substantially in real terms since 2019.

The Rise of the Creator Economy

Additionally, it points to a media convergence as large companies almost become production houses themselves, partnering with a multitude of digital creators to promote their goods.

An industry expert from a leading agency said: “Obviously there’s a flow of audiences from conventional channels and they’re spending a lot more time 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 creators they engage with over traditional advertisements. That’s a consistent trend.”

He said brands could also save money by focusing on influencers over big traditional media campaigns, which also allows them to tweak their content more easily to see what works.

This strategy is expanding. Marketing investment on digital creator partnerships is growing fourfold quicker than total media spending. Stateside, it has over doubled since 2021 and is forecast to attain 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 broadcasters retained the power to shape the national conversation.

The executive noted: “One of the highest return-on-investment media opportunities is still events like the Super Bowl. The issue isn't broadcasters claiming: ‘Oh, we’re not relevant any more.’ The focus is on who seizes focus … I think there’s 100% a place for them.”