Cultural Currency: A Brand’s Power to Shape Taste
Cultural currency is a brand’s ability to set agendas, spark conversation, and influence what people value. Today that power is harder to claim. Algorithms reward speed and repeatable engagement, producing a flood of generic AI-generated content we can call AI slop. That volume flattens difference and makes genuine taste-making rare and valuable.
Productive Friction: Strategic Resistance for Meaning
Productive friction is the conscious introduction of tension, constraint, or surprise into creative work to create attention and meaning. The principle is simple: break expectations while staying credible. Friction asks audiences to pause, reflect, or take a small action, which builds stronger memory and association than passive scrolling.
Friction in Action: Brands Leading with AI
Look to culture-forward examples that use resistance as a feature. Anthropic set up a pop-up bookshop called Keep Thinking that repositions AI as something to reflect on rather than rush past. The physical, quiet space interrupts the digital speed narrative and invites deeper conversation.
Duolingo leans into character and controversy. When Duo ‘dies’ in a campaign or the mascot behaves unpredictably, the brand signals human personality and stakes. That risk of uneven reception buys genuine conversation that algorithms struggle to create.
Sustained Influence: Building a Cultural Program
Cultural currency is not a stunt. It is a repeatable program of small frictions that compound over time. Practical moves brands can use now:
- Introduce rituals: timed releases, physical activations, or slow editorial series that reward patience.
- Apply constraints: limited formats, deliberate limits on automation, or human-only creative calls.
- Create productive surprises: unexpected partnerships, provocative questions, or errors left visible to signal humanity.
- Measure quality not just reach: conversation depth, sentiment, and downstream associations matter more than clicks.
In an era optimised for ease, friction becomes a strategic asset. Brands that practise thoughtful resistance can shape taste, earn attention, and build cultural currency that no algorithm can fully replicate.
