Anna Holmes defines 'hype aversion' as a reflex against being told what to like, suggesting that popularity can create pressure rather than signal quality. This feeling can lead to a deliberate choice to resist mainstream culture.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth took the unprecedented step of designating a U.S. firm-Anthropic-as a supply chain risk. Anthropic's crime? It refused to violate industry-wide protocols against using AI for mass surveillance or autonomous weapons. Hegseth's designation, which has until now been reserved for foreign firms, bars U.S. military contractors from doing business with the company.
Fashion fans are more visible - and influential - than ever before. The Met Gala - often called fashion's Super Bowl - garnered more engagement across social media and press than the actual American football championship last year, according to Launchmetrics. Just like Swifties, fashion fanatics gather online in communities and comment sections on accounts like Gvishiani's to dissect collections, magazine covers and red carpets.
"Instead of starting with a product that we didn't feel like existed in the marketplace, we started with a mission that we felt like didn't exist, particularly in the beauty space," Cohen said. "We love that young people are turning to brands for not just products, but for the issues that they care about-and also that's what holds us accountable."
Marketers spend billions trying to persuade consumers that a product is right for them. But our research shows that sometimes the most effective way to market something is to say that it isn't for them. In other words, effective marketing can mean discouraging the wrong customers rather than convincing everyone to buy. We call this "dissuasive framing." Instead of saying a product is perfect for everyone, a company is up front about who it might not be for.