We live in a time of extremes.
Social media rewards outrage, politics feeds on division, and businesses often feel compelled to pick sides just to be heard.
But people are becoming numb to all that provocation and clickbait. Several recent polls and studies show that America's determination to battle provocative misinformation has waned as trust in institutions crumbles.
Fact-checking politicians and attention to misinformation became a mainstay years ago. But as even the most widely accepted ideas have grown increasingly divisive, people (across the political and cultural spectrum) have begun tuning out.
Here’s a valuable takeaway: If you're always shouting, constantly provocative, or consistently controversial, your messages will quickly become background noise.
As musicians learn early on, constant loudness is exhausting and, frankly, boring. Impact comes from mastering dynamics: knowing when to speak boldly and when to step back, when to provoke thought, and when to provide reassurance.
Content doesn’t succeed by racing to extremes but by thoughtfully balancing familiarity, surprise, alignment, and controversy.
In the video and the rest of this article, I explain a helpful approach for striking that balance.
Start with familiarity: The MAYA principle revisited
A few years ago, Derek Thompson from The Atlantic shared an insight that stuck with me: If you want to sell something surprising, make it familiar. If you want to sell something familiar, make it surprising.
He credited that idea to industrial designer Raymond Loewy, who coined the term MAYA (Most Advanced Yet Acceptable). Loewy understood that too much novelty or surprise triggers resistance.
Spotify learned this lesson the hard way a few years ago when it fixed a bug that let familiar songs into the automated playlist Discover Weekly, which was designed to help listeners discover new music.
When the familiar songs disappeared, Discover Weekly listens declined. Turns out, a little familiarity made the surprises feel even more rewarding.
Introducing new or provocative ideas by anchoring them in something your audience already trusts or recognizes is a subtle art, but one worth improving.
The hidden danger of controversy without consensus
Brands often rush into controversial topics, hoping to pierce through the noise and attract attention. But here’s the catch: While controversy (or a perceived retreat from controversy) might spark conversation, those conversations can quickly turn chaotic without consensus or alignment.
Target learned this painful lesson during Pride Month in 2024 when it abruptly pulled merchandise from its stores. The company insisted it wasn’t withdrawing support for Pride month, merely redirecting it.
The company’s communication tried to walk a careful line: “Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of significant confrontations.” Simultaneously, Target claimed a commitment to "support the community all year long."
This messaging felt contradictory and disingenuous, ultimately alienating supporters and failing to satisfy critics.
Bumble faced a similar storm when its AI-powered dating coach started suggesting matches based on overly invasive personal data, prompting a backlash about privacy.
Here’s why these attempts are problematic: The brands hadn't done the work to ensure internal and external consensus for a long-term commitment to the story. Controversy without consensus across the business isn’t brave marketing; it's reckless.
If your team wonders, “Can we defend this?” you're likely stepping too far ahead of your audience and perhaps your organization.
The real test isn't whether your content sparks a temporary sugar high of clicks and engagement; it's whether your entire business believes in and can confidently stand behind the message.
Hesitation indicates that you haven't yet built that essential internal alignment and commitment.
Balance controversy and consensus with this framework
To navigate this delicate terrain, I find it helpful to visualize content positioning using a simple 2×2 matrix. Here's how it works:
Vertical axis (familiarity to surprise): Familiar topics (ideas your audience already knows well and may find predictable or overplayed) sit at the bottom. Moving upward, you introduce greater novelty, freshness, or unexpected angles. When you push too far, though, surprise turns to confusion or discomfort.
Horizontal axis (consensus to controversial): On the left end of this axis sit topics that engender widespread agreement and acceptance. They’re low-risk but also perhaps low-impact. As you move right, topics become increasingly polarizing and contentious, drawing attention but potentially alienating parts of your audience.
These axes intersect to create four distinct archetypes (one in each quadrant):
1. Who cares/old news (familiar + consensus): These topics are safe bets (issues everyone knows about and agrees on). Picture brands declaring, “Cybersecurity is important!” True? Absolutely. Interesting today? Hardly. Audiences scroll past, unmoved.
2. Unearned bandwagon (surprise + consensus): Brands that jump onto trending topics without credible footing land here. Imagine countless companies suddenly touting "AI-powered everything" without practical demonstrations of value (hey, does that sound familiar?). Initial curiosity turns to cynicism quickly when trust doesn't follow.
3. Unexpected extremes (surprise + controversial): Topics in this zone can deliver instant attention, but rarely the kind you want. Bumble's misguided AI matchmaking recommendations triggered backlash precisely because they were unexpectedly intrusive and controversial, catching users off guard and sparking distrust.
4. Valuable polarization (familiar + controversial): This quadrant contains known but challenging topics. Patagonia consistently occupies this quadrant, boldly championing environmental activism. What might polarize another brand’s audience is comfortably familiar and respected when it comes from Patagonia. The brand lives in this world.
The goal isn't to push rigidly toward any one quadrant or extreme. No single position is inherently good or bad. Fluidity — thoughtfully and intentionally shifting between familiarity and surprise, consensus, and controversy — makes your content strategy resonate.
Like a great band mastering dynamics, moving gracefully between these quadrants, creating tension and release, keeps your audience engaged and your message fresh.
Slow down to build a dynamic voice
Slowing down becomes essential to master this flow. Rushing to comment first, chasing viral attention, or hurriedly hopping onto trending topics won’t constantly move your marketing forward.
Meaningful conversations and true brand differentiation often require what I call valuable friction, which slows things down just enough to thoughtfully challenge assumptions, test alignment, and ensure your message genuinely reflects your brand.
Shein’s 2024 sustainability stumble illustrates this need perfectly. Known for inexpensive, fast fashion, the brand hastily jumped into sustainability with a campaign called "Wear Green, Think Clean," which promised ethical sourcing and environmental responsibility.
The backlash was immediate. Audiences quickly pointed out the stark disconnect between Shein’s established practices and this sudden pivot, revealing the campaign as superficial and aiming for clicks more than meaningful change.
If Shein had paused to apply some valuable friction (internally challenging the motivations, assessing alignment, and considering how they might earn a way into this story through something more familiar), their audience would have been more willing to hear this message.
Slowing down isn’t about hesitation or indecision. It’s a deliberate choice to create space for strategic thinking. Valuable friction ensures your content aligns with your identity and values rather than chasing short-lived buzz.
How to find your brand's sweet spot
Navigating the space between familiarity, surprise, consensus, and controversy isn't about rigid perfection. Great musicians don't just hit perfect notes; they instinctively know when to ease off and when to amplify. Your content strategy should follow the same principle.
As your team evaluates potential content stances, here’s how to pressure-test your ideas:
Is the issue settled or ripe for a fresh perspective? Aim for topics where your voice can spark new discussions or provide fresh insights. Avoid those already thoroughly exhausted or too polarizing to move forward constructively.
Does this viewpoint feel surprising coming from your brand? If your stance raises eyebrows internally or externally, pause. Ensure you've earned enough trust and credibility to back it up. If not, slow down and build stronger alignment first.
Do we need to dial up or down the familiarity, surprise, consensus, or controversy? Adjust the dynamics, fine-tuning each element so your content resonates rather than adding noise.
Trust and conversation: Success measures for 2025 and beyond
Successful brands aren't measured in clicks or reach. They're measured in trust. Controversy can amplify your voice momentarily, but trust transforms fleeting attention into a lasting connection.
The strongest brands aren’t those that shout loudest. They're the ones that understand when to play softly and when to turn up the volume, crafting experiences that resonate long after the noise fades away.
It’s your story. Tell it well.
Updated from an October 2023 story.
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