How Brands Win Consumer Attention Through Culture

For decades, the goal was to get people to the store, the shelf or the point of purchase. Today, discovery, influence and purchase can happen almost anywhere. As A.I. tools become another way consumers find and evaluate products, the journey from initial interest to purchase is growing more fragmented. The most culturally relevant brands aren’t built around a single destination. They create multiple reasons for people to notice, care about a brand and engage before they buy. Monoculture is largely extinct, and discovery rarely begins and ends in one place.

Culture today is a collection of many overlapping conversations. People move fluidly between group chats, fandoms, hobbies, niche creators and hyper-specific communities, each with its own language, references and behaviors. For brands, the opportunity isn’t to insert themselves into every one of those spaces. It’s to identify the communities where they have a credible role and contribute something those audiences might actually value. 

That also means recognizing a limit: relevance can’t be manufactured on demand. There has to be a natural connection between what a brand stands for, what a community cares about and what the brand can bring to the exchange.

Brand sentiment takes time, and it’s built through every strategic choice

The brands that build lasting consumer affinity aren’t necessarily trying to show up everywhere or speak to everyone. They’re the ones whose choices add up to a recognizable point of view that audiences can understand, anticipate and, over time, come to trust. The opportunity lies in balancing reach with specificity. A major cultural moment can build broad awareness, while a niche community can deepen affinity. An unexpected collaboration can complement a highly targeted experience, provided it makes sense alongside everything else a brand does. No single campaign guarantees a lasting relationship. It’s the cumulative effect of those choices, and the consistency with which they reflect the brand and respond to the culture, that builds something lasting.

Marc Jacobs offers one example of how a brand can experiment with formats beyond conventional campaign marketing to become a source of entertainment in its own right. With The Scene, the brand created a micro-drama with its own characters, storyline and point of view, effectively creating a world audiences could step into. The collection lived naturally within the narrative, but the format gave audiences something to follow beyond a straightforward product showcase. It placed the brand inside an entertainment format rather than asking the entertainment to serve as a backdrop for the product. 

Estée Lauder approached the changing dynamics of beauty discovery through a group chat-themed campaign featuring Bowen Yang and Ana Gasteyer. The concept drew on a familiar social ritual: sharing recommendations, asking for advice and discussing products with friends. By tapping into behavior that already feels native to how people communicate, the brand made the campaign feel like an extension of the conversation.

When a brand shows up, it’s showing who it is

Consumers make decisions about brands using many of the same signals they use to assess people: where they spend their time, what they recommend, who they want to be around and which communities they want to be part of. Partnerships, sponsorships and cultural touchpoints all contribute to that picture, each one reinforcing a brand’s identity or leaving audiences wondering what it stands for. 

Google’s Try-On activation at the New York premiere of The Devil Wears Prada 2 drew on the film’s fashion-world setting, recreating the iconic Runway fashion closet and inviting guests to virtually try on looks using Google’s technology. The concept linked a technology demonstration to a recognizable cultural reference. Its value as a brand experience depended on that fit: the setting gave the technology a context audiences could immediately understand. 

Amika’s Crowns in Bloom installation took a different route, using an exhibition of contemporary art to explore the culture of hair and the brand’s “All Hair Is Welcome” message. Bringing together intergenerational artists working across painting, sculpture, photography, installation and film, the project put the brand’s stated values into a wider cultural conversation. Beyond its products, amika gave people an opportunity to see themselves reflected in the brand.

e.l.f. SKIN’s “Wake the e.l.f. Up” activations brought together the morning-rave phenomenon, coffee culture, beauty and The Real Housewives of New York City personality Dorinda Medley. The events extended into other touchpoints, including custom coffee at Smiley Coffee and a second-city activation. The product was the hero, but music, food, discovery and community gave people a reason to show up and gave the idea a life beyond the brand. 

These examples differ in format, audience and ambition, but point to the same question: does a cultural activation express something meaningful about the brand, or is it just a way to borrow attention? When the choices reinforce one another, the audience begins to recognize a brand for more than what it sells. Its participation in culture becomes part of its identity, making future interactions feel like an invitation to continue that relationship rather than an isolated marketing push. 

It’s not about being everywhere. It’s about being known for something.

Brands have more opportunities than ever to show up. But the harder task is deciding which opportunities deserve their attention and which are likely to dilute what makes them distinctive. The question isn’t simply where a brand can go, but where its presence has something meaningful to add once it gets there. 

American Eagle’s Denim Deli, for example, brought its “Live Your Life” platform to Nashville through a two-day event that drew more than 1,000 customers. Away from a traditional retail setting, attendees could get complimentary sandwiches, customize totes, receive denim giveaways and watch live performances. The event offered several reasons to participate beyond shopping, while keeping denim and the brand’s identity at the center.  

The goal isn’t to make every appearance bigger. It’s to make each one more intentional. In a fragmented culture, consistency becomes its own form of brand equity. When people encounter a recognizable point of view across different settings, they have more reason to understand what a brand stands for and what to expect from it—and to start trusting its instincts. Once you’ve earned that trust, you have something far more valuable than a moment of attention: permission to keep showing up.