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How should brands handle negative feedback from customers? Recent research published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology suggests that brands can sometimes benefit from embracing the very insults aimed at them. Researchers Katherine Du, Lingrui Zhou, and Keisha Cutright studied the strategy of “reappropriating” insults—deliberately adopting a negative label given by others. For example, when the Carolina Hurricanes hockey team were called “a bunch of jerks” by a commentator, they put the phrase on merchandise, which led to over $875,000 in sales.

Through three studies, the researchers found that reappropriating insults can increase customer interest. In one test, a fictional electronics store featured a Facebook ad that turned a one-star review into a proud slogan, resulting in a 7.12% click-through rate compared to 5.62% when the insult was denied. This approach works because consumers see the brand as more humorous and confident.

However, this tactic has limits. It fails when the insult targets a vulnerable person, when the criticism is legitimate (such as for a faulty product), or when it involves serious moral accusations. Essentially, reappropriation succeeds only with unjustified, harmless insults that do not mock the vulnerable.