Before the ball is kicked off on Sunday, the smartest brands have already pulled ahead.
Not on the field, but in inboxes, social feeds and group chats.
Super Bowl advertisers no longer treat game day as the starting line. They release teasers. Drop extended cuts. Partner with creators. Share behind-the-scenes footage.
By the time Sunday arrives, audiences already know which ads they’re excited to see and which brands they’re cheering on.
“Launch day used to be the moment,” says CMA Vice President Kelsey Tweedly. “Now it’s the payoff. The real work happens in the buildup.”
The Research Behind Early Buzz
And research shows this early momentum is more than marketing intuition. It delivers measurable impact.
Roughly 60% of the highest-performing Super Bowl ads were reportedly released before the game. Early releases drive stronger emotional engagement that lasts a lot longer.
Early exposure builds memory. And memory drives action.
Additional eye-tracking research shows that ads launched ahead of kickoff capture higher attention levels than those debuting during the broadcast. Anticipation primes audiences to lean in instead of tuning out.
The lesson is clear: buzz doesn’t start at the launch. It starts weeks, sometimes months, earlier. And in today’s attention-starved economy, silence before launch is a liability.
Start Before Launch
Most organizations can’t justify a multi-million-dollar TV spot. They don’t need to. The strategy behind that level of impact is available to everyone.
Today, pre-launch storytelling often matters more than the launch itself. The launch is no longer the beginning. It’s the climax.
Yet many organizations still treat announcements like a light switch: off, then suddenly on. One email. One social post. One press release. Then silence.
The brands that capture attention understand a different truth: anticipation is engineered over time.
“Think about the last event or product you were genuinely excited for,” Tweedly says. “You probably didn’t hear about it once. You saw it repeatedly. Repetition builds curiosity and confidence.”
The examples are endless and, oftentimes, cost-effective:
- Manufacturers can preview upcoming products.
- Associations can spotlight keynote speakers early.
- Event planners can reveal themes, experiences or special guests in stages. Sponsors gain more value when visibility starts sooner rather than appearing at the last minute.
Each touchpoint creates familiarity. Familiarity builds trust. And trust ultimately drives action.
“There’s real power in giving your audience something to look forward to,” Tweedly says. “When people feel included in the journey, they’re far more likely to show up.”
Hype Drives Demand
There is also a powerful psychological dynamic at play: When people notice others paying attention, their curiosity naturally grows. No one wants to feel excluded. Anticipation signals demand and urgency.
People rarely get excited about dates and locations.
They get excited about what they might miss.
Another shift is shaping this strategy. Audience attention is no longer concentrated in a single moment. It is fragmented across platforms and stretched over time. Waiting until launch means competing with everything else happening that week. Starting early gives your message room to breathe and resonate.
Consider how often you hear, “I’ve been seeing that everywhere.” That level of awareness rarely happens by accident. It is the result of consistent, intentional visibility.
Reveal It in Layers
Teasing doesn’t mean giving everything away. In fact, the opposite is true. Effective teasers create intrigue without oversharing.
“You don’t need to reveal the entire agenda,” Tweedly says. “Give people just enough to spark interest, then let anticipation do the rest.”
When the doors finally open, whether for a product launch, annual meeting or industry conference, the goal isn’t to explain what you’ve been building. It’s to welcome an audience that already knows what’s in the works and feels connected to it, having recognized the benefits, seen the previews and followed the buildup.
Momentum Wins
The Super Bowl reminds us every year that the biggest moments are rarely spontaneous. They are engineered through steady visibility, thoughtful planning and strategic storytelling long before the stardom lights turn on.
Start early enough, and the big kickoff stops feeling like the opening whistle. Instead, it becomes the final drive, methodically moving the ball downfield, breaking through the red zone and crossing the goal line for the winning touchdown.
“The organizations that win attention aren’t always the loudest,” Tweedly says. “They’re the most consistent. Visibility over time always beats a single big splash.”
If you’re planning your next event, campaign or product release, now is the time to think beyond the announcement. Build the runway. Create the drumbeat. Make the market anticipate you.
Let’s talk about the plays that can help you build momentum and win attention long before kickoff.
Huddle up with our award-winning team to see how it’s done.