The contagious nature of pre-release consumer buzz: How observing other consumers' anticipation for a new product influences adoption
kHUB post date: November 2025
Originally published: April 10, 2025 (PDMA JPIM • Vol. 42, Issue 6 • November 2025)
Read time: 60 minutes
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Many launch strategies for new products now aim at building pre-release consumer buzz (PRCB), defined as consumers' collective expressions of anticipation for an upcoming product. While a positive association of PRCB with innovation success has been established, little is known about how, under what conditions, and to what extent PRCB influences consumers' adoption decisions. This research sheds light on these issues by investigating PRCB's contagious nature as one of the concept's defining characteristics. Drawing on herding theory, the authors develop a conceptual framework and provide comprehensive experimental evidence that consumers' exposure to PRCB for a new product triggers distinct psychological mechanisms that influence their own adoption decisions: PRCB-observing consumers exhibit both greater social attraction to the “buzz movement” (group-related evaluation) as well as more curiosity and higher quality expectations about the new product (product-related evaluation). Furthermore, these effects are particularly strong for consumers who are highly susceptible to social influence and for products with low popular appeal. The authors complement their consumer-level analysis with an illustrative market-level what-if analysis that approximates the financial consequences of PRCB's contagious effects. Results suggest that the financial impact of PRCB can be substantial but differs significantly across scenarios, depending on product type and consumer segment. These findings have important implications for the management of innovations before launch.
Practitioner Points:
- Pre-release consumer buzz (PRCB), which captures consumers' collective expressions of anticipation for an upcoming product, is important for managers as it not only reflects consumers' existing adoption intentions but also influences the adoption intentions of those who observe it.
- Observing PRCB increases adoption decisions for new products because it serves as a social cue that creates social attraction toward the group that generates PRCB and enhances curiosity and quality expectations about the new product.
- A what-if analysis shows that the economic gains from PRCB can be substantial, with revenue uplifts ranging from about 80% to more than 900%, depending on product type and consumer segment. Especially niche products, compared to mainstream products, can benefit from high levels of PRCB.
- To profit from these effects, we encourage managers to shift parts of their communication budgets from post-release campaigns to pre-release activities. These can aim at both creating more PRCB or raising the visibility of existing PRCB.