Anticipation as a creative tool
In marketing and advertising, the most powerful moment often isn’t the launch, it’s everything that leads up to it.
In a world of instant gratification, of always-on content and endless, at times unwarranted stimuli, novelty does not seem to be what consumers care about. They instead seek an emotional connection, something that will excite them and make them feel part of something. The more anticipation, the more emotional connection can be developed with a product, a service, an event.
Think about the way anticipation is engineered in modern marketing: teaser campaigns, countdowns, launches, limited drops, and film trailers, designed to reveal just enough to spark curiosity.
From Barbie: The Movie’s surreal, concept-driven early teasers that echoed iconic cinematic worlds like 2001: A Space Odyssey, to mysterious, tone-setting posters for Spielberg’s latest blockbuster Disclosure Day; from book releases announced years in advance, often with little more than a title or a whisper of plot, like book 6 and 7 of ACOTAR, to global pop moments from artists like Taylor Swift including crossover cultural cameos such as her appearance in the latest Toy Story instalment.
The anticipation often becomes the main event, and the build-up becomes part of the storytelling itself.
Anticipation as collective wellbeing: Choose Scotland
In an increasingly disconnected world, where we are more connected than ever, yet somehow lonelier, shared anticipation becomes powerful. Coming together in collective hope, imagining what might be, makes anticipation one of the most compelling creative forces we have.
The FIFA World Cup is one of the most anticipated events in the world. It remains one of those rare occasions where people from different countries, cultures and backgrounds come together in a shared experience, united by hope, possibility and a collective belief in what could be.
Despite the political tensions and controversies surrounding this year's tournament, brands have recognised the power of that collective anticipation and emotional connection, producing some of the most powerful campaigns we've seen in recent years.
One brand that stands out above the rest is Adidas
In its global, cinematic Timothée Chalamet-led advert featuring cultural icons and sporting legends including Bad Bunny and Lionel Messi, Adidas celebrates football as a shared language that transcends borders and brings different worlds together. It isn't simply selling products, it's selling belonging.
That same approach is perhaps best demonstrated in its Scotland campaign: “Choose Scotland”. The brand cleverly taps into the rise of Scott McTominay, whose heroics for Scotland and title-winning success with Napoli have cemented him as one of the country's modern sporting heroes. At the same time, the campaign playfully references Italy's failure to qualify for this year's World Cup, positioning Scotland as the unlikely nation answering a neighbour's call for hope.
Shot in the style of Trainspotting, one of Scotland's most iconic films, the advert feels less like a commercial and more like a cultural rallying cry. It isn't trying to sell a football shirt. It's selling belief. It's selling identity. It's selling the emotional possibility of what might happen before a single ball has been kicked.
And that's the magic of anticipation. For a brief moment, before certainty arrives, we allow ourselves to believe. We imagine possibilities, share optimism with others and feel part of something bigger than ourselves. From Adidas’ campaign alone, you might have believed Scotland were capable of going all the way.
The Promise of Summer
When I started writing this, Scotland had just won their opening World Cup match, keeping the nation's hopes of reaching the knockout stages alive. How quickly everything changes.
After a gruelling weekend where Tartan Army hopes hung by a thread, at one point with just a 0.07% chance of qualification, the emotional rollercoaster swung wildly between sheer anticipation and complete desperation. With a negative goal difference and two defeats, our World Cup campaign has come to an end, once again proving that the final boss is, and always has been, the group stages.
Still, despite the Tartan Army's hopes being packed away in a suitcase until the next tournament, summer rolls on. And with it comes fresh anticipation, new adventures, and plenty to look forward to.
Because anticipation doesn’t end with a result. It carries on through carefully constructed handovers, long-awaited holidays, longer evenings, and time outdoors. It’s the small, everyday build-up of moments we look forward to just as much as the events themselves.
As advertisers, marketers and creatives, the anticipation we build into campaigns, launches, and storytelling is the same emotional rhythm that runs through sport, culture, and everyday life. Whether it’s a World Cup campaign, a summer evening with friends, or a campaign unfolding over time, it’s the build-up, not just the outcome, that lingers.
