TL;DR
Super Bowl ads cost $8 million for 30 seconds, but what could that budget accomplish over the next 10 months?
Brands like Chipotle and DoorDash won without buying airtime by meeting audiences on their second screens with participatory activations.
The same $8 million could fund 780 micro influencer partnerships, 1.6 billion programmatic impressions, or sustained campaigns through year-end.
Forward-thinking marketers are shifting focus from single moments to year-round influence strategies that drive measurable ROI.
Super Bowl LX wrapped Sunday. The ads aired. The money was spent. For brands that invested $8 million in 30 seconds of airtime, the impact is now being measured.
But for marketers already architecting strategy for the rest of 2026—or even planning ahead for next year's big game—a different conversation is happening.
What else could $8 million accomplish between now and the end of the year?
Digiday recently broke down exactly what that Super Bowl budget could buy across alternative marketing channels. For CMOs building their playbook for the next 10 months, the numbers are worth examining closely.
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What $8 million buys for the rest of 2026
According to Digiday's analysis, a Super Bowl ad budget could instead purchase:
780 micro influencer partnerships running through year-end
1.6 billion programmatic display impressions distributed across Q2-Q4
800 million TikTok impressions reaching audiences where they're already engaged
267 million Google search and AI Overviews impressions capturing purchase intent
A prime-time network TV spot every night for four months
The contrast is clear: One 30-second moment during the Super Bowl, or sustained presence across the next 10 months. Which is the smartest use of budget for brands?
The brands that won without buying airtime
While advertisers spent millions on nostalgia bait and AI-generated spots, some brands demonstrated that the Super Bowl's real opportunity lies in understanding how audiences actually engage with the event.
Chipotle executed a $1 million burrito drop via text-to-claim after halftime as an AI-generated commercial for another brand ran, positioning itself as "the realest 30 seconds.” DoorDash tapped rapper 50 Cent for an integrated weekend campaign promoting their delivery services, leveraging cultural relevance over expensive broadcast spots.
Both brands understood something critical: the Super Bowl is a second-screen experience. Audiences aren't just passively watching the game. They're on social, scrolling, texting, and actively looking for ways to participate.
The smartest brands met audiences where they were and gave them something to do.
The most successful brands recognize where attention actually lives during these cultural moments and design campaigns that capture it, rather than simply broadcasting messages and hoping they land.
Building sustained momentum through the rest of 2026
Sunday's Super Bowl proved that shared cultural moments still matter. Millions tuned in. Ads sparked conversations. Brands made their case in 30 seconds. But now the real work begins.
Brands that spent $8 million on airtime now face the challenge of sustaining that awareness through the rest of the year. Meanwhile, brands that didn't advertise during the game are asking how to build comparable reach and impact with different strategies.
This is where creator-led marketing changes the equation.
Digiday's research shows that 780 micro influencers, each with deeply engaged niche audiences, can collectively deliver sustained reach that compounds over time. Not one spike in awareness, but consistent touchpoints distributed across the channels where audiences actually spend their time.
The brands that participated without buying ad time demonstrated this principle in real-time. They activated where attention already existed, created moments of participation rather than passive viewing, and built campaigns that extended beyond the game itself.
What forward-thinking marketers are prioritizing now
At Later, we're seeing how the best brands approach 2026 strategy differently. They're not choosing between big moments and sustained campaigns. They're architecting systems that deliver both.
The Super Bowl creates awareness. But what converts that awareness into consideration, trial, and loyalty? Increasingly, it's the relationships brands build through creator partnerships, authentic content, and consistent presence across the platforms where purchasing decisions actually happen.
For marketers planning the next 10 months, the challenge centers on understanding what role creator marketing, influencer partnerships, and sustained social presence play in capturing and converting the audiences you're trying to reach.
Planning ahead: 2027 Super Bowl, year-round influence, or both?
For brands already thinking about next year's big game, the decision timeline starts now. Super Bowl advertising requires early commitments, significant creative investment, and the risk tolerance to bet big on a single moment.
But the same budget deployed across creator partnerships, programmatic media, and sustained social campaigns offers different advantages: measurability, flexibility, and the ability to optimize in real-time based on what's actually working.
The brands that win in 2026 won't be the ones who chose one approach over the other. They'll be the ones who understood how each plays a role in a broader growth strategy and allocated budget accordingly.
The shift from moments to momentum
Sunday's Super Bowl reminded us that mass-market moments still create impact. But the rest of 2026 will be defined by how brands build on those moments—or create sustained influence without them.
For marketers planning the next 10 months, the focus shifts to what that same investment can accomplish between now and year-end, reaching audiences where they're already engaged and building relationships that drive business outcomes.
The playbook is changing. The question is whether your 2026 strategy is changing with it.
Ready to build a creator marketing strategy that delivers sustained influence through the rest of 2026? Schedule a call with Later's team to see how brands are using influencer marketing, social management, and creator commerce to drive measurable ROI beyond the big game.
