It’s Upfronts season again, and while the venues may change and the buzzwords evolve, one thing remains painfully consistent: advertisers are still being asked to commit serious dollars today for audiences they won’t reach until months from now. And in an economy and culture that shifts by the headline, that’s a problem.

Every year, I see marketers wrestling with the same dilemma. They’re forced to lock in premium inventory now—based on demos, historical data, and best guesses—without any real sense of how their audience’s attitudes or intent will evolve by the time their campaign goes live. Whether it's a playoff run shaking up loyalties or a surprise policy shift reshaping household budgets, the truth is: consumer sentiment is fluid. And the tools we’ve traditionally relied on don’t reflect that.

The result? Ads planned around assumptions instead of reality. That car ad that made perfect sense in March could land flat in October, after tariffs drive up prices and push intenders to delay their purchase. That sports sponsorship might resonate differently if your target viewer has jumped teams or tuned out altogether.

This isn't just a missed opportunity—it's wasted spend. And in a climate where return on ad spend is under more scrutiny than ever, that’s no longer acceptable.

Here’s the good news: it doesn’t have to be this way.

At Tenetic, we believe Upfronts don’t end when the deal is signed. They’re only the beginning. What really matters is how brands and agencies activate that inventory—how they stay agile, responsive, and aligned with where their audience’s head is right now.

That’s where real-time, always-on sentiment data changes the game. When you know what your audience is thinking, feeling, and ready to buy at the moment your ad runs—not when you bought the inventory—you can tailor messaging to what’s actually relevant.

I’ll be diving deeper into this with CivicScience Founder and CEO John Dick in our upcoming webinar on Thursday, May 22nd. If you care about turning Upfront investments into measurable impact, I hope you’ll join us. Because the second act of the Upfronts is where the real performance begins.

Want in? Register here.