generate substantial buzz

Meaning

To create a lot of excitement, interest, and public discussion about something, such as a new movie, album, or product. It is often used in casual or industry contexts to describe word-of-mouth marketing and social media hype.

Examples

• The indie film managed to generate substantial buzz long before its official release.

  The indie film managed to generate substantial buzz long before its official release.

• Her surprise performance at the festival is sure to generate substantial buzz online.

  Her surprise performance at the festival is sure to generate substantial buzz online.

• They didn't spend much on advertising, relying instead on social media to generate substantial buzz.

  They didn't spend much on advertising, relying instead on social media to generate substantial buzz.

• The trailer's cliffhanger ending was designed specifically to generate substantial buzz.

  The trailer's cliffhanger ending was designed specifically to generate substantial buzz.

• Without a famous cast, the play struggled to generate substantial buzz among local theatergoers.

  Without a famous cast, the play struggled to generate substantial buzz among local theatergoers.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ The new game generated a substantial buzz.

  ✓ The new game generated substantial buzz.

  'Buzz' is typically used as an uncountable noun in this idiom, so you should omit the indefinite article 'a'.

• ✗ The marketing campaign made substantial buzz.

  ✓ The marketing campaign generated substantial buzz.

  The verb 'generate' or 'create' collocates with 'buzz' in this context; 'made' sounds unnatural.

Related Expressions

Practice

• The director's mysterious social media posts helped ___ for the upcoming sequel.

  💡 To create a lot of excitement and talk.

  Show answer

  generate substantial buzz

• A well-timed leak can often ___ before a product launch.

  💡 To spark public interest and conversation.

  Show answer

  generate substantial buzz