Taco Bell’s brand belongs to its fans, said Chief Marketing Officer Taylor Montgomery at the Shoptalk conference in Las Vegas last month.

And to put this principle into action, the brand dedicated the biggest stage in marketing—The Super Bowl—to its fans. In six U.S. markets, Taco Bell set up cameras at its drive-thrus, allowing customers to pose for a chance to be featured in its Big Game commercial. The final 30-second ad featured pictures and videos from those cameras starring fans, with a few cameos from celebrities, including Doja Cat and Lebron James.

The ad was a prime example of putting action above words to demonstrate how important its customers are, Montgomery said. “We are a brand that exists for our fans. They are the souls of our brand.”

The initiative demonstrates Taco Bell’s confidence in its brand and customer experience, according to Paula Rosenblum, co-founder and managing partner at retail consulting firm RSR Research. And a marketing tactic like this will certainly drive more return and buzz than a product placement ad. However, brands that offer products or services that aren’t up to par would not be able to pull this off, she said.

Letting its Fans in at Live Más Live

Taco Bell has continually heard one thing from its fans: they want to learn more about what the brand is thinking and testing for the future. So it decided to have a live event where it talked about its latest initiatives. They called it “Live Más Live,” a nod to Taco Bell’s “Live Más” tagline.

Montgomery said the event was similar to an Apple keynote, and it was all about turning the brand inside out.

The event’s first iteration was in February 2024, when Taco Bell invited approximately 200 content creator fans to Las Vegas for a presentation. The brand livestreamed the event and discussed future menu items, among other plans. At the time, Montgomery wasn’t sure of the impact that the behind-the-scenes look would have. But by letting fans in on what’s to come and allowing them to spread the word to their social followings, the brand lets go of controlling the message—and reaps the rewards, despite the risk.

“When you hand your brand over to somebody else to tell the story there is an inherent risk,” Montgomery said. But ultimately that makes Taco Bell more authentic and the fans more loyal.

The event was a success: 7 billion media impressions post-launch, more than 600 pieces of earned media converge, 500,000 YouTube views of the event and 250,000 views on its microsite, according to Event Marketer.

Keeping shoppers informed on its initiatives is solid positive reinforcement marketing, Rosenblum said, as it gives shoppers loyalty and pride for being part of the brand. Beyond this, the event also serves as a focus group for Taco Bell.

“The keynote event allows the company to get a sense of what the reaction to the playbook will be,” Rosenblum said. “That will help the company get a ballpark idea of what demand will look like for the new product mix.”

Taco Bell decided to host its Live Más Live event again in March 2025 in Brooklyn, New York. It was two times larger and another success, Montgomery said. At the 2025 gathering, Taco Bell discussed its new restaurant concept, new menu items and gave viewers a look inside its test kitchen.

“What we found is the more that we can actually be open, honest, vulnerable [and] actually bring them into the brand, the more powerful they are,” Montgomery said.