Super Bowl ads are more expensive than ever, costing up to $7 million for a 30-second spot. So how do brands without deep pockets piggyback on the significant halo of the Big Game without spending their annual budgets? Go regional.

A regional buy is a purchase of in-game media in certain markets where brands know they will have success. The network must offer a certain number of regional spots throughout the game for those who want to focus on a certain market, like the Pacific Northwest or New England—or even one very specific urban area, as Dogfish Head beer is doing in the relatively small Delmarva peninsula.

While regional spots won’t be seen by every pair of eyeballs watching the game, they cost considerably less than a full in-game buy and the brand can still say its ad aired during the Super Bowl.

“Even with Planters last year, we were not in the national broadcast, but we always get national exposure. Every year, when you do the math on this, you just buy the 14 biggest markets that matter based on Walmart sales,” VaynerMedia executive vice president Nick Miaritis told Adweek.

No matter the reasoning behind going regional, with the right creative brands can reap Super Bowl rewards without the big buy. Adweek will add campaigns to this story as they become available, so check back often.

Oikos  

Danone yogurt brand Oikos is returning to the Super Bowl for its fourth year, and the second year in a row featuring hall of famer Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders. This time around, he hosts a family feats of strength picnic.

In the “Family Reunion” regional spot, the Sanders crew comes together for what starts as a family picnic and turns into a one-upmanship competition. Sanders is joined by his family, including daughter and rising college basketball star Shelomi, son and college football safety Shilo, and sister Tracie, alongside Deion’s son and celebrated college football quarterback Shedeur and Deion’s mother, fan favorite Connie.

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

One of the leading craft breweries in the nation is breaking into the Big Game with one of the year’s smallest ad buys.

Airing exclusively in Dogfish’s home turf the Delmarva (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia) area—a subset of the Salisbury Designated Market Area, which is ranked 137 out of 210—the brewery’s 30-second spot will cost just $7,000. The ad pokes fun at Big Game marketing hoopla, highlighting a jiggling electric football game.

Featuring the brewery’s founder and brewer, Sam Calagione, the commercial pays homage to his use of Tudor Games’ iconic Electric Football game to invent the brewing method of continual hopping. While the brewery takes its beer seriously, it doesn’t take itself nearly as seriously, the ad states. To complement its spot and sponsorship of the Electric Football World Championships, Dogfish Head will launch a custom beer-themed edition of Tudor Games’ Electric Football game for sale through the brewery.

Budweiser

While its Super Bowl spots of the past have featured the brand’s signature Clydesdale horses, cute puppies and thoughts on what it means to be American, this year takes a different focus—the thought that everyone is separated by six degrees. Or, in Bud’s case, a six pack.

Actor Kevin Bacon is the voice behind the 45-second ad that shows that no matter how different people are, shared values unite all Budweiser drinkers. A camera follows a six pack of Bud bottles being passed around by people at parties, food trucks, basketball games, recording studios and bodegas.

The spot was created by FCB New York and directed by duo Lalou Dammond and Joaquin Baca-Asay. It features self-made Americans, including rapper and producer Metro Boomin, a local food truck owner and a construction worker. It ends with the brand offering the final beer to the viewer and inviting them into the shared experience. It will air in key markets including Philadelphia, California and New York.

Working With Cancer

Holding company Publicis Groupe is tackling a weighty subject—cancer—with a highly emotive message during the Super Bowl. The ad is part of its Working With Cancer initiative, a cross-industry coalition working to erase the stigma and insecurity of cancer at work. It is a global “wake-up call” urging everyone to play their part in supporting colleagues with cancer.

After being diagnosed and treated for cancer last year, Publicis Groupe CEO Arthur Sadoun launched Working With Cancer at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Jan. 17. Now the program is an alliance of major international companies united by a pledge to create an open, supportive and recovery-forward culture for cancer sufferers.

The film at the center of the campaign, “Monday,” depicts the journey of two cancer patients and the importance of workplace support. It shows the people going through the shock and pain of their diagnoses, as well as their treatments, their internal struggles, their recoveries and eventual return to work, where they are welcomed by their co-workers.

Alaska Airlines

Fashion guru and Queer Eye star Tan France is the first celebrity spokesperson for the carrier’s Alaska Airlines Visa card. France is expanding his partnership with Alaska beyond being the face of the CARE Coalition to introduce a new, enhanced credit card.

The campaign, produced by Alaska Airlines’ longtime creative AOR Mekanism, will run in key markets and include OOH in-airport placements in Seattle, Portland, Honolulu and across California, with a Super Bowl TV spot to air in Seattle.

CommonSpirit Health

Healthcare provider CommonSpirit Health will debut an in-game ad in 16 markets where its brands are located, from Sacramento to Chattanooga. The brand shows a touching human connection between a woman and her grandchild. In the short spot, we see the woman trying to get the infant to sign “grandma” in American Sign Language. “Grandma Signs” was created and produced by the company’s in-house creative team.