Diageo has more than doubled its marketing spend on Morgan's Spiced rum for the next year to £3m following a shift in brand strategy to seek 'modern adventurers' and distance itself from the competition.

The new advertising push for Morgan's Spiced will spend more than twice the £1.3m invested last year and kicks off next month with Morgan's Spiced's first TV appearance in five years.

The brand is moving away from the 'Add spice to the usual' campaign used in recent years to make room for a campaign that Morgan's Spiced marketing manager Julie Bramham said would "cut through the busy, congested media environment".

"The new 'Modern Adventurer' campaign features ordinary blokes as they make an epic journey to the pub, undertaking challenges including avoiding aggressive geese, as we wanted something quite different from what other brands are doing," Bramham said. "The essence of the campaign is 'finding adventure in the everyday'."

The brand continues to be popular in its Scottish heartland but is also generating growth in England and Wales, where sales were up 23% in the off-trade [Nielsen MAT to April 2009], Diageo claimed.

However, it is facing competition from the likes of Halewood, which launched a spiced rum under its Lamb's brand in April this year.

The 'Modern Adventurer' campaign will be shown on TV and in cinemas for two months, supported by press and online activity. This year's activity will be followed by a second push in March next year.

Meanwhile, an £800,000 chunk of the £3m total spend will be invested into increasing consumer awareness of Morgan's Spiced & Cola pre-mixed drinks, which hit shelves in April. The push imitates the 'Modern Adventurer' theme, with selected on-trade outlets hosting interactive sampling experiences during the summer.

Separately, Diageo has revealed a £3.65m marketing budget for the national roll-out of Smirnoff flavoured vodkas, which is taking place now. The campaign includes radio and outdoor advertising.

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