Biggest ever ad campaigns for Courage and Young's

The biggest ever advertising campaigns for beer brands Courage and Young's have been unveiled by Wells and Young's.

"Take Courage, my Friend" has been announced as the new strapline for a £2m campaign for the Courage portfolio that will see 2,500 billboard size posters displayed across Courage's South East heartland until the end of June.

In an umbrella approach, the campaign will apply to all the Courage brands, including Courage Best, Directors, Light Ale, Dark Mild, and Best Smooth - installed in hundreds of pubs since launch in late 2008.

The Young's campaign takes the form of a £1m burst of press and poster advertising based on the beer's new 'Natural Brewing Excellence' slogan. A series of five adverts will feature in ten million London newspapers and over 2,500 poster sites from late February until the end of May.

The Courage adverts focus on a drinker in situations where he can be seen thinking he would rather be down the pub drinking a pint of Courage. Independent research suggests over 80 per cent of men in the south of England will see the posters more than 30 times.

The Young's advertising focuses on local ingredients, including barley certified by farm-assured accreditation scheme Red Tractor. It tells the story of the beer's journey, from the ingredients in the field to a well-poured pint.

Wells and Young's has also launched a £1m campaign for Bombardier, to be launched in time for St George's Day in April, an event with which the brand is trying to strengthen its associations.

Thousands of pubs will get point of sale material to support all three campaigns.

Wells and Young's marketing director Chris Lewis said the campaigns were a "manifestation of how we want to position each brand. What they all demonstrate is not just some insight into what the beers are about, but also some wit".