In response to Lia's Starbucks

I can't say I'm a fan of Starbucks or coffee for that matter but I am a fan of the Starbucks approach to marketing. I couldn't agree more with the fact that Starbucks changed it up by not advertising on TV and really relying on their customers to get the Starbucks name out there. They've managed to become a big name business while still being that low key cool spot look and feel. Starbucks has continually been able to come up with ways to keep their patrons coming back whether it be the wi-fi or the atmosphere people definitely seem to love the place. Starbucks has also drawn attention to itself in another way that I think is quite interesting. People love to hate Starbucks! Whether it be the guy writing in public just so people can see, or the stuck up attitude that comes with being a Starbucks customer, people love to point it out. However in doing so they just draw more attention to the company so good job Starbucks you've managed to get yourself out there with out really advertising kudos to you.

Baseball's Epic Beard

Brian Wilson is a closer for the San Francisco Giants known for his beard and personality. Major league baseball has some new ad's out  in honor of opening day. The commercials being aired feature Brian Wilson's beard and it's strange inhabitants. In one commercial there are ninjas fighting in his beard and in another lumberjacks cutting down stalks of hair. The point of the advertisement is to draw attention to MLBalwaysepic.com a site that has just recently come to light. I think the ad's are great, Brian Wilson is quite a character and to have him (and his beard) featured in a commercial adds a nice funny side to baseball a normally fairly serious sport. The reason I chose this ad is because normally I'm not a very big baseball fan, but after seeing the ad's and interviews with Brian Wilson I'd be lying if i said I didn't want to watch more baseball. With that in mind I can't help but think that maybe others around the country are finding a new interest in america's past time. Are these commercials working for you? Do you think this new funnier side of the MLB would help attract some new audience members or maybe repel the older more traditional ones? Just in case you haven't seen the new commercials or interviews with Brian Wilson, i've included some links below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIlyu6ZGWI8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c4R-_0gMEw&feature=relmfu
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC52rkgkNgU