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Sympathy for the Devil (aka Starbucks)

July 23, 2008

—By Tim Nudd

Starbucks is one of those brands that people, historically, have loved to hate—its very ubiquity seemingly a mark of irredeemable evil. In recent weeks, though, the coffee chain's empire has very visibly cracked. The first week of July, it announced plans to close 600 U.S. stores and slash 12,000 jobs—news which quickly triggered wave after wave of caffeine-fueled debate online, in what has likely been the most widespread discussion about the coffee brand in its history. (On July 2, the day the news broke, BuzzMetrics measured the highest level of Starbucks online chatter in years.) To be sure, a measure of schadenfreude animated much of the reaction to Starbucks' woes. But curiously, as the brand suffers, the more likeable it seems to become. Faced with a once-unthinkable notion—that the local Starbucks might actually close—many patrons have comes to realize they actually like the coffee shop after all. This awakening has reached the group phrase with a number of "Save Our Starbucks" initiatives around the country, and more than a few observers are impressed by such grassroots support for the brand. Quoting one S.O.S. organizer, Brand Autopsy writes admiringly: "Wow! 'Now that it is going away, we're devastated.' That's the best thing a company could hope to hear from customers when it is dealing with severe business issues." Undomestic Diva adds: "I'd say these people were nuts... but... you know I'd be doing the same thing if my Starbucks store were closing. Don't mess with people's espresso, biatches." Perhaps bringing the whole affair full circle, some bloggers are now taking aim at the S.O.S.-ers over their skewed sense of perspective. As The Stranger's Slog blog notes sarcastically: "It's unknown if any of the protesters know what a 'Darfur' is."

American Cancer Society's Virtual Relay

July 22, 2008

—By Tim Nudd

Non-profits and volunteer organizations take publicity where they can find it. For the American Cancer Society, it's usually through high-profile charity initiatives like the Relay for Life events, where teams of people take turns walking or running laps around a track in return for donations. In recent years, the ACS has added a Relay for Life in Second Life, a virtual event that's been effective at generating online buzz, given that so many Second Life citizens are also bloggers. The 2008 SL RLF was held on Saturday and Sunday, and the ACS has seen a nice spike in online mentions since then (moving from No. 105 to No. 37 on our Brands Blog Buzz list), and earned more than $200,000 in donations to boot. A virtual walkathon might sound inherently silly, but the SL RFL actually sounds as poignant as the real-life events—even more so, perhaps. As Developers Selection writes: "At 11 am SLT the survivors (of cancer) and caregivers walked the opening lap. This was kind of overwhelming… avatars kept coming and coming… sims almost crashed because of too much people there at the same time." A blogger named Dedric Mauriac did an impressive job of covering the event, posting hundreds of images from all across the virtual world. But the weekend wasn't without its comical mishaps. Writing on her MySpace blog, Shrimp on the Barbie reveals that she arrived at SL RFL's Lighting of the Luminaries event, honoring cancer victims, thinking it was going to be a dance party: "I wore an 'expensive' silk bustier and black pants. But when I got there, everyone was wearing solemn memorial-service attire and participating in an hour of silent reflection as candles were lit and the names of deceased cancer victims were read." Things got worse when she tried to change clothes on the fly, and she eventually "left in a panic, sprinting shirtless across an open field."

There's Just Something About Flugtag

July 21, 2008

—By Tim Nudd

We've mentioned Red Bull a few times in this space—a product that earns more buzz, on average, than any other beverage brand outside of Coke and Pepsi. The reasons for its popularity with bloggers are many: It sponsors Formula 1, so it gets mentioned on racing blogs; it sponsors the Red Bulls of MLS, so it gets mentioned on soccer blogs; it's earned a place of honor among partying twentysomethings, so it gets mentioned on LiveJournal and MySpace; and when all else fails, it keeps bloggers wired at night, and occasionally they blog about why they can't sleep. The brand is currently enjoying another spike on our Brands Blog Buzz list (moving from No. 41 to No. 28), this one thanks to a more exotic sponsorship: A Red Bull Flugtag event was held on Saturday in Tampa. As its Wikipedia page points out, Red Bull Flugtag challenges competitors to "fly homemade human-powered flying machines," usually off a pier into a bay or ocean and often merely for entertainment value rather than serious pursuit of flight. Saturday's event drew a reported 100,000 spectators, and got plenty of recaps from bloggers, most of whom enjoyed themselves in spite of the traffic, the heat and the crowds. Ridiculously inconsistent trickle of consciousness writes: "It's basically the Super Bowl of putting on ridiculous costumes, building stuff and pushing it off a ledge into water. And yes, this is as funny and entertaining as it sounds." Scott & Autumn add on their MySpace blog: "Most of the 'planes' we saw hardly made it off the runway before they started collapsing, but it was certainly entertaining!" Red Bull earns lot of goodwill from its Flugtag events, and may even find some new fans. But it won't win over everyone. As Synesthetic Daydreams writes: "Overall, it was a good time and I'm glad I went, even though I can't stand Red Bull. Tastes like Jagermeister and acetone."

American Bloggers Bemoan A-B Sale

July 15, 2008

—By Tim Nudd

Anheuser-Busch's sale to Belgium's InBev, a deal announced this week after a month-long courtship, has lots of self-styled patriotic U.S. bloggers all riled up. What began as a low murmer of discontent over InBev's initial overtures, back on June 12, has become, in some Internet circles, a collective cry of outrage this week. (Our Brands Blog Buzz chart maps a similar trajectory: a decent spike for A-B around June 12, followed by a much larger one this week.) Many bloggers clearly feel that their national pride has been wounded; the only saving grace, it seems, is that the Faustian bargain wasn't finalized back on the Fourth of July. "For as long as I've been aware, Budweiser was THE American beer," writes Outside Erie. "Now, it's just another brand that has been taken from its roots. ... In a way, losing Bud to the Belgians is like seeing Albert Pujols taking a better offer from a team in Brussels." Deep Thoughts from a Shallow Mind reflects on a lifetime of imbibing and concludes: "A-B is as American as apple pie, only better. Apple pie never made you a damn bit smarter as the night went on. ... Given time to reflect on the $52 billion deal, I would have only one thing to say to the sellers as they make a foreign entity out of America's Brewery: You was robbed! It would have been a bargain at twice the price!!!" Meta4worldZ, which is supporting a boycott of A-B brands, adds, simply: "I've been to Belgium, and let me tell you, in comparison to other European beers, they sucked." Amid all of this complaining, a few saner voices could be heard. Like that of Tertium Quids, who writes: "Why are people so upset? Isn't America a place where free enterprise and competition are valued?"

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