If you’re a man, watch television with a man, or watch the TV programs that advertisers like us to believe that men watch, chances are you’ve seen one of these ads from Charles Barkley, former pro basketball player and self-described “round mound of rebounds”:

Yep, that’s Charles Barkley. For Weight Watchers. You might expect to see this guy endorsing Nike or ESPN, but a commercial weight loss program? Not so much.

Weight Watchers, like other weight loss brands, has centered its advertising and PR campaigns around celebrity endorsements for some time now. But this partnership is definitely not par for the course. Barkley is the opposite of Weight Watcher’s last spokesperson, Jennifer Hudson. He’s not sophisticated or eloquent or stunningly beautiful… and well, he’s a dude.

It’s clear that the brand has been wildly successful with the ladies – 82% of their consumer base is women. And it makes a lot of sense. I hate to be stereotypical here, but striving for a svelte figure through a diet program is considered lady business. So what better way to expand that image and break into the male demographic than with an off-the-cuff, “man’s man” athlete like Charles? Not only does get he get the average guy’s stamp of approval, he’s the last person you’d imagine doing a weight loss campaign… and that’s why he’s making it look cool. The campaign’s called “Lose Like A Man” and the Weight Watchers folks (and their agency Ketchum) have hit it hard with big time ad placements, plenty of PR, and liberal doses of digital and social media.

Of course, it couldn’t all be smooth sailing. Leave it Charles Barkley to mix things up for the well established brand. You might have heard about the little bump in the road they recently hit, when good ol’ Charles didn’t know he was live on NBA.tv, and called his Weight Watchers deal a “scam.” The viral video’s been taken down, but Charles said, “I ain’t giving away no money… I thought this was the greatest scam going — getting paid to watch sports. This Weight Watchers thing is a bigger scam.”

While many were quick to call this a “PR fail,” Weight Weighers wisely embraced Barkley’s comments, releasing a statement saying, “We love Charles for the same reason everyone loves Charles, he’s unfiltered. We are thrilled that he is having great success and inspiring millions of men to join him. We agree that being a spokesman for Weight Watchers is a pretty great gig.” The best part? The “scandal” got the campaign a whole lotta press.

Will Weight Watchers be able to leave its ladies-only image behind with an unfiltered guy like Charles Barkley? That remains to be seen, but I really love their gusto for going in a new direction. It’s refreshing to see a brand that could easily rest on their laurels with their current base to commit to this kind of a campaign whole heartedly.

If you haven’t heard, Toyota has recently been hard at work cleaning up the mess of its 2.3 million vehicle recall. While it is potentially devastating for Toyota, whose entire brand image has been based on vehicle reliability, it led for some pretty opportunistic moments for others in the auto industry.

Hardly anyone took advantage, but GM stepped up to the plate with an awesome incentive program that helped capture what would otherwise be some pretty loyal Toyota consumers. The best part about GM’s plan is that they didn’t alter their positioning at all. They haven’t made any new promises or changed their advertising. They simply allow Toyota owners (who terminate their Toyota lease, of course) to get up to $1,000 off a new or leased GM vehicle: a pretty good incentive for making the switch. Toyota’s fumble couldn’t have come at a better time for a company like GM; it has allowed them to really push their own promises of reliability and quality to a very tuned in audience with a specific set of needs. So whether or not Toyota is handling their recall the right way is almost beside the point; GM has stepped in at exactly the right time to take advantage of their competitor’s weakness.

As far as any business goes, it is important for your company to be able to handle problems and crises with foresight and grace, but it is just as important to know what is going on beyond your company. Keeping tabs on your industry and your competitors can bring advantageous opportunities to really reach your audience.

When the Tiger Woods scandal broke, the world cringed. But maybe none of us cringed as hard as the folks at Nike Golf. From 1996 – 2006 they supported Woods with $140 million in sponsorships. The deal was renewed in 2006 for presumably upwards of 100 million. So what will Nike do now that Tiger’s reputation is ruined? Support the icon of their brand and let it reflect on their reputation? Or drop him and try to save face before any more bad news surfaces?

This is the very expensive question that many in the advertising world are asking. With huge implications for the brand either way, Nike has a crisis on their hands. What would you do if you were in Nike’s PR/Marketing departments? We took a little poll around the office to see where people stood on the issue. Let us know what YOU think in our comments below.

Darren Easton, Creative Director: I say keep him. According to research, Mr. Whipple was the most hated brand icon in advertising history and yet Charmin was the #1 toilet paper brand for 20 years. People talked about him because they didn’t like him. So what?… they talked about him.

Lucas Hanyok, graphic designer: I’m not sure what Nike will do. I am one who believes someone’s personal problems should be left alone. To me he is still an icon of GOLF. Nike should continue to support him as an icon of the sport. On the other hand your personal life becomes your brand in ways, and will stick with you no matter what you do. Your personal brand is not just one thing that you do, it is the total of all things you do. If I were Tiger I would keep my stance as: “leave me alone, I’m really good at golf”

Dave Cyphers, owner (obviously joking!): I think they should pay him more; he just added a whole new dimension to “Just Do It.”

So there you have it, some insight from our greatest minds. What is your stance? Do you think Nike should give Tiger the boot or support him?