Domino's tosses barbs at itself, and it's paying off

Chicago Tribune ^ | May 31, 2010 | Greg Burns

[re_tail20]

In the test kitchen at the corporate headquarters for Domino's Pizza Inc., a chef dressed in a starched white coat was going through the familiar motions: Sauce on crust, cheese on sauce, pepperoni on cheese, then bake.

But this pizza's different, as it has been in Domino's stores across the U.S. since late December. The 9,000-unit chain took a big chance, not only reformulating its signature product for the American market but also disparaging its long-standing recipe in a straight-talk marketing campaign.

The old crust? "Cardboard," the company admitted in its ads. The old sauce? "Ketchup." The staff? Weary of customers trashing the food.

The risk paid off. Despite rumblings in the marketing world about another New Coke-style flop in the making, sales at domestic stores open more than a year soared 14.3 percent in the first full quarter after the new recipe debuted. Domino's marketing push helped lift the pizza market as a whole, and the halo effect appears to be continuing into the summer.

As of last week, the test-kitchen cooks in Ann Arbor were working on new recipes for Domino's stores in some of its 60-plus foreign markets.

Will other brands adopt the "We Stink" marketing theme? Probably not, but some companies facing widespread customer cynicism about their products or services should think about it, said Mac Brand, a consultant in Chicago for Bellwether Food Group Inc.

"The one that comes to my mind is the airlines," he said. "You can't do candor all the time, but once or twice, it works."

BP, are you listening?

Domino's owes at least some of its success to timing. Its campaign dovetailed with a national mood of discontent over Wall Street bailouts and layoff-prone employers. Americans were ready to hear a big company express a little humility.

[Flightdeck]

The new stuff IS a lot better.

[null and void]

pizza ping...

[Ravi]

chicken and spinach or chicken and feta are excellent and inexpensive.

[MollyKuehl]

The old crust? "Cardboard," the company admitted in its ads. The old sauce? "Ketchup."

The new crust? Still cardboard. The new sauce? Still ketchup. Just my personal opinion!!!

[GeronL]

The old crust? "Cardboard," the company admitted in its ads

Then the FDA and Attorney General should shut down the company and arrest its top officers for selling cardboard as food.

Oh wait, you mean it wasn't really cardboard? Then the FCC should charge them with false advertising.

[reagan_fanatic]

It STILL tastes like crap.

[GeronL]

I liked the Dominoes of the old days, I avoid them now

[ohiogrammy]

Love the new crust, great campaign!

[ConorMacNessa]

The old Dominos - execrable - the new Dominos - barely edible.

Lamh Foistenach Abu!

[Professional]

With food, it’s always the same thing. If you use fresh ingredients, avoid fillers, and properly prepare the dish....surprise....it tastes good.

BP, I didn’t realize they had a pizza division.

[Little Ray]

Okay, so where do you go for pizza? I’m always lookin’ for a better pizza...

[LonePalm]

My son works for Domino's.

He took some of my cold, day old pizza in to work and the guys like it better than their fresh.

'La bonne cuisine est la base du véritable bonheur.' - Auguste Escoffier
(Good food is the foundation of genuine happiness.)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)

[KarlInOhio]

With food, it’s always the same thing. If you use fresh ingredients, avoid fillers, and properly prepare the dish....surprise....it tastes good.

Then the bean counters take over and say "We could have a bigger profit if we could get the same sales with just a little bit cheaper ingredients." Repeat that a few times and you get crap and either lose many customers or have to discount the price to capture the low end of the market.

The real test of a pizza is "would you eat it with just crust, sauce and cheese? No toppings, just plain." Few pizzas pass that test and rely on the toppings to make the base edible.

Fortunately I have a good pizza shop like that near me.

[stephenjohnbanker]

” said Mac Brand, a consultant in Chicago for Bellwether Food Group Inc. “

You just can’t make this stuff up....

[-YYZ-]

I used to get Domino’s pizza fairly regularly, and thought it was pretty good (if cooked well-done). In particular, I thought the crust was actually quite good, and the sauce was OK if a little bland.

Now I get pizza from a local chain that, IMO, makes a better, tastier pizza.

Really, though, there are so many different styles of pizza and everyone has their personal preference, that it’s hard to say that one pizza place, or chain, makes the worst or best pizza. Pizza Hut may come close, however, to being the worst, unless you LIKE your pizza crust soaked in oil.

[stefanbatory]

CiCi’s will give you similar quality except it’s an all you can eat buffet for $5...

[stephenjohnbanker]

Usually, any town has a “mom & pop” place who make it from scratch. The chains all suck.

[Defiant]

Yup. It worked because it was true that the old pizza was lousy, and because their new pizza is much better. I wouldn't call it high quality, but it is pretty good, and I can eat it, whereas I couldn't stand the old kind.

If you were just making it up, the ad campaign would not have worked.

[MollyKuehl]

I discovered a wonderful thing called automatic bread maker so I've been making the dough there and adding the toppings upon the requests of my family and friends. To the day have we found something better. I know, it seems very unpractical but believe me, it's the wrong perception since we are in charge of the toppings.

We also discovered a local wood burning oven pizzeria which we use at times.