Garfield's Ad Review
Domino's Apology Video Isn't Going to Erase Those Images
Poor Domino's.
It will be very difficult for anybody to order a sandwich or a pizza there for, say, the next 200 years without imagining a curl of cheese being stuck first in the cook's nose. Or worse. This thanks to two nincompoops and their YouTube video about their zany food-defilement high jinks.
Putting aside for a moment how these rascals possibly believed they could punk their employer without losing (at least) their jobs, the whole thing is just so unfair to the chain. Not because no Domino's employee ever does something repulsive with the ingredients but because the incidence of food defilement is surely distributed among chains, and non-chains, as evenly as can be.
Marketer: Domino's Agency: In-house |
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| Domino's responded by trotting out its president, Patrick Doyle, in a YouTube video with approximately the same production values as the one at issue. |
None of this knowledge does Domino's the slightest bit of good. This episode has nothing to do with statistics or with logic. It has to do with images -- i.e., farting on the salami slice -- that, fairly or unfairly, will be associated with Domino's for a long time to come.
So what's a multinational pizza slinger to do?
At times like this, everybody goes to the case histories, which lead inevitably to 1982, when some sociopath killed seven Chicagoans by lacing Extra Strength Tylenol capsules with cyanide. Johnson & Johnson, itself a victim of the crime, was widely hailed for acting quickly, removing all of the product from its shelves and making all subsequent versions of the product tamper-proof. After watching the brand's market share plummet immediately from 35% to 8%, J&J recouped its share within a year.
Alas, you can't triple-seal a pizza.
Nonetheless, Domino's was under pressure to respond, and respond it did -- by Twittering like mad and trotting out the president of Domino's USA, Patrick Doyle, in a YouTube video with approximately the same production values as the one at issue.
"Recently we discovered a video," he said, sounding tired and sad, "of two Domino's team members who thought that their acts would be a funny YouTube hoax. We sincerely apologize for this incident. ...
"Although the individuals in question claim it's a hoax, we are taking this incredibly seriously. ... The two team members have been dismissed, and there are felony warrants out for their arrest. The store has been shut down and sanitized from top to bottom. There is nothing more important or sacred to us than our customers' trust."
Etc., etc. Auditors in stores, re-examination of hiring practices, restoring trust. Doyle says the right things. But:
1) "Team members?" Doesn't an episode like this point to the glaring ridiculousness of Corporate Speak? Wouldn't this be a time to let it go?
2) Sure, they had to act quickly, but couldn't somebody find this dude a teleprompter? He's looking off camera as he reads his script. Why? If ever there was a time for eye contact, this is it.
3) Why no newspaper and TV ads? The Twitter and YouTube response is all well and good, but this story is everywhere. It cannot be contained on the web, and it cannot be contained by the web, either.
Poor Dominos, yes -- but not too poor, we hope, to invest in its ongoing reputation.
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Although most of us pizza lovers would never ever buy a pizza from a chain outfit in the first place, we've come a long way from the old Tylenol era. We're not total idiots. We know that food preparers may be doing stuff like this in pretty much every food establishment—including the fanciest restaurants—since there are unhappy, pissed-off, angry, underpaid nincompoops all over. It's inherent in the economics of the food biz, from the fast fooders to the ritzy joints, too. Odds are it's gonna happen.
And while I agree with you that the Domino corporate-speak sounds absolutely ludicrous, I think they did an OK job by responding without making a federal case out of it. Their response was measured. And for me, that put the incident in its proper perspective.
Sure, Domino's sales will be off for a while. But Americans are not likely to punish Domino's for the sins of a few a-holes. It would be different if Domino's itself was found to knowingly use tainted ingredients. Or if they systematically followed unsafe food handling practices. Or if they treated customers differently based on race. Those would be major problems. This is a molehill.
http://admaven.blogspot.com/2009/04/admaven-interviews-dominos-insiders.html
http://www.twitter.com/admaven
http://admaven.blogspot.com
As to how Domino's responded to this incident, Monday morning quarterbacks/marketing communications professionals will second guess Domino's no matter what they had done.
Suggest some new better quality control procedures...consider even getting rid of the "back room". What is going on back there that the customers can't see? Mind you, I have not been in a Dominics...maybe ever. But, my image is you order out front...and then it goes "back there."
Contrast this with the great pizza turned out at a very fair price right here in the Union Square area on NYC, Piola.. The prep, the brick oven...it's all there to see.
Arthur Kriemelman
Who exactly do you expect to do the job if not "adolescents and other bottom-tier labor"? Would you? Or, are you implying that these jobs should NOT be minimum-wage jobs?
I think you are right to assume that it has to do with who works there, but the problem lies in the hiring process. They need stricter guidelines to follow and be very careful of who's in charge of interviews and approvals.
You are dead on with this... All these douchenozzles saying it is an isolated incident are nuts... You know this shit goes on all the time in joints that employ retards at minimum wage with no benefits... They hate their fucking job, even if the are "team members." If you patronize these places, you have to expect snot on your sub... And Dominos waiting 48 hours to respond is insane... This is the fucking Internet age... You could be out of business in 48 hours.
Cheers/George
Brands are vulnerable, increasingly vulnerable as it requires fewer and fewer people to create real and lasting damage. The only defense a brand has is its willingness to live their values and demonstrate them daily at every moment in time, in every place where it comes into contact with the consumer. Consistency, reliability, accountability define a brand. These are the values that must be refined and and continually refined. Public relations, apologies, etc. are today entirely beside the point.
The really smart thing would have been getting on a jet (private, of course - this is no time for delays) to film a response video in the exact same kitchen, using the same camera angle. The visual message would be unmistakable - WE'RE ON IT.
The CEO should have posted it to YouTube within 4-5 hours of his seeing the original post. That way, the swift, savvy response would be part of the inevitable news story.
And the message shouldn't simply have been 'they're fired and getting charged'. It should have included 'their manager is fired too'. That would have let the public know that every store manager in the chain is now on notice.
Brutal, yes, but when you're in charge of a multi-million dollar operation, you can't screw around. J&J didn't, which is why Tylenol is still a valuable brand today.
It's pizza....at a fast food outlet...and 2 idiots posted a video that got its 15 minutes of fame for dumb & dumber...but this overwrought discourse is hysterical.
When will the "experts" get some perspective on all this social media.
In this case, I would have ignored the video and gotten on with running a company.
There are issue(s) to deal with (when it comes to social media) but not now and not with Dominos pizza as the focal point.
The current state that Dominos is in right now, about a billion viewers (most likely much more) would have witnessed the much spoken about video. The best thing that Dominos can do right now is to go in for a kitchen where the customers of Dominos are given access to, and where they can actually witness the preparation of the pizzas etc. This will most likely prevent Dominos from incurring further losses and protect dominos from the permanent tarnish of its image in the market.