in 2009, once hot moment of Domino’s pizza chain has twilight. The company’s sales plummeted and its stock price fell to its lowest point in history. The room leak happened to rain overnight, and the company-made pizza also won the last place in the National Food Contest.
Managers have to take measures quickly, otherwise the company will face bankruptcy. So they adopted an unconventional approach. Domino’s launched a series of advertising and public relations and frankly admitted its mistake: The pizza the company used to make was too unpalatable.
In a TV commercial, it quoted various negative reviews from customers. For example, someone complained that the base of Domino’s pizza was like “cardboard”, it was “the most unpalatable pizza, no one” and “perfectly avoided.” Everything related to delicious food”. In the advertisement, these heart-warming negative reviews from customers were printed out, framed with picture frames, and hung on the wall of Domino’s office. At this time, the voice-over announced Domino’s new pizza product and begged customers to give it another chance.
This crisis of public relations is hailed as the most incredible turnaround in the history of catering. In the second year, Domino’s sales performance rose by nearly 14%, and its stock price rose by 130%. The company put all the bets on integrity and finally got a handsome return. As John Glass, an analyst at Morgan Stanley, observed: “People are too used to listening to lies in advertisements. When you are honest, you win.”
