My Favorite Advertisement Ever
Updated October 24, 2023
It’s not easy to admit that you sucked, and it’s quite another to be successful by admitting it publically. Over ten years ago, Domino’s admitted its pitfalls and agreed with its critics. What came out of it was one of my favorite advertisements ever.
It was the end of 2009, and Domino’s wasn’t even considered to be an option when ordering pizza for me. There were other good national competitors and local pizza shops that always got my business. That all changed with the “Oh Yes We Did” ad campaign.
“Domino’s® Pizza Turnaround” is a 4-minute documentary that summarizes the criticism that led to the “Oh Yes We Did” campaign and Domino’s changing their recipe.
It’s not often admitting your product “tastes like cardboard” is a good thing, but they agreed with their critics and shifted. This shift interested me as a consumer— was their new pizza good? Shortly after seeing that ad, I ordered a pizza from Domino’s, which I hadn’t done in a long time. And you know what, it was good! I’m sure many others gave them a try because of that ad. They brought in customers who never considered them before.
What has Domino’s accomplished since that drastic shift? For one, their stock shares rose from $11 to around $260 at the start of 2019. That’s enormous growth, and one can tie their branding shift as a cause for their success.
If you’re falling behind and have room to improve, own it! They took a big bet on themselves to have the confidence to spend millions on ads, saying they improved. Look around— the thing you suck at now could be your biggest opportunity for success.
