Friday night is not an ideal time for a pizza chain’s online ordering platform to glitch. Yet that’s exactly what happened April 24 to several folks in our newsroom who were clamoring for Domino’s Pizza (or, worse, who had hungry children clamoring for Domino’s Pizza) and so, so many others throughout the country.
Consider that Friday by far is the most common day of the week for pizza orders, according to CivicScience data, with 43% of consumers reporting such a habit. Saturday is the second most common day at 19%. Now, consider that Domino’s has more than 30% of the market share in the pizza category and the math would indicate that a ton of people were impacted.
Worse, the glitch — which was a third-party issue, not a Domino’s issue — happened during a 50% off promotion from the chain.
But, being the dexterous marketer that it is, Domino’s is providing a second chance at the offer and this time providing the 50% off promotion for several days — May 6 through May 9. The deal is applicable for all pizzas, including Specialty Pizzas, Handmade Pan Pizzas and Parmesan Stuffed Crust Pizzas.
‘While the underlying technology issue wasn’t ours, it affected some customers’ Friday night pizza plans. Even though it didn’t impact everyone, it was a big deal to us, and we are committed to making things right,” Vice President of Global Digital Marketing Mark Messing said in a statement.
Acknowledgment, accountability, an extended do-over. That’s how you do a mea culpa, by the way.
There have been a handful of similar “failure ownership” instances throughout the years in the restaurant industry. In 2009, for example, a promotional code for an unapproved Domino’s promotion leaked, resulting in 11,000 pies being given away. Despite the error, the company reimbursed franchisees.
In 1984, a McDonald’s Olympics promotion included free food for every medal won by the U.S. team. The company, however, underestimated the impact of the Soviet Union’s absence at the Games, leading to a much bigger giveaway than expected (and supply chain shortages). Despite significant financial loss (the U.S. won 174 medals that summer), McDonald’s honored the promotion.
Most recently, Five Guys underestimated the chaos its 40th anniversary buy-one-get-one deal would create, including supply shortages and long wait times. Not only did the chain relaunch the (cleverly renamed “40th After Party”) promotion — also extending it from one day to three days — CEO Jerry Murrell announced $1.5 million in employee bonuses to compensate for their overwhelming experience. The company admitted it wasn’t ready for the turnaround and offered a quick resolution.
No doubt impacted consumers were frustrated by the Domino’s glitch on Friday night (I can personally attest to this) or the Five Guys’ burger shortage in March, but we consumers tend to be more forgiving when an issue is identified and rectified rather quickly. We consumers are also better able to move on if our inconvenience is acknowledged. In an environment in which loyalty is harder to come by, such goodwill from brands can go a long way.
Contact Alicia Kelso at Alicia.Kelso@informa.com
Follow her on TikTok: @aliciakelso