Who Won the Pizza Wars?

An Analysis of National Pizza Chain Marketing Strategies. 

And the Women Who Love Them.

by Andy Tyer

Editor’s Note: Andy Tyer has never worked in the pizza industry. He’s never had a pizza company as a client; he’s never written a single marketing word about pizza. In fact, this article was only written after he stumbled onto the Pizza Marketplace website by mistake (stupid banner ads), and it got him thinking.   

On the other hand, the guy’s a wiz at strategic marketing, AND he loves pizza. 
So, there you go.

In 1965 Pizza Hut launched its first nationally-televised commercial.

Yes, it was a rip-off of The Benny Hill Show, but it also marked the beginning of a half-century-long crusade to win America’s heart through its stomach. Domino’s and Papa John's joined in, and they’ve been sparring for your loyalty and cash ever since.

Yet with all the innovation in the industry (from stuffed-crusts to online ordering), the Big Three have found themselves exactly where they were 20 years ago. The pecking order hasn’t changed. Pizza Hut is still number one. Domino’s bats second with Papa John's a distant third. And with more and more local and regional pizza places nibbling at their share, what’s a poor little pizza behemoth to do? 

This would be my kind of Pizza Wars. Better firepower, better pizza. 

If we examine their current marketing strategies, it appears they each have their own unique formula for success:

Pizza Hut

Pizza Hut double-downed on Millennials. It revamped its menu to include a slew of gourmet pizza varieties the company thought Millennials would like, including Skinny Pizzas.

Check out the name. "Introducing Pizza Hut's newest topping - naughty puns!"

Pizza Hut then updated its branding and fell overly-in-love with the color black because, you know, Millennials like that color way better than red roofs. But in trying so hard to attract the M crowd, the brand lost a part of its true self, leaving us all wondering, “Where did my Pizza Hut go?”

Papa John's

Nearly a decade ago, Papa John's began to focus on the fundamentals. And it hasn’t strayed from it. Better ingredients, better pizza. The company’s approach has a deliberate wholesomeness to it that has only been augmented with the addition of NFL quarterback and future president of the United States Peyton Manning as its co-spokesperson with founder John Schnatter.

I just wish the television budget had included some acting lessons for Papa; if they gave a Razzie Award for TV commercials, he’d have to make some room on his mantel. But bad acting doesn’t automatically equate to bad pizza. Or bad pizza marketing, for that matter.

And to anyone who disagrees, I have two words: Dave Thomas.

Domino’s

Domino’s has made the biggest departure from its roots. And maybe that’s because its roots were arguably planted in rocky soil to begin with. Did you know Domino’s has been around almost as long as Pizza Hut? We’re talking about a company that’s over 50 years old. Yet the closest it ever came to taking down the Hut was with The ‘Noid. You remember The ‘Noid, don’t you?

The 'Noid was decommissioned by the end of the '80s. But since 2009, Domino’s has made some serious headway in sales and market share, due in no small part to a risky marketing play: it acknowledged its failures, and it vowed to become better.

Like a celebrity coming out of rehab, Domino's bared its soul to the entire country--and we bought it! Americans love a flawed hero. And we found one in our pizza, of all places.

Which marketing strategy worked best?

So, how have consumers reacted to these unique marketing approaches? Brace yourself, I feel an analogy coming on:

Pretend the world is a nightclub. And you, the American pizza-eating public, are an attractive woman sitting at the bar. The Big Three pizza makers are the playahs in search of a hottie willing to take them home for the night. 

Like it or not, somebody’s gonna get hit on.

Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut is wearing a fancy suit, and he orders you a drink you’ve never heard of. You’re intrigued, but there’s something not quite right about him: the more he talks, the more you realize he’s just telling you what you want to hear. You volunteer at the animal shelter; he does, too. You say you’re disenchanted with American politics; he tells you he never votes anymore.

He mirrors your body language in an unnatural way; it’s more like he’s consciously copying your movements. And it’s weird, because that’s what you imagine serial killers would do.

Red flags are going off like gangbusters in your head—all because he lacks authenticity. So, you fake an incoming phone call and pretend it’s your mother. Whoops, she just broke her hip. Sorry, Pizza Hut. Gotta go.

"Hey, baby, my crust isn't the only thing that's stuffed."

Papa John's
Then Papa John's shuffles in and sits down next to you. He’s cute, he’s polite, and his plaid shirt with jeans and boots make a nice, if not rustic, ensemble.

He orders you a glass of wine—and a glass of milk for himself. He talks about how he loves working on the farm and and living with his parents, "'cause they're just so gosh-darn fun to be around." He tells you the name of his tractor is 'Lucille.' He’s a genuinely nice guy, even if it seems he just escaped from an episode of The Andy Griffith Show.  

No warning signs are going off, just yet. But, jeez, he’s kind of boring. Do you really want to spend the night with this guy? Bye-bye, Papa Johns. It's past your bedtime. 

"I used to have a roommate, but my Mom moved to Florida."

Domino's
Domino’s is dressed in an Oxford button-down shirt and jeans with a pair of buffed Cole Haan loafers. His sleeves are rolled up; elegant-casual, they call it.

When he talks to you, he looks into your eyes. He asks you questions, and not in that impersonal interview style; this guy really wants to get to know the real you. When he does talk about himself, he doesn’t sugar-coat it: he used to be an alcoholic, but he’s been on the wagon for five years. He’s doing Yoga, sees a therapist once a week, and he’s never felt better about himself.

Sure, he’s flawed, but the guy is genuine. He thanks you for the spirited conversation and asks if you’d like to join him for coffee next week.

"I have flaws, but my dashing good looks aren't among them."

We've got a winner!

So, which pizza guy will you Google-stalk on your smartphone? Which one gets to date you? Clearly, my vote is Domino’s. And here’s why:

• They leveled with us. “Our pizza sucks, and we’re sorry. We promise to do better.”
• They made a genuine attempt at improving. “Check it out, we hired this world-renown chef to teach us how to make a pizza that doesn’t make you hurl.”
• Most importantly, they’ve taken action to overcome the biggest barrier every pizza brand faces:
  “If you don’t like the taste of our new and improved pizza, there ain’t jack squat we can do about it. So, we’re going to focus on pleasing the people who already love us. The rest of you can join us or not. No biggie.”

Instead of just slap-fighting Pizza Hut and Papa John's for household penetration, Domino’s is also actively increasing its basket share with the people who already order its food. And they’re doing it by offering more that just boneless wings or desserts that look suspiciously like pizza.

It looks like a pizza, but it doesn't taste like a pizza. Is this the work of ISIS?

Specialty chicken dishes. Oven-baked sandwiches. Online ordering--via Twitter! Talk about knowing your audience. Domino’s is building brand loyalty by finally being loyal to its customers. And isn't that the characteristic we want most in our men AND in our pizza brands? 

Editor’s note: in the interest of full transparency, Andy Tyer’s number-one comfort food in the world is a Meatlover’s pan pizza—from Pizza Hut.   

Pursuing the Great Idea

 A primer on how to lead 
a successful brainstorm

by Andy Tyer

So, you want a fruitful brainstorming session, huh? You want to walk into a room, and come out two hours later with big ideas. Award-winning ideas. Oh-my-God-they’re-gonna-give-me-a-raise ideas.

Excellent. 

Those ideas don’t happen by accident. You have to hunt them down like the illusive prey they are. So, allow me to share some guidelines I’ve established over my career to help you successfully run a productive brainstorm to get to those kinds of ideas. 

Every brainstorm must have a leader.
This seems obvious. However, I’ve stopped counting the times I’ve looked in on a brainstorm only to see a room full of people staring at the walls. The brainstorm leader must prevent that from happening. When I assign a leader to brainstorm (or serve as the leader myself), I make it very clear that the success or failure of that brainstorm is squarely on the leader’s shoulders.

Be hunters.
A great idea is an evasive, slippery, cunning, stealthy animal that does not want to be captured and is rarely just stumbled upon. You absolutely have to hunt for it. You have to be smart and devious and determined to bag that great idea. And you need some weapons. Break up your brainstorm into smaller timed-sessions. “You have ten minutes to come up with as many ideas that . . . “ Break up your brainstormers into smaller groups, and have them compete. Use any means, fair or unfair, to hunt that great idea down.

A brainstorm group posing with the Big Idea they just bagged.
He was a tough one.  

No one sits.

I can state this with conviction: every great idea I ever came up with happened when I was standing. And I was probably pacing around, too. Forcing your brainstormers onto their feet gets them into the brainstorming mindset. Seated is passive; standing is active.

Lose the phones.

In the history of brainstorming there has yet to be an instance when a creative got a great idea from his phone. Ban the phones from the room. If one gets smuggled in, don’t think twice about snatching that sucker up and tossing it out the window. You’ll only have to do it once to make your point.

Phones can derail a brainstorm, yet crossbows are quite effective in them.

Have an objective.

If you want to walk out of the room with five great ideas, share that desire with your creatives. Be explicit about it. “We’re not leaving until we nab three ideas that will make the client wet his pants.”  Whatever your objective is, make it the goal for the group. And let them know about it before the first “What if” is spoken. 

I was supposed to be looking for the largest dessert. Damn it!

Prepare the room and the players.

Give your brainstormers some help. Put up prints of the product on the walls. Have copies of the creative brief ready. Throw in some examples of great work to inspire them. Send out an email the day before the session is scheduled, letting your creatives know what they’ll be jamming on. A little prep could make the difference between a great brainstorming session and two hours of wasted time.

Know the project’s business objectives.

Creatives like to know why they’re being asked to flex their hefty creative muscles. Are you trying to drive trial with this project?  Did the client find some extra money? Does he want to spend that money fast before his budget ends? The answers to these questions can greatly affect the direction of your brainstorm session.

Bring in your heavy hitters.

A winning baseball manager doesn’t take the pennant by filling his roster with farm club talent. And at the risk of offending many of my creative brothers and sisters, not all creative are great conceptors. Make sure you’ve got at least a few participants in your brainstorm who are experienced at concepting big ideas.

"Babe, Lou, we need you in the brainstorm. Like now."

Be one-track minded.

Two words: single proposition. Start by posting on a big board the one thing on which your team should focus. If it takes you more than ten words to convey your single proposition, odds are, you don’t have one. Single propositions are simple and sound something like this: 

·    Show consumers that a Crest regimen whitens her teeth better than toothpaste alone.

·    Prove to pet parents the health benefits of an all-natural dog food.

·    Help hospitals see the long-term cost-savings of a RIS/PACS.

Your single proposition should not be clever. Leave that up to your big idea. Finally, the word “and” should never, ever, ever be part of your single proposition. Ever-ever.

Check the creative temperature often.

Sometimes creatives just aren’t in the mood to brainstorm. The room gets cold. The leader’s job is to keep it hot. So pay attention to the creative temperature. If the ideas aren’t coming, readjust. Do something different. Do whatever you have to in order to get the creative temperature hot again and the ideas flowing.

Get all the bad ideas out.

You will come up with way more bad ideas than great ones; Thomas Edison will back me up on this point. One way to get the room hot again is to force your brainstomers to get all the bad ideas out in the open. Start the brainstorm with a mandate, something like, “For the next ten minutes, I want to hear every bad idea you’ve got.” Once your get all those bad ideas out, your group will relax, and the great ideas will begin to emerge.

One of many bad ideas you really need to get out of your head. 

Never settle.

There’s an old creative adage that goes something like this: 

Good is the opposite of great.

Do not settle for good. It’s okay to put good ideas up on the board. It’s okay to put bad ideas on the board. But don’t quit until you’ve got great ideas on the board. Again, this may seem like an obvious tip, but you’d be amazed at how many times a good idea starts to feel right to you and your brainstorming team.

If you settle for good instead of holding out for great, plan on taking a lot of showers; you’ll need them to wash all the hack off you.

The Last Paragraph

So, there you have it. Approach your next brainstorm with a leader, an objective, and some simple ground rules, and you’ll be amazed what your group will come up with.

Happy hunting!

When Newbies Inspire

Creatives can be inspired by any number of influences. Nature. God. And for some people, recreational medications seem to do the trick.

But the thing that most often inspires me to create great work is reviewing the great work that’s already out there. When I was wee copywriting student in ad school, we were encouraged to soak up the latest issues of Archive Magazine and the Communications Arts advertising awards annuals for the express purpose of getting us into the mindset to do great work, ourselves.

We’d look at the current works of Fallon and Goodby and Weiden, while visions of One Show pencils danced in our heads. And with every turn of the page, we were reminded that people out there were finding ways to produce work that made us all proud.

Cut to umpteen years later, and I still find myself being inspired by great work created by others. The irony is I no longer turn to the awards annuals to find it but in the very halls of the advertising schools where I once walked and concepted, myself.

I recently attended a portfolio review at CreativeCircus, an advertising school in Atlanta, Georgia, where I had the pleasure of meeting more than two dozen wide-eyed creative wanna-bees who had just weathered two years of the same boot-camp style of concepintg instruction I had survived so many years ago.

And the work was exceptional.
 

How can I qualify this statement? Easy. The student work I reviewed made me jealous. Yeah, you read it right. Jealous. It made me wish I had thought of something like that, and yes, their spec campaigns included a few brands I had worked on in my career.

And that gave me a reason to pause. Back in the day when I had my nose stuffed in an advertising award annual and saw the amazing work being created, perhaps I was jealous of those creatives back then, too, just as I was when recently reviewing the student work.

Jealousy inspired me. Who’d of thought it?

So the next time you’re feeling creatively blah, go check out the ad school websites and see what the creative students are up to. Yes, you’ll feel a tiny hint of jealousy when you see the work those young whipper-snappers have created. But in the end, you’ll feel very much inspired.

I know I do.