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Jimbo View Drop Down
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    Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 10:02pm
I just saw the newest Domino's Pizza ad in which some people are sitting at a table & the words "actual focus group" (or something like that) appear across the screen.
 
There's this lady saying something about how Domino's doesn't want her to know its ingredients because they don't use real cheese.
 
Just then, the walls of the room they're in slide open to reveal that the building they are in is sitting in the middle of a COW PASTURE with cows standing around everywhere.
 
At this point, the people all look around in mock amazement as if they hadn't a clue.
 
I suppose we're supposed to believe that they were loaded into a windowless portable building which was then towed by truck out into the country & parked in the middle of a pasture without their knowledge.
 
Or maybe they allowed themselves to be blindfolded & driven there, then marched thru ankle-deep mud & cow sh*t, then herded inside this building that had been parked there earlier.
 
Or maybe they were injected with a sedative....
 
Anyway.... somehow, one member of this "real focus group", just so happens to make a skeptical comment about the authenticity of the cheese they use, that they're able to use as a cue to run their little "sliding walls reveal a cow pasture" gimmick.
 
Then, it ends with some announcer gobbledy-goop & the words "Oh yes we did" appear on the screen.
 
Soooo..... what am I as a viewer & potential customer, supposd to glean from this ad?
 
Lessee..... if a pizza chain corporation sticks some people in a portable building with removable walls in the middle of a cow pasture, then slide the walls open to reveal cows standing all around them in the middle of a field.....  then it stands to reason that they must use real cheese on their pizza.
 
Got it. Wacko
 
Don't I???..... Confused
 
...the ads take aim and lay their claim to the heart and the soul of the spender
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Tiz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 10:27pm
Seen it. What if the walls opened & the group focused on a cow dropping pies?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote JasperGretsch Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 10:47pm
Originally posted by Tiz Tiz wrote:

Seen it. What if the walls opened & the group focused on a cow dropping pies?


Then that would answer the question as to where their chocolate desserts come from.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote dp7 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 10:56pm
I'm still shocked that Domino's still uses the same "We let people criticize us in our ads" strategy that they used a year or so ago when they reformulated the pizza.  I never took an advertising class, but I'd be willing to bet that one of the major things taught in Advertising 101 is to NOT allow anyone to criticize you (or your product) in one of your ads! 
Welcome to Commercial Land. This is a magical place where all women look up while eating, and it is perfectly acceptable to slurp the hell out of a Dannon yogurt cup.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 24 Oct 2010 at 11:49pm
I just think that putting people in the middle of a cow pasture has little, if anything, to do with promoting the idea that they use real cheese on their pizzas.
 
Why didn't they go to a cheese factory instead?
 
Some little bald, fat guy coulda vouched for them.
 
 
 
"A-yess-a, in-a deed-a...... a-Dominos-a a-uses-a da real a-cheese-a!!!!!!"
 
...the ads take aim and lay their claim to the heart and the soul of the spender
Jackson Browne - The Pretender

C'mon, man!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hezadancer Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 3:29am
OMFG I hate this commercial! Did they ambush these people, put a sack over their head, drive them to a cow pasture, and then be like oh it's ok you're in a Domino's focus group. I mean you'd have to be pretty blind not to notice you were in a windowless room on a FARM. With that crap aside I can criticize the people in the ad. HUR DURR NOT REAL CHEESE BECAUSE I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. I'm in marketing and I know half the battle is changing perceptions about your brand. Why do people have to assume if an item is cheap or fast that it's not "real". I mean what does that slack jawed hick of a woman think is real cheese? I bet she thinks those Kraft Singles she feeds her kids is real cheese. Do they even MAKE imitation mozzarella cheese? WTF do people think the tomatoes in the sauce are not real tomatoes? I can't blame Domino's for at least trying to change perceptions by tackling them head on, but it's getting old. "Oh yes we did" OMG!! DID WHAT?! Listened to people complain about sh*tty pizza then tried really pathetically to change their perceptions? Oh wow what pioneers. What visionaries, YOU GO DOMINO'S ::vomit::
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote MrTim Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 5:07am
Originally posted by Jimbo Jimbo wrote:

I suppose we're supposed to believe that they were loaded into a windowless portable building which was then towed by truck out into the country & parked in the middle of a pasture without their knowledge.
 
Or maybe they allowed themselves to be blindfolded & driven there, then marched thru ankle-deep mud & cow sh*t, then herded inside this building that had been parked there earlier.
 
Or maybe they were injected with a sedative....
 
Or maybe...  Alien Abduction!
 
 
I tend to think that the cows were smarter than any of the people that produced this ad....
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tvpirate05 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 6:48am
I saw this commercial earlier, and thought the same thing. What's annoying is that they insult the viewer's intelligence with the disclaimer about it being a "real" focus group.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 1:38pm
I just wonder how the ad agency pitched this stupid idea to the Domino's execs, and how the Domino's execs all agreed that it'd be a great commercial.
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 3:18pm
Originally posted by Thor Thor wrote:

I just wonder how the ad agency pitched this stupid idea to the Domino's execs, and how the Domino's execs all agreed that it'd be a great commercial.
 
I think I know the answer to that..... they were told prior to the meeting that lunch was being delivered from Pizza Hut & they were all in such a hurry to get the meeting over with so they could eat, they just said "Yeah, yeah, whatever..." & agreed to everything.
 
 
...the ads take aim and lay their claim to the heart and the soul of the spender
Jackson Browne - The Pretender

C'mon, man!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 3:44pm
Or maybe strippers pitched the idea.
 
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 3:53pm
Or hookers.
 
While in bed.
 
Having sex.
 
"Oh yeah!!!! Anything you say, baby!!!! Just keep doing that!!!!!"
 
...the ads take aim and lay their claim to the heart and the soul of the spender
Jackson Browne - The Pretender

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hootman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 4:03pm
They really need to use an ad with Peter Griffin showing how he cuts the cheese.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Tiz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 8:49pm
Originally posted by MrTim MrTim wrote:

Originally posted by Jimbo Jimbo wrote:



I suppose we're supposed to believe that they were loaded into a windowless portable building which was then towed by truck out into the country & parked in the middle of a pasture without their knowledge.

 

Or maybe they allowed themselves to be blindfolded & driven there, then marched thru ankle-deep mud & cow sh*t, then herded inside this building that had been parked there earlier.

 

Or maybe they were injected with a sedative....

 

Or maybe...  Alien Abduction!

 


 

I tend to think that the cows were smarter than any of the people that produced this ad....


Maybe Samantha twitched her nose and put that building there. No, Darren
wouldn't try to put such a silly idea like this to Larry.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote MrTim Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 3:43am
But the other Darren might.... LOL
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 4:47am
As far as the whole "cow pasture" thing is concerned, if I were Domino's Pizza, I'd be a lot more careful about running commercials that so easily remind people that their pizza is bullshit.
 
...the ads take aim and lay their claim to the heart and the soul of the spender
Jackson Browne - The Pretender

C'mon, man!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote belc0011 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Oct 2010 at 11:37pm
Originally posted by Hezadancer Hezadancer wrote:

OMFG I hate this commercial! Did they ambush these people, put a sack over their head, drive them to a cow pasture, and then be like oh it's ok you're in a Domino's focus group. I mean you'd have to be pretty blind not to notice you were in a windowless room on a FARM. With that crap aside I can criticize the people in the ad. HUR DURR NOT REAL CHEESE BECAUSE I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. I'm in marketing and I know half the battle is changing perceptions about your brand. Why do people have to assume if an item is cheap or fast that it's not "real". I mean what does that slack jawed hick of a woman think is real cheese? I bet she thinks those Kraft Singles she feeds her kids is real cheese. Do they even MAKE imitation mozzarella cheese? WTF do people think the tomatoes in the sauce are not real tomatoes? I can't blame Domino's for at least trying to change perceptions by tackling them head on, but it's getting old. "Oh yes we did" OMG!! DID WHAT?! Listened to people complain about sh*tty pizza then tried really pathetically to change their perceptions? Oh wow what pioneers. What visionaries, YOU GO DOMINO'S ::vomit::
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Tech Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Oct 2010 at 11:47pm
Yes, this commercial is awful. And no amount of retooling is changing my mind that Domino's is just cardboard topped with cheese and ketchup.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jimbo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 Oct 2010 at 2:53am
Originally posted by Tech Tech wrote:

Yes, this commercial is awful. And no amount of retooling is changing my mind that Domino's is just cardboard topped with cheese and ketchup.
 
Oh, so IOW..... you believe the bit about them using actual cheese then..... LOL
 
 
...the ads take aim and lay their claim to the heart and the soul of the spender
Jackson Browne - The Pretender

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Tech Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 Oct 2010 at 9:43pm
Looks like they added a bit where the group members are shipped in from a limo with "blacked-out" windows, presumably because people were saying "bullsh*t" to this commercial. Still not buying it.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ironwolf56 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Oct 2010 at 7:25am
Quote I'm still shocked that Domino's still uses the same "We let people criticize us in our ads" strategy that they used a year or so ago when they reformulated the pizza.  I never took an advertising class, but I'd be willing to bet that one of the major things taught in Advertising 101 is to NOT allow anyone to criticize you (or your product) in one of your ads!


In situations like this you can.  What they're attempting is rebranding.  They're trying to go from "that place college kids high on pot and moms hosting slumber parties can get cheap nasty pizza from" to "comparable to your local mom and pop pizza place."  Now whether their commercials are effective is...highly debatable, but there is a perfectly legitimate reason in criticizing your companies former business practices in advertising.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote PaWolf Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Oct 2010 at 12:21pm
Originally posted by dp7 dp7 wrote:

I'm still shocked that Domino's still uses the same "We let people criticize us in our ads" strategy that they used a year or so ago when they reformulated the pizza.  I never took an advertising class, but I'd be willing to bet that one of the major things taught in Advertising 101 is to NOT allow anyone to criticize you (or your product) in one of your ads! 
 
Well said, DP.
 
WinkDomino's just doesn't 'get it'.
 
Correct - this commercial is possibly one of the year's worst; simply stupid.
"Let people criticize you"? That is perfectly fine *internally* - it actually strengthens an organization when given constructive feedback (and the organization acts upon it), but EXTERNAL criticism? I don't think so.
One reason for a strong 'Business Continuity Plan' is to avoid exactly that; strong organizations protect their 'Brand' religiously and aggressively address criticism that feeds public discontent with their product.
Sounds like Domino's is begging for us to "just give them one more chance...".
Whiners.
Jimbo said everything - and then some (I hadn't thought of the 'sedative' idea, but that would explain it) that had crossed my mind the first time I saw it...
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Oct 2010 at 12:33pm
What?  Your product's been kinda crappy all these years I've been buying it??  How do I know you're not gonna pull this sh*t again?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote JasperGretsch Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Oct 2010 at 12:37pm
Originally posted by Thor Thor wrote:

What?  Your product's been kinda crappy all these years I've been buying it??  How do I know you're not gonna pull this sh*t again?



You don't. That's why they call themselve Domino's because it's a gamble :)
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Thor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Oct 2010 at 1:10pm
LOL  Good one.
 
Maybe they have it all planned out.  When this improvement gets old, they have another one ready to go.
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