Domino’s Pizza on Wednesday (Oct. 8) launched its first brand refresh in more than a decade, modernizing the look and sound of the chain with younger consumers in mind, per details shared with Marketing Dive. The brighter colors, bolder typeface and new jingle comes as the chain — often described as a technology company that happens to sell pizza — continues to broaden its “Hungry for MORE” strategy.
“Most companies rebrand themselves when they’re struggling, but after years of category-defying growth, this refresh is about continuing to push to be the best version of ourselves,” said Kate Trumbull, executive vice president and global chief marketing officer for Domino’s, in a statement. “Rather than launching a more traditional tagline, we’re baking craveability right into our name and every aspect of our brand as a reminder of this relentless focus.”
Instead of a new tagline, the refresh includes what the brand calls a “cravemark” — a new audio and visual expression of its name that stresses and stretches the “mmm” sound in the middle of “Domino’s.” A jingle is voiced by crossover country singer-songwriter Shaboozey.
The refresh will roll out across the U.S. and multiple international markets over the coming months, spanning TV and digital advertising, the chain’s website and app, boxes, print materials, in-store graphics and employee gear. Created in partnership with agency WorkInProgress, the refresh looks to help Domino’s cut through in various channels, including emerging ones.
“We’re in a world now where there are 100 commercial shoots happening a day in the form of [user-generated content] and influencer content,” said Matt Talbot, co-founder and chief creative officer at WorkInProgress. “You really need packaging and other things to work much harder for you in those environments to make that content ownable.”
Hot not cold
By refreshing what’s already working and remaining true to the brand’s iconography, Domino’s refresh could sidestep the kind of negative feedback that other recent rebrands have faced, such as one undertaken by Cracker Barrel.
The changes include making the chain’s namesake logo even clearer on boxes, while several varieties will be packaged in black and metallic gold boxes to highlight a premium feel. A new “Domino’s Sans” font is thicker and “doughier,” while the brand’s red and blue have been sharpened into the “hottest” version of each color.
“There are elements from the ‘70s and ‘80s, where we had these brighter colors that resonate today… in a digital environment. Blue is traditionally considered cold, but it can be hot. If you put it against the right red, it can vibrate. Also, blue, quite literally, is the hottest part of the flame,” Talbot said. “There are ways to improve our logo without literally changing it.”
For the cravemark, Domino’s and WorkInProgress keyed in on the “mmm” sound inherent to the brand’s name that suggests not only the sound consumers make when eating delicious food, but also the thoughtful noise they make when seeing something new and surprising.
“Even though it came out of craveability of food, it can work with all the different actions that we do across the pillars of the business,” Talbot said. “It can be a long-term platform that accents all those things we do as a brand, and then ultimately, became the center of a mnemonic or jingle, as well.”
To bring the cravemark to life, Domino’s tapped Shaboozey, a rising talent known for chart toppers “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” and “Good News.” The brand found similarities between its business and the way the 30-year-old singer-songwriter crosses genres and spans audiences
“We often say pizza transcends class, status and culture,” Talbot explained. “Combined with the literal qualities of his voice — of being warm and rich and craveable — led us to him being the right one for the mnemonic.”
