Domino's plans to go large on marketing to lift sales

Domino’s Pizza Group has vowed to boost its marketing spend by 40% in the second half of this year to bring in more customers after reporting a 16% fall in first-half pre-tax profit due to rising costs and food inflation.

The company cited Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for triggering supply concerns in the flour market and for driving global wheat prices to historic levels.

The firm reported sales of £710.5m for the 26 weeks ended June 26, compared with £752.3m a year earlier.

Underlying profit before tax came in at £50.9m but Domino’s said profitability was expected to be weighted to H2 as it maintained its annual outlook.

Chief executive Dominic Paul, who is due to leave in December to head up Whitbread, said: “We will be increasing our media spend in the second half compared to the first half, amplifying our value message to customers as we head into key events such as the men’s football World Cup.”

The pizza giant works with a number of UK agencies, including VCCP which devised its “Domin-oh-hoo-hoo” yodelling TV campaign and Havas Media.

Back in 2019, the brand launched the digital display ad campaign using data supplied by Publicis-owned Conversant, which enabled it to identify and reach 3.1 million consumers with a spend of just £113,000.

By helping Domino’s to further activate its first-party data, Conversant used its transaction-driven ID map of British consumers to identify and reach the right consumers at scale, simultaneously optimising media buying for measurable return.

This enabled Domino’s to match customers down to a single, pseudonymous customer contact ID, tracking that customer accurately from media delivery through to order. The solution allows delivery of automated, personalised messaging to increase new and existing customer lifetime value, driving purchases across its customer base.

At the time, Domino’s head of digital and CRM Karl Boyce said: “There are so many businesses fighting for that pizza or takeaway occasion, and they have deep pockets. We need to be on the front foot when it comes to driving efficiency through data – using our data architecture and understanding of our customers to outsmart competitors. All the while, measuring effectively using a mix of econometrics, last click and revenue incrementality. That’s our mantra – to outsmart rather than outspend.”