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As another commenter pointed out, Dominos is kinda the poster child for fast food companies driving growth by embracing technology. They started investing in on

As another commenter pointed out, Dominos is kinda the poster child for fast food companies driving growth by embracing technology. They started investing in online ordering back in 2007, and their stock has gone up more than 20x since then. And if you look at how Dominos describes itself, they're clearly focused on technology (or at least want you to think they are). For example, half of their standard investor blurb is about technology: > Emphasis on technology innovation helped Domino's achieve more than half of all global retail sales in 2017 from digital channels, primarily online ordering and mobile applications. In the U.S., Domino's generates over 60% of sales via digital channels and has produced several innovative ordering platforms, including Google Home, Facebook Messenger, Apple Watch, Amazon Echo, Twitter and text message using a pizza emoji. In late 2017, Domino's began an industry-first test of self-driving vehicle delivery with Ford Motor Company – and in April 2018, launched Domino's HotSpots™, featuring over 200,000 non-traditional delivery locations including parks, beaches, local landmarks and other unique gathering spots. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dominos-pizza-announces-q4year-end-2018-earnings-webcast-300791397.html https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dominos-pizza-annou...

tomnipotent 8y ago
> Domino's generates over 60% of sales via digital channels This blows my mind. I remember when the online pizza tracker first came out, and I was blown away. I couldn't imagine the logistical nightmare they must have solved to get this installed in 5,000+ stores in the U.S. It really was ahead of it's time, and I can't think of any other online food ordering platform that gets this close.
- berbec 8y ago
  It was a nightmare. We all had a deadline to book these installers for the Cisco VPNs and VM servers. IIRC IBM wrote the code, but Domino's retained the rights. It was a great time for the company. Total 180 on quality, investing heavily in the right tech. 3 years after we installed the server & thin clients all around, 33% of orders and 50% of revenue aas online. Online sales drove order frequency, ticket price and customer satisfaction while lowering costs. It was such a genius move. Source: I was a Domino's GM and franchise for 17 years and saw this transition.
  - AnIdiotOnTheNet 8y ago
    It's kind of interesting how Little Caesars found success with the opposite strategy. Instead of "our food sucks, lets make it better and improve the ordering experience too", they said "I bet people won't mind if their pizza tastes like cardboard as long as it only costs $5, they don't have to order it, and can pick it up on the way home".
    - UncleEntity 8y ago
      Little Caesars has an app! Never tried it myself but they have a little cage where you scan your phone (or whatever) and the door opens to get your pizza. I usually just call ahead instead of having to sit around 10-15 minutes or ask what's ready if I don't want something specific. Disclaimer: I eat Little Caesars probably way too much.
  - joshmn 8y ago
    > Total 180 on quality Is this alluding to "30 minutes or less"?
    - berbec 8y ago
      Nothing to do with the service guarentee^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H "commitment". It was a redesign from the ground up of the pizza. New dough & sauce formula. A butter/garlic/seasoning added to the crust. Also Quantity of cheese on a plain pie increased by 50%. A 14" pie went from 7oz to 10oz. Owners lost their shit over this mandated cost increase. Everyone shut up about 4 months later once sales were up 50%. And a very, very nice advertising campaign. The CEO got on TV and said "Our pizza sucks. Sorry. We know, we listened, we fixed it. Buy three of them for $15 and if you don't like it, we will refund your money no questions asked". The new customer satisfaction rules were another source of contention. The 100% satisfaction guarentee made franchisees, especially those in.... "urban" environments very nervous. They thought there would be a line out the door of people scamming. My store in such a "low-income, high-population density" environment. Corporate came down hard on them. Owners, even huge multi-store franchises with 10s of millions in sales were told where the door was if they didn't like it. I was very proud of the central office. They took what could be an excuse to make two rules - One for Flatbush Avenue and another for Newport Beach - and applied it across the company. It really endeared higher management to the workers, many of which lived in just such areas. I was never worried, and it turned out to not be a problem. The number people who asked for a refund for questionable reasons were very very small and an easily absorbed cost of business.
flukus 8y ago
How many sales are through there own digital channels these days? Around me they've had to go on uber eats, menulog and sites like that to stop hemorrhaging customers to stores with no online presence that they didn't have to compete with a few years ago and they're no longer cheaper compared to much better stores.

tomnipotent 8y ago

> Domino's generates over 60% of sales via digital channels This blows my mind. I remember when the online pizza tracker first came out, and I was blown away. I couldn't imagine the logistical nightmare they must have solved to get this installed in 5,000+ stores in the U.S. It really was ahead of it's time, and I can't think of any other online food ordering platform that gets this close.

berbec 8y ago
It was a nightmare. We all had a deadline to book these installers for the Cisco VPNs and VM servers. IIRC IBM wrote the code, but Domino's retained the rights. It was a great time for the company. Total 180 on quality, investing heavily in the right tech. 3 years after we installed the server & thin clients all around, 33% of orders and 50% of revenue aas online. Online sales drove order frequency, ticket price and customer satisfaction while lowering costs. It was such a genius move. Source: I was a Domino's GM and franchise for 17 years and saw this transition.
- AnIdiotOnTheNet 8y ago
  It's kind of interesting how Little Caesars found success with the opposite strategy. Instead of "our food sucks, lets make it better and improve the ordering experience too", they said "I bet people won't mind if their pizza tastes like cardboard as long as it only costs $5, they don't have to order it, and can pick it up on the way home".
  - UncleEntity 8y ago
    Little Caesars has an app! Never tried it myself but they have a little cage where you scan your phone (or whatever) and the door opens to get your pizza. I usually just call ahead instead of having to sit around 10-15 minutes or ask what's ready if I don't want something specific. Disclaimer: I eat Little Caesars probably way too much.
- joshmn 8y ago
  > Total 180 on quality Is this alluding to "30 minutes or less"?
  - berbec 8y ago
    Nothing to do with the service guarentee^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H "commitment". It was a redesign from the ground up of the pizza. New dough & sauce formula. A butter/garlic/seasoning added to the crust. Also Quantity of cheese on a plain pie increased by 50%. A 14" pie went from 7oz to 10oz. Owners lost their shit over this mandated cost increase. Everyone shut up about 4 months later once sales were up 50%. And a very, very nice advertising campaign. The CEO got on TV and said "Our pizza sucks. Sorry. We know, we listened, we fixed it. Buy three of them for $15 and if you don't like it, we will refund your money no questions asked". The new customer satisfaction rules were another source of contention. The 100% satisfaction guarentee made franchisees, especially those in.... "urban" environments very nervous. They thought there would be a line out the door of people scamming. My store in such a "low-income, high-population density" environment. Corporate came down hard on them. Owners, even huge multi-store franchises with 10s of millions in sales were told where the door was if they didn't like it. I was very proud of the central office. They took what could be an excuse to make two rules - One for Flatbush Avenue and another for Newport Beach - and applied it across the company. It really endeared higher management to the workers, many of which lived in just such areas. I was never worried, and it turned out to not be a problem. The number people who asked for a refund for questionable reasons were very very small and an easily absorbed cost of business.

flukus 8y ago

How many sales are through there own digital channels these days? Around me they've had to go on uber eats, menulog and sites like that to stop hemorrhaging customers to stores with no online presence that they didn't have to compete with a few years ago and they're no longer cheaper compared to much better stores.