When two Domino’s Pizza employees filmed a prank in the restaurant’s kitchen, they decided to post it online. In a few days, thanks to the power of social media, they ended up with felony charges, more than a million disgusted viewers, and a major company facing a public relations crisis.
In videos posted on YouTube and elsewhere this week, a Domino’s employee in Conover, N.C., prepared sandwiches for delivery while putting cheese up his nose, nasal mucus on the sandwiches, and violating other health-code standards while a fellow employee provided narration.
The two were charged with delivering prohibited foods.
By Wednesday afternoon, the video had been viewed more than a million times on YouTube. References to it were in five of the 12 results on the first page of Google search for “Dominos,” and discussions about Domino’s had spread throughout Twitter. As Domino’s is realizing, social media has the reach and speed to turn tiny incidents into marketing crises. “We got blindsided by two idiots with a video camera and an awful idea,” said a Domino’s spokesman, Tim McIntyre, who added that the company was preparing a civil lawsuit. “Even people who’ve been with us as loyal customers for 10, 15, 20 years, people are second-guessing their relationship with Domino’s, and that’s not fair.”
In just a few days, Domino’s reputation was damaged. The perception of its quality among consumers went from positive to negative since Monday, according to the research firm YouGov, which holds online surveys of about 1,000 consumers every day regarding hundreds of brands.
“It’s graphic enough in the video, and it’s created enough of a stir, that it gives people a little bit of pause,” said Ted Marzilli, global managing director for YouGov’s BrandIndex.
The Domino’s experience “is a nightmare,” said Paul Gallagher, managing director and a head of the United States crisis practice at the public relations firm Burson-Marsteller. “It’s the toughest situation for a company to face in terms of a digital crisis.” On Monday, commenters at the site Consumerist.com used clues in the video to find the franchise location in Conover, and told Mr. McIntyre about the videos. On Tuesday, the Domino’s franchise owner fired the employees, identified by Domino’s as Kristy Hammonds, 31 and Michael Setzer, 32. The franchisee brought in the local health department, which advised him to discard all open containers of food, which cost hundreds of dollars, Mr. McIntyre said.
So, how’s that fifteen minutes working out for ya. Fortunately, the video has been pulled from YouTube.
Pizza is expensive and bad for you any way. Eat real food for a change. Have some of that green leafy stuff with chlorophyll in it.
Improbus,
Amen to that.
But pizza needn’t be bad for you (if eaten in reasonable quantities!).
And it needn’t be expensive! When I first started making my own pizza, I was a bit scandalized by how cheap the basic ingredients are.
AS FOR THIS STORY:
These goofballs are horrible people — there is no excuse for such reckless stupidity.
If they infected someone with a compromised immune system, (which is a lot of people) they could hospitalize them, or worse.
But felons? C’mon. I don’t want my tax money paying to jail these people.
31 and 32 years old and they worked at Dominos. What a pair of losers. Stay in school kids.
#1, What difference would green leafy stuff make? Anytime you have someone else prepare food for you, you take your chances on this nonsense…
#2 Greg Allen said “I don’t want my tax money paying to jail these people.”
I bet if you were the one who received that sandwich you might feel a little different. I for one don’t have a problem with spending your tax money to house this disease spreading human debris.
#2, #6 Doubt this two douches will spend any time in jail. Assuming they don’t have a criminal record, some sort of plea will be reached with probation and probably community service.
#6, what if they didn’t actually distribute the food, as they said?
#9
What if they did?
# 10 ObamaSucks said, “What if they did?”
The prosecutor would have to prove that. Lots of luck.
Any PD could get this thrown out, no plea bargain needed.
#9. Then they should be sued by Domino’s for the damage done to their “great” reputation.
#11 Paddy-O said “Any PD could get this thrown out, no plea bargain needed.”
Sadly you are right, hence the nightmare Domino’s finds itself.
I’ve known people (we all have) who have stories to tell about when they or a friend worked in a fast food joint.
If you eat out or take out then you will have to face up to the fact that on at least one occasion you’ve eaten something that was not on the menu.
Posting this on Youtube is pretty dumb but shows the contempt that low paid employees have for the customer.When it’s a washing machine saleman it’s one thing, but when they put stuff in your food it’s something else.
Bon Appetit
Hey, I have seen it all. If you let it get to you. You would probably stop eating anything.
We should not be surprised and think this stuff does not happen very often. Just imagine a pissed off worker who knows he is being laid off. We are lucky are food is as safe as it is.
[Expressing their solidarity with Hammonds and Setzer, Domino’s Pizza employees nationwide promised to defecate in every pizza they make for the next five weeks, or until the two young pop-culture Youtube celebrities are exonerated of the spurious felony charge of defaming a pizza franchise. BOYCOTT DOMINO PIZZA! FREE HAMMOND AND SETZER!]
It’s a scientific fact that green food will kill you.
Besides, you are what you eat right? And cows eat what? That’s right, they’re made of grass and corn. So I’m good with all that veggie nonsense.
“In just a few days, Domino’s reputation was damaged. The perception of its quality among consumers went from positive to negative…”
Didn’t know Domino’s had a ‘perceived’ reputation of quality. They do make the best tasting cardboard ever, and I determined this decades before this video came to light.
#5
True. Any if anyone else grows them then you’re not safe as well. Grow your own if you have the yard for it 🙂
That hottie on the left is also on the NC sex offender registry. Of course, that means she probably gave a blowjob to her 15 year old boyfriend when she was 14… or something like that.
Can’t you just see the new wording in the employment questionnaire:
If you were being video taped by an r-tard would you hock lungers on food and stuff cheese up your nose? ( ) Yes ( ) No ( ) Sure, what the fuck.
Would you wash you hands after leaving a massive intestinal sculpture?
( ) Yes ( ) No ( ) Why waste water, you’re lucky I flushed.
Luckily Domino’s doesn’t deliver here to the convent.
Watch, pretty soon the delivery guy will open the pizza in front of you and black light scan for bacteria just so you’ll know some minimum wage low-life didn’t whack off on your cheesy bread and chicken wings.
I never screw around when preparing food for people. I sent a cook that works under me home for not washing his hands after smoking and fired him on the second offense. No matter how much you dislike customers, there is no excuse to mess with their food.
Green food Kills!
Lettuce killed my Uncle
He was hit by a produce truck!!
No grinning on the mugshots?
Fortunately, the video has been pulled from YouTube.
But they’re still up on other sites… just in case someone missed them.
Aww, too bad for the corporate giant. I am crying for them right now as I am eating some home made pizza, made from bagels, spaghetti sauce, garlic powder, and mozarella, that I made in under 3 minutes, not 30.
But, after hearing this I decided I must do everything I can to help their corporate executives maintain their multi million dollar lifestyle by stocking up on Dominos cardboard with pizza attached and doing something with it. Maybe glaze them over with resin and frame them and sell them on eBay.
Nevermind that CEO Mr. David A. Brandon, made $847,000.00 last year and exercised $20.10 million in options and I lost $45,000, I must be made to feel bad so that I may not boycott.
And even though their stock is up since this happened, and the little pizza guys in Detroit and on the corner of Everytown, USA got eaten up by Dominos, no corporation should fail with our oSavior in office, who makes sure taxpayers help every corporation forever after, since it means jobs at minimum wage for all who can get them.
# 27
Brandon made that much? Nice. I got in a car accident years back while delivering for Dominos while I was in college. Broadsided by a guy who was text-messaging. Long story short, I ended up in the hospital, lost my job (Didn’t have a car anymore), and Dominos pretty much washed their hands of me by saying that I was an “independent contractor” and it was all my problem to deal with.
If you saw the kind of ingredients that get put into Dominos food to make it, what these workers did really wasn’t that much worse.
This chick is also a registered sex offender. Way to check your employees Domino’s!
http://tinyurl.com/c7b8d2
#29 – Poppa Boner
She’s adding on to her CV.
To bad they are not in Afghanistan trying to elope.
Considering how much they have cost the company they worked for I say it is a felony.