It was less than a year ago when the web was buzzing over a YouTube video that starred two Domino’s Pizza employees displaying some, er, inappropriate behavior as they prepared a customer’s order. The result? Over 940,000 views and a tidal wave of bad PR. The repulsive nature of the video served as a catalyst for unbridled criticism on social networks, which held the company, its employees, and its pizza in contempt.

It didn’t take long for CEO, Patrick Doyle, to respond. He issued a public apology via the same channels that had delivered a significant blow to the Domino’s brand and its core product. He promised a full investigation, thanked loyal customers, and guaranteed changes abound.

Fast forward to January 2010. Domino’s launches a fully-integrated ad campaign called the Pizza Turnaround — the true story of how the nation’s second-largest pizza company and the largest deliverer of pizza is facing its harshest critics and attempting to remake its pizza from the crust up. The campaign addresses the problem directly, with current employees sharing footage of product-bashing focus groups and unkind quotes from social networks such as, “[It] tastes like cardboard.” In addition, the brand is promoting its move toward selling pizza via social networking sites and popular mobile devices in hopes of meeting customer demand while appealing to a younger audience.

If nothing else, in the wake of the public relations nightmare that started in early 2009, Domino’s honesty is refreshing. If more advertisers took this kind of approach, especially during the so-called social media revolution the industry is facing, they’d be better off. But can this truth-in-advertising approach work for such a tarnished brand? Can Domino’s reshape perception and build loyalty with the simple proclamation, “Our pizza sucks and we’re going to do something about it”? It’s probably too early to tell, although initial reactions have been positive. In the end, it will be the quality of the product (read: does it taste more like freshly baked dough and cheese than cardboard) that decides if the Pizza Turnaround is indeed a revolution.

Check out www.pizzaturnaround.com and share your thoughts.