Domino's revived Noid hops on NFT trend

Dive Brief:

Domino's will sell nonfungible tokens (NFTs) in an online auction, per a press release. The digital art is inspired by three tools used in a TV commercial by The Noid, the mascot that the brand revived in April.
The "Noid's Failed Tools" — inspired by the Pizza Crusher, Pizza Slayzer and giant Noid Balloon Blockade that the Noid used to try to disrupt Domino's delivery — will be available via a 14-day auction on Rarible. Press materials hint that proceeds will fund future Noid creations.
Domino's revival of the Noid taps into nostalgia for the 1980s, when the mascot was a key feature of ad campaigns. The April effort to promote autonomous delivery via robotics company Nuro also included merchandise and a Giphy partnership. To promote the NFT effort, the Noid will head to TikTok later this week, per the press release.

Dive Insight:

Domino's creation of digital collectibles that align with the Noid's recent revival seeks to capture attention around NFTs, which first made headlines in March when an artist set records by selling a JPEG file for $69.3 million in an online auction. NFTs are a form of cryptocurrency, which has also seen increased attention amid a volatile trading environment. By tying the Noid to NFTs, Domino's can capitalize on consumer buzz in a way that is true to the mascot's chaotic nature.

Domino's becomes the latest brand to hop on the NFT trend. Procter & Gamble's Charmin brand recently auctioned off toilet paper artwork, while General Mills tapped into a similar vein of nostalgia as the Domino's effort by using NFTs to promote the return of Chocolate Dunkaroos, a favorite snack from the 1990s. While both the Charmin and General Mills efforts raised money for charity, Domino's is being coy about where the proceeds from the auctions will go, suggesting proceeds will fund "new and improved gadgets, ingenious disguises, or maybe an autobiography" from the mascot.

The three Noid's Failed Tools appeared in an April campaign Domino's launched to both revive the Noid and promote its autonomous delivery partnership with robotics company Nuro. Along with the main video ad, the Noid appeared in a mobile game, on limited-edition merchandise and in GIFs and stickers across social media.

In kind, Domino's teases the Noid's appearance on TikTok, the video sharing platform that has become an essential way to reach not just Gen Zers but also millennials — the latter being the audience most likely to have nostalgia for the Noid.