BRANDING: Creating Your Own Brand Confusion (Sort Of).

When is it okay to go off brand message — so far off brand message that you change your brand name (at least temporarily)? For Pizza Hut, it was April Fool's Day.

As an April Fool's joke this year, Pizza Hut temporarily changed its name to Pasta Hut in conjunction with the introduction of their new line of Tuscani Pastas. What began as a jest at the brand quickly turned into a highly-effective strategic campaign, as the Pizza Hut logo cross-dissolved to a Pasta Hut logo with the tagline, “Pasta so good we changed our name.”

While some critics (aren't there always some?) have argued that the hoax caused confusion in the marketplace, the brand has gained significant media coverage and notoriety for their new expanded menu — not to mention a hefty serving of sales (no joke, despite the bad pun). And while new product introductions or product extensions aren't anything new, the (albeit temporary) evolution of the brand was a bold move that NOISE applauds for its courage.

Source: AdAge, NOISE
Submitted by: Lori Sansoucie, John Sprecher