Better Memories, Better Pizza

The article discussed in this video was named the best article published in 2014 in Cornell Hospitality Quarterly.

Kathryn LaTour (professor at Cornell) and Lou Carbone (of Experience Engineering) discuss their memory distortion research for Pizza Hut in the UK.

They asked customers to describe their experiences at Pizza Hut, and then a week later asked them to recall their description. Not only did important memories fade, but consumers added negative attributes (long lines, dirty tables) that were not a part of their original experience.

The outcome was to design some pilot stores filled with cues to make the experience more “sticky” and memorable. (See image above.) Within a few months, these pilot locations reported a 40% increase in sales and a 20% jump in customer satisfaction – along with increases in employee motivation and job satisfaction.

The full article is here. Very novel approach to research and some courageous thinking by the client to implement some important changes.