Domino's Turns to Buzz Marketing. Will it Work?

Domino's Pizza is turning to buzz marketing in its latest campaign. In its TV ad, the company explains that they are so confident in their product that they do not feel the need to doctor or manipulate their pizzas for commercial purposes. Instead, the company is turning to its customers and the public at large for its next advertising photos.

Customers are encouraged to take their own photos of their Domino's pizza and submit them online at showusyourpizza.com. Customers can win $500 and the chance to have their photo actually used in a Domino's Pizza ad.

The photo guidelines? According to the website, in all photos taken for commercial purposes, whether taken by a consumer-turned-photographer or the company itself, the following guidelines will be followed:

• pictures only of "honest-to-goodness" pizzas will be taken.
• pictures only of pizzas made by Domino's employees will be taken.
  
• the pizzas in the photos cannot and will not be "artificially manipulate[d]"
  

To encourage people to participate in the contest (and also to boost sales), Domino's is also offering customers a special deal: two medium two topping pizzas for $5.99 (although, curiously, there is a two pizza minimum).

Do you think this campaign will succeed in generating word-of-mouth buzz about the company and its products? Do you think this campaign is a good way of connecting with customers and the public at large? It certainly caught my attention! While I don't plan on submitting my own photos, I think it is a fun and clever way to generate both business and awareness--not to mention cheap for the company (the winner is only promised $500 and the money spent on web development and TV ads is probably money that would be spent on promotion either way).

I'd love to hear your thoughts!