A while ago we were approached by one of the industry leaders when it comes to pest control.

The brief was to deliver a commercial that conveys their services and come up with an engaging concept to deliver something people would actually want to watch. Especially when the subject matter is pest control and the image of a pest sometimes puts people off. 

The challenge seemed great and the trap is to focus on the pest rather than on the human experience. As mundane as the subject matter might appear, if you had to think of how some of  the almighty humans react to pests you’d realise that you’re suddenly thinking of people behaving quite whimsically, which would therefore lay the foundation of a great visual; there was though still one more challenge to overcome. 

Among the viewers watching the piece there would be those who are also as scared and therefore put off had one of the stars been their sometimes unwanted guest who they detest so much. So to put the viewer in an objective voyeuristic position, observing someone being scared by a pest, also means that the viewer gets to experience the pest’s superiority and thus prone to feel the same inferiority of our character. The answer to this problem was found within perspective. 

The superiority theory, as cruel as it sounds, describes how we all find other people’s misfortunes funny and entertaining. To experience this superiority the viewer was given the pest’s perspective and thus the viewer becomes the pest.

This subjective angle ticked all the boxes as it leaves no different way to experience the piece but to feel entertained, no one would be put off, conveys the need for the clients’ services who is presented as the solution and in itself it was quite a fresh app-ROACH!