WestJet celebrates its status as Canada’s most on-time airline with a new cattle-themed commercial, that carries the tagline “We treat people like people”.
The 60-second spot, created by marketing company Rethink and directed by Mark Zibert (whose portfolio also includes the recent “Stuff Monster” spot for IKEA), features dozens of cows in an airport as they are treated badly by rival airlines’ attendants. Disinterested service is complemented by delays, cancellations and lost luggage.
Things are totally different, though, at the WestJet counter, where human passengers are met with a smile by employees.
“An airline should treat people like people,” an onscreen line reads at the end of the commercial, which is scored by “The Beach (12$quot; Version)” by New Order.
A behind-the-scenes video revealed that, while most of the cows starring in the ad are CGI, some of them – 10, more precisely – were real and were used for close-ups, with strict safety measures enforced and an animal handler on set to make sure they were always cared for. The shooting took place in an abandoned airport in Ciudad Real, Spain.
Christina Yu, a Managing Partner at Rethink, said in a press statement “We wanted to playfully show how travel can feel when other airlines don’t treat people with the same attention and care that WestJet does. We have experienced first-hand what sets WestJet apart from the competition and we love how this campaign challenges the norms in the industry”.
Named TripAdvisor’s best airline in Canada by the traveling public for three consecutive years, WestJet also touts its guest service and no overbooking. The campaign, which also includes out-of-home, debuted on October 21 and is set to run throughout the holidays.