The Focus Group Goes to the Cats and Dogs

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Pork Chop, Boots, Bianca and Tabitha are among a diverse group of dogs and cats, who share their preferences for chew toys, clothing, treats and bowls in Big Lots' new campaign promoting its growing pet food and merchandise offerings.

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"Pet Focus Group," a series of digital films featuring pets at a focus group round table, is the latest work from O'Keefe Reinhard & Paul that showcases the quality brands Big Lots offers like Purina®, American Kennel Club®, and Whiskas®. As with previous campaigns, the new films use broad humor with improv talent, interlaced with real product information to both entertain and educate Big Lots' target customers about the store's unexpected offerings.

"We know our most loyal customers love video content," explained Andy Stein, Chief Customer Officer at Big Lots. "They watch it on their phone, tablet, TV—in many different ways and places. And we know that they share it with their friends. Part of the idea for Pet Focus Group is to create funny, sharable content that helps elevate people's perceptions of Big Lots."

Original content has been at the core of Big Lots' marketing initiatives since OKRP was awarded the account early this year. Leveraging an appealing array of comedic improv talent with stories of shopping success from Hostess snack cakes, to outdoor furniture and even big brand names (whose names cannot be mentioned), has helped push Big Lots forward aggressively into social media engagement for the first time.

"What's great about Big Lots is their willingness to experiment with the message as long as we stay true to the brand's voice," explained Tom O'Keefe, CEO of OKRP. "The Pet Focus Group films represent another opportunity to share Big Lots product offerings and also to extend awareness of the brand as one that continues to surprise and delight their consumer."

The new Big Lots Pets films will be featured on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and digital media channels.

In discussing the strategy behind the creative idea, Sue Gillan, Creative Director at OKRP said, "We realized that instead of scripting this, it would be so much more fun to let pets be pets, and get really good improvisers to react in real time to whatever those animals are doing. And because you have these human facilitators in the room with the pets, they get to do the heavy lifting around uncovering the quality of the products without the event feeling commercialized. The result feels like a genuine discovery of the products."

About Big Lots

Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Big Lots, Inc. (NYSE: BIG) is a unique, non-traditional, discount retailer operating 1,495 BIG LOTS stores in 48 states with product assortments in the merchandise categories of Food, Consumables, Furniture & Home Decor, Seasonal, Soft Home, Hard Home, and Electronics & Accessories. Our vision is to be recognized for providing an outstanding shopping experience for our customers, valuing and developing our associates, and creating growth for our shareholders. For more information, visit www.biglots.com or contact [email protected].

About OKRP

Chicago-based O'Keefe Reinhard & Paul (www.okrp.com) is a new model advertising agency that delivers big agency brand creativity with startup ingenuity. With its belief that success as a new model agency relies on the ability to be nimble and to bring together the best talent for its clients, O'Keefe Reinhard & Paul has practiced the "high art of selling" on behalf of clients such as Big Lots, YUM Brands, Orbitz and Turtle Wax, among others. The independent agency is supported with minority backing from the Interpublic Group of Companies.

SOURCE Big Lots, Inc.