J. Walter Thompson and The Shelter Pet Project Sweep Ad Council's March ADness

"Start A Story Adopt" Takes Home the Goblet for Good

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Apr 20, 2016, 02:02 ET

NEW YORK, April 20, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ad Council has awarded J. Walter Thompson Worldwide with the Goblet for Good, the top honor of Ad Council's annual March ADness competition, for "Start a Story Adopt," a new public service advertising (PSA) campaign from The Shelter Pet Project.

J. Walter Thompson with the March ADness 2016 Goblet for Good.

Modeled after NCAA's March Madness, creative assets from Ad Council campaigns faced off in the first round and voting was open to the public on the Ad Council's blog, AdLibbing.org. The competition aimed to recognize some of the top agency talent who create outstanding content for Ad Council campaigns. This year's competition highlighted agencies including BBDO, Goodby Silverstein & Partners, and kbs+, among others.

Over 10,000 votes were collected in the final round. The winning video features celebrity pets Keyboard Cat, Hamilton Pug, and Toast Meets World, who were all adopted from shelters and rescue groups. It shares the message, "Amazing stories start in shelters. Start a story. Adopt." The creative is the latest round of work from The Shelter Pet Project, a collaborative effort between Maddie's Fund^®, The Humane Society of the United States and the Ad Council. Launched in 2009, the Shelter Pet Project is the first national PSA campaign created to bring together animal welfare organizations and shelters across the country for one unified goal: to increase pet adoption.

J. Walter Thompson has been the agency of record for The Shelter Pet Project since 2015, and a number of their employees have been inspired to become proud shelter pet owners through their work on the campaign. The Start A Story Adopt creative features famous pet stars to get people to think differently about shelter pets and see them for the amazing pets they really are. Through the hashtag #StartAStoryAdopt, the campaign asks people across the country to share stories of how their shelter pet changed their life for the better, and create awareness around this issue.

To learn more about The Shelter Pet Project, visit TheShelterPetProject.org.

To view the 16 creative campaigns that were selected for March ADness 2016, visit http://www.adlibbing.org/2016/03/14/march-adness-sweet16/.

About the Shelter Pet Project

The Shelter Pet Project is the first national PSA campaign created to bring together large animal welfare organizations, The Humane Society of the United States and Maddie's Fund^®, and shelters across the country for one unified goal—to increase pet adoption. Along with the Ad Council, these partners aim to break down stereotypes associated with shelter pets and make shelters and rescue groups the overwhelmingly obvious choice for obtaining a pet. To learn more visit TheShelterPetProject.org or follow The Shelter Pet Project on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.

About The Ad Council

The Ad Council (www.adcouncil.org) is a private, non-profit organization with a rich history of marshaling volunteer talent from the advertising and media industries to deliver critical messages to the American public. Having produced literally thousands of PSA campaigns addressing the most pressing social issues of the day, the Ad Council has effected, and continues to effect, tremendous positive change by raising awareness, inspiring action and saving lives. To learn more about the Ad Council and its campaigns, visit www.adcouncil.org. For more information, please visit www.adcouncil.org. You can also visit www.facebook.com/adcouncil or follow the Ad Council on Twitter @AdCouncil.

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SOURCE The Ad Council