Mercedes-Benz begins quest for Community Stars

Mercedes-Benz Community Stars social media contest is intended to mark the 125th anniversary of their invention of the automobile, Mercedes-Benz dealers are donating $125,000 to a winning group of charitable organizations whose efforts are often overshadowed by larger, multinational charitable organizations.

To get the program up and running, Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) has placed a Community Stars tab on its Facebook page allowing all organizations to participate in this ground floor opportunity. Additionally, MBUSA Facebook fans are being called upon to suggest charitable organizations as well. http://www.facebook.com/#!/mercedesbenzusa

Interested parties should create and upload 60-second videos to highlight the organization and exactly how the funds awarded could forward their cause. Entries may be submitted until 8 p.m. EST on Sept. 23 for organizations concerned with Environment & Sustainability, Health & Service, Youth Empowerment, Music & Arts or Education.

Once submitted, a committee of Mercedes-Benz employees will select 15 finalists from the videos and then on Oct. 3, MBUSA Facebook fans will have a chance to vote for the winners. The finalists themselves can also ellicit traffic to the site by inviting contacts outside the MBUSA network to vote for them as well.

Mercedes-Benz contest officially ends on Oct. 21 and five Grand Prize Winners, each of which will received $25,000, will be announced Oct. 25,