BUFFALO, N.Y., Sept. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- M&T Bank has debuted the 'What's Important to You? Video Contest,' a new initiative that seeks to capture the life moments, both big and small, that really matter and share them for the world to see.

The 'What's Important to You? Video Contest' asks individuals to share short videos of the people, places and things they love the most. Five finalists will receive a GoPro^® camera to continue capturing life's most important moments, and the grand prize winner will have what's important to them featured in M&T advertising.

"M&T is passionate about learning what's important to our customers and our communities," said Peter Eliopoulos, M&T Bank Chief Marketing Officer. "Whether it is a great day at the beach with family or a visit to the local library, we want to understand and celebrate those life moments, and this video contest helps us do just that."

To enter the contest, individuals must upload a video (30 seconds or less) to YouTube as a public or unlisted submission, and then complete a submission form to share a copy of the link. Videos will be evaluated based on quality, originality, creativity, emotional impact and whether it fits within the M&T brand. Submissions can be made through Oct. 1, 2018.

The 'What's Important to You? Video Contest' is part of a longstanding initiative to bring the company's brand promise of "Understanding What's Important" to life through the first-hand accounts of customers and community members.  

In 2012, M&T asked four businesses in Syracuse, N.Y. and Rochester, N.Y. to play leading rolls in an advertising campaign and in 2015 launched a robust advertising campaign highlighting the individual stories of 34 small business and retail customers.   

Most recently, M&T rolled out an advertising campaign in the Tri-State Area featuring six local business customers and another in Upstate New York spotlighting 12 business customers. Each campaign aimed for a variety of narratives from businesses around the region of varying size, industry and objectives, reflecting the vibrant diversity of the customers the bank serves.

"Understanding what's important isn't just a tagline or motto. It's who we are and how we approach our customers and the communities we serve," added Eliopoulos. "We listen to our customers to find out what's important to them, and we stand by their side, working together to make it happen."

M&T will announce the five finalists on Oct. 29 2018. The public will then have the opportunity to cast their vote for their favorite of the finalists through Monday, Nov. 19. The grand prize winner will be announced on Monday, Dec. 3.

Individuals must be of 18 years of age or older and a permanent legal resident of Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia or West Virginia to enter.

To get started and to see the full set of contest rules, visit: www.mtb.com/shareyourstory.

M&T is one of the country's largest commercial lenders to mid-sized businesses and the 8th largest small business lender, based on statistics released by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) for total approved loans through the SBA's 7(a) lending program during the federal fiscal year ending 9/30/2017.

About M&T Bank
M&T is a financial holding company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. M&T's principal banking subsidiary, M&T Bank, operates banking offices in New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Connecticut, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. Trust-related services are provided by M&T's Wilmington Trust-affiliated companies and by M&T Bank. © 2018 M&T Bank. Member FDIC.

GoPro is a trademark of GoPro Inc. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by or associated with YouTube or GoPro.

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SOURCE M&T Bank

Upstate New York: Julia Berchou, (716) 842-5385, jshanahan@mtb.com; Connecticut, New Jersey and New York Metro: Chet Bridger, (716) 842-5182, cbridger@mtb.com; Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, DC: Philip Hosmer, (410) 949-3042, phosmer@mtb.com