SECTION II This section documents Category II Infractions of the Mercedes‑Benz New Vehicle Tier 3 Bonus Program: Inclusive of, but not limited to paid, non-paid, and added value marketing for new vehicle and service marketing via: traditional and digital advertising, dealer websites, online vehicle listings, paid search, search engine optimization, social media sites, direct mail, e-mail marketing, local events, etc. To comply with the Mercedes‑Benz New Vehicle Tier 3 Bonus Program, the following must be adhered to. Please refer to the Mercedes‑Benz Regional Dealer Advertising Program document dated, February 2014, Rev. 7 for full Mercedes‑Benz New Vehicle Tier 3 Bonus Program details. 7. Separation of Brands/Co‑Marketing Partners/Pre‑Owned A. To achieve exclusivity when marketing a Mercedes-Benz vehicle or stated offer or price in which the trademark appears along with other brands, there must be clear separation of brands. ƒ The Mercedes-Benz trademark can appear in conjunction with other makes as long as all trademarks are separated. The portion of the communication dedicated to Mercedes-Benz must have its own key elements (i.e., banner, headline, copy, disclaimer, and dealer tag). ƒ Mercedes-Benz dealers who have smart, and/or Sprinter franchises are permitted to include these trademarks to market their individual dealership; however, these same brand separation guidelines apply when featuring vehicle imagery and/or price. ƒ New vehicle listings must be Mercedes-Benz exclusive on the dealer’s Mercedes-Benz exclusive website. Pre-owned inventory listings on the dealer’s website can include other makes. ƒ For auto mall or group branding, the communication may contain all trademarks represented by same. Such branding which contains the Mercedes-Benz trademark/trade name must conform to the trademark/trade name rules set forth in this document. For auto mall or group digital marketing, a live link must be provided to the dealer’s Mercedes-Benz exclusive website. (Auto mall or group marketing does not qualify as a valid expense in the Mercedes‑Benz New Vehicle Tier 3 Bonus Program.) B. Communications that feature a Mercedes-Benz vehicle and/or price are to be clearly separated from other brands. Inventory search functionality for Mercedes-Benz new vehicle searches via the dealer’s Mercedes-Benz exclusive website must default to Mercedes-Benz as the first vehicle(s) listed. On an auto group website, the inventory search functionality does not have to default to Mercedes-Benz on the main auto group landing page; however, once the user clicks on the Mercedes-Benz logo to view Mercedes-Benz specific materials, all new vehicle content must be Mercedes-Benz specific. C. New and pre-owned vehicles are to be clearly separated. Pre-owned must have a unique section within creative via identification of all the vehicles in the section as pre-owned. D. Dealer URLs that mention non Mercedes-Benz makes/brands are not permitted; i.e., “www.smithmbbmw.com” or “www. smithjeepMercedes-Benz.com.” Conversely URLs inclusive of the Mercedes-Benz trade name or form of the Mercedes-Benz trade name must provide Mercedes-Benz exclusive content. Published August 2015, Rev. 10 Mercedes-Benz Brand Communication Standards l Page 30
