This holiday season Marshalls and T.J. Maxx have come together to bring consumers A Better Way to Christmas Shop through the YouTube Caroling contest that will have fans singing their way through department store aisles.

YouTube Caroling is looking for the best rendition of any of the four carols permitted for the user-generated content (UGC) contest. There are two traditional carols, Deck The Halls and Jingle Bells as well as two original carols called Deck Yourself Out and We Wish Your A Better Way To Christmas Shop.

As a part of the contest there will be a live Christmas caroling event held on December 3, 2009 at Bryant Park in New York City where some of TV’s favourite singing stars will be on-hand to get New Yorkers in the holiday spirit. Consumers will also be able to visit kiosks where they can record their very own videos and participate in interactive holiday games.

Videos must be no longer than 90 seconds and can be uploaded directly to the YouTube Caroling channel. Consumers can also share their caroling video entries through social networking sites such as Twitter, MySpace, Digg and Facebook. All video submissions will be judged by contest representatives based on originality and performance, entertainment value and overall impression.

Participants may enter once per carol and prizes will be awarded to 16 carolers. The top 15 videos from any of the four carols will receive a $100 gift card from T.J. Maxx and Marshalls. Additionally, the video from the original carols will win the grand prize of a $5000 gift card.

Marshalls and T.J. Maxx will also donate one dollar toward the purchase of a brand new toy to Toys for Tots, up to $50,000 for every consumer who upload a video singing one of their original carols.