Bankerstuff's Virtual Conference is a Close Second to the Real Deal.

Learning to Leverage On-line Social Networking 

BOSTON -- Having attended Bankerstuff.com's virtual conference on March 24-25, event sponsor David Kerstein wrote in his company's blog that the event "represents a new model for banker networking and education." Kerstein, President of Peak Performance Consulting Group, specializes in bank performance improvement, distribution and strategic planning, and was one of many industry sponsors and speakers Bankerstuff.com arranged for the conference.

In addition to Sheshunoff Consulting and Solutions, a major contributor to the event, Winning Deposits in a Volatile Market hosted a comprehensive variety of specialists within the banking industry ranging from marketing design firm Michael Flora & Associates to checking experts StrategyCorps and Payments Information Circle, electronic payments consultants.

Ashley Udell from Coastal Bank of Georgia called the conference "information rich," saying, "There are many things I learned during the two days that my bank can put into action." Mitzi Pendergrass from Eclipse Bank said, "This was a great first experience for me and I found it to be very valuable. It's a great alternative to an on-site conference when economic times are tough. Bravo Bankerstuff!!"

On the heels of their initial success, Bankerstuff.com is planning its next conference, on Emerging Payments, for May 19-20. Paul Tomasofsky, President of Two Sparrows Consulting and Conference Chairman of Bankerstuff.com's next event said, that companies bold and innovative enough to explore new ways of doing business will emerge from the current climate as big winners. "Those hiding from the storm may not get the full effect when the sun comes out again. Bankerstuff's virtual conference on emerging payments is a great, cost-effective way to help stay prepared for the breaks in the clouds," Tomasofsky said.

Tom Lupinacci, Managing Director of Corporate Sales for Bankerstuff.com said, "Bankers from all over the country commented about how glad they were to still attend a conference in these tough economic times. Some even expressed to me that if it were not for this virtual event, they would not have been able to attend any conference this year."

"Sponsors were thrilled to be able to reach out to customers in a productive way for very little cost," Lupinacci said. "Bankerstuff.com is actively working with their clients by polling event attendees and sponsors to improve upon the overall virtual conference experience and enhance the learning environment."

"Our biggest challenge is getting bankers to feel more comfortable with the live chat experience. The look and feel of the event resembles a live conference, but the way to interact mirrors online social networking," said Karen Licker, Managing Director of Business Development and Marketing at Bankerstuff.com.

"The more proficient bankers are in using social networks in general," Licker said, "the more they'll be able to use those same tools to build their business. Although that wasn't the intent of our conference, it's a great opportunity in the industry."

Kerstein said that while nothing is quite as good as an in-person connection, he estimated that attendance at the recent Best Practices in Retail Financial Services conference was down about 60%. "Meanwhile," Kerstein continued, "Bankerstuff.com seems to be leading the way toward a new paradigm."

Bankerstuff.com reports that over 250 guests visited the conference, with 190 guests attending lectures in real time, or accessing them through the site's on-demand option available as part of the conference registration cost. Visitors can still view the sessions on demand for 90 days by clicking here.

Bankerstuff.com emerged in the marketplace in early 2007 to address the information needs of the financial services Industry. Because financial institutions are more cost-conscious and pressed for time more than ever before, Bankerstuff.com sorts and gathers the information to help industry leaders identify unbiased market place trends in retail, operational and payments areas. Bankerstuff.com is the only one-stop online resource of banking information compiled by bankers for bankers in the US, North America and around the Globe.