To be included as a winner in 2012, nominated blogs must have had specific relevance to marketers in the banking or credit union industries, been in existence for a minimum of 12 months with consistent content and an RSS feed. It was also noted that all of the blogs selected needed to display excellent writing skills with a deep knowledge of the financial services industry.

Jeffry Pilcher, publisher of The Financial Brand, stated when asked about the recognition, “Bank Marketing Strategy is a blog that combines industry research with real world applications that can be used by financial marketers daily. It is also one of the few blogs that is not a commercial endeavor, but is developed on a personal level.” 

Pilcher went on to say, “If I had to pare down to just five blogs that I followed, Bank Marketing Strategy would definitely be one of them. When the blog fell silent for a couple months earlier this year, I was worried that the banking industry was losing one of the best blogs out there. But, Jim’s come back with a fury, and he’s at the top of his game.”

Bank Marketing Strategy was developed more than 3 years ago as a way for me to better understand social media while providing an outlet for my desire to research, write and share insights with the industry I have been part of for (significantly) more than 20 years. It has been an ongoing passion, affording me the opportunity to meet and consult with some of the best people in the industry (many of whom are recognized by The Financial Brand for their blogging efforts).

I would like to thank (and congratulate) fellow bloggers Ron Shevlin, Brett King, Bradley Leimer, Matt Wilcox, JJ Hornblass, Liz Lum, Chris Skinner, Serge Milman, Christophe Langois, Karen Licker, Jim Bruene, Randy Smith, Jim Van Dyke and most importantly, Jeffry Pilcher for your ongoing encouragement and support.

At a time when our current elections involve a great deal of mudslinging, lies and putting down the other nominees, I can definitely say that all of the other blogs recognized are excellent resources I go to regularly and worthy of recognition. 

And again, if you enjoy my blog, please feel free to vote for Bank Marketing Strategy here.