Schwab to set the bar high with virtual Impact conference

With the global pandemic pushing most communication and personal interactions into virtual mode, Charles Schwab Corp. is expected to set the bar high with its annual Impact conference.

Originally scheduled for November in Boston, Schwab announced yesterday that the massive financial adviser conference, along with all other events scheduled for 2020, will be converted into an online format.

Speaking Tuesday during a call with reporters, Bernie Clark, the head of Schwab’s Advisor Services unit, referenced a post-coronavirus “new normal” when many of the things that are learned and adapted now will become a part of the way business is conducted in financial services once society reopens.

“Virtual and in-person is not one or the other, it’s both,” he said. “One day we’ll return to both; hopefully in the near future.”

But until that time, Clark confirmed that in “2020 we just face too many challenges in terms of bringing people together as a group.”

That paves the way for what could be new levels of innovation for virtual interaction and gatherings, according to Megan Carpenter, chief executive of FiComm Partners, a marketing and communications firm.

“If anyone can pull this off, it’s a company like Schwab, and I believe they will lead the industry forward in terms of what a virtual event will look like,” she said.

A Schwab spokesman said it is too early to share details of a virtual version of the annual four-day event — hosting thousands of advisers, venders, sponsors and entertainers — will look like.

But Carpenter said people should expect something that goes well beyond just “four days of webinars.”

“Schwab is one of the best marketing teams in the business, and they’re probably already thinking of some very nimble and innovative ways to create that same level of engagement, networking and personal touch that you get from being there in person,” she said. “I’m excited for it, and they’re giving themselves time. It’s not possible to do something like this in a month.”

In the few months since most of the country has been enduring some form of lockdown and social distancing, the financial services industry has shown a welcome embrace of various forms of virtual interaction.

But by November, even if the virus is no longer keeping most people restricted to their homes, financial advisers will likely be thirsting for some new levels of virtual interaction, especially from the likes of Schwab.

“I’m going to at least three virtual conferences, and I suspect it will be fine but not the same, and I’m not willing to pay full price for a virtual conference at this point,” said Tara Unverzagt, founder of South Bay Financial Partners.

“Many hosts seem to think it’s cheap because you aren’t paying for the flight and hotel, but the experience of a series of webinars isn’t worth the full cost,” she added. “Much of the value of a conference is meeting the people you sit next to at meals and coffee breaks, and it’s hard to substitute that.”

A month ago, when most businesses were just starting remote-work policies, Ric Edelman, executive chairman and co-founder of Edelman Financial Engines, said the industry will develop a greater appreciation for virtual interactions, but that the in-person industry conferences will not go away.

Other large industry events have since been canceled or postponed, including the Morningstar Investment Conference, originally scheduled for early June in Chicago, and now moved to a yet-to-be-determined date in the fall.

BNY Mellon Pershing canceled the annual Insite conference, scheduled for mid-June.

The Financial Planning Association canceled its FPA Retreat, scheduled for next week, as well as the FPA Advocacy Day, scheduled for early June in Washington, D.C. A spokesman said the FPA will “make decisions soon” regarding FPA Residency and FPA NexGen events scheduled for later in June.

“Once we get beyond those decisions, we will make some determinations on our fall events, including FPA Annual Conference Sept. 30-Oct. 2 in Phoenix,” said spokesman Ben Lewis. “If the Annual Conference is not going to take place, we are going to look at virtual options but are not at that point yet in making that decision,” he added.

Jeffrey Tomaneng, director of financial planning and wealth management at Sapers & Wallack, is curious and optimistic about how large conferences can be pulled off in a virtual format, but he is also already feeling from virtual fatigue.

“I already spend a lot of time on webinars and conference calls to stay abreast of financial planning topics,” he said. “I’m curious to see how virtual conferences can facilitate or if they can facilitate the networking part of conference-going.”

Meanwhile, the virtual aspect adds appeal for some advisers who find it easier to manage.

“I am signed up for a Christian Businessman’s Conference on Friday that is now virtual and I’m looking forward to attending,” said Daniel Flanagan, a partner at Canby Financial Advisors.

“In fact, I would not have attended this conference as originally planned because it was out of state,” he added. “Having it virtual is giving me an opportunity to attend.”

Flanagan is also considering another conference next month that has gone virtual, but is reluctant because the price of attendance has not be reduced.

“I guess I would have expected the price to have been reduced considering it’s been switched to virtual,” he said.

Monica Dwyer, vice president and Harvest Financial Advisors, believes attending virtual conferences “lacks the rush you get from talking and collaborating with other professionals that do the same thing you do for a living.”

“I will miss that this year and I don't think it will be the same,” she added. “I find these conferences to be a great way to re-energize and reinvigorate myself and I will miss them.”

That’s the kind of expectations Schwab and any other organization will need to meet in order to successfully pull off a large-scale virtual event.

On that note, Carpenter of FiComm offers the simple advice, “Make it better.”

“It’s not about how much worse it will be, it’s about how much better it will be,” she said. “I think a virtual event will be the same if not more work than hosting an onsite event, but those businesses that say this is not a woe-is-me situation, it’s an opportunity, will make it better.”