You don’t need to look at PlanetIMEX to feel the benefit from IMEX Group’s new virtual community, just have the sound on and listen to the soothing sounds of nature. At a time when we are dealing with bad economic news and worse health news, it is a great soundtrack to drown out both negative thoughts and your loved ones playing music while you try to work from home.
But that’s not the best thing about PlanetIMEX, which launches on May 6. While the whole industry has pivoted to digital experiences during the lockdown, hastily organized online education and company-wide Zoom cocktail hours feel ad hoc. They are clearly emergency measures before we all get back to “normal.”
PlanetIMEX, by comparison, looks planned and permanent. The interface is designed to look like a retro video game, a place that users want to be versus a short-term stopgap during a crisis. And a place that could live on, helping planners to navigate the new normal when we reopen.
On Monday, May 11, PlanetIMEX has a lineup of free education planned (register near the big pine tree), with 40 speakers tackling trends, business issues, and health and wellness topics. Here are three things we like about the site, even before classes start. See you on the islands!
The navigation draws you in. While content on the planet isn’t fully fleshed out, and the networking island isn’t open yet, there’s quite a bit of content—videos, podcasts, news, a blog, etc.—that’s tucked away on the islands. The floating, spinning entry portals beg to be clicked on and explored.
It’s playful and unexpected. Nothing says welcome like palm trees and a tiki hut floating on an island in space. While the virtual world does a good job of getting IMEX Group education and messaging out, the planet is not all business. It’s hard to resist spending a few minutes with the laid-back tunes playing in the tiki hut.
OMG the birds. PlanetIMEX has two islands open, a community space that looks like a tropical island and the education space designed in a woodland theme. Depending on which island you’re visiting, there’s a soundtrack playing in the background, waves and seagulls for the tropics and songbirds for the woods.
