-Written by Kevin Greene; Founder, and CEO of iBreakthrough‍

For many years I traveled for business, delivering highly interactive in-person training and consulting programs to large corporations.  While I love the in-person experiences we're able to create, I always had an ambition that one day we'd be able to create experiences online that were every bit as good as the ones we could create when we're all together. Eventually, providing virtual event solutions to businesses that want to expand their reach! When I was connected to Remo in February of 2020, I knew we had finally reached that point.  A month later, COVID hit. The world shut down from the standpoint of physical travel.  In an instant, the entire world, together, had to find ways of doing things more virtually than ever before. While we didn't see COVID coming, we were ready for it when it hit.  We quickly moved our training and consulting programs to 100% online delivery.  We also expanded our offerings to provide more virtual solutions for our clients who all seemed to be looking to replicate what we were doing from virtual events, training, and collaboration standpoint.  As a result, our client base has expanded dramatically both in the U.S. and globally. Our clients include some of the most recognizable companies in the world and our work was recently featured in the Wall Street Journal. There’s a certain magic to Remo.  Here are just three of the many virtual event solutions that we think contribute to that magic: 

Floor Plans

The floor plan designs are beautiful, sometimes even stunning, and always immediately captivating to attendees.  Unlike the reluctance with which people enter into other, everyday online meeting platforms when participants enter into a Remo platform event their eyes light up!  They’re immediately curious and interested and fully engaged.  That’s a great mindset for your attendees to be in when they enter your events!  So the moment they join in, you’re already winning when it comes to creating a great experience, one that is truly different and better.

Movement

One of the things attendees LOVE about the platform is the ability to move freely about the event.  They can be having a small group discussion at a table within a virtual coffee shop, for example, then, simply by double-clicking on another table, they could move into another small group discussion.  They could even move to a different floor in the event or even another virtual building we’ve created as part of the event!  The concept of movement is a complete game-changer when it comes to creating as-if-you-were-there experiences!

Imagination

Floor plans are also customizable! In fact, if you can imagine it, we can build it!  At iBreakthrough, we design custom floor plans ranging from convention centers, rooftop bars, coffee shops, beach resorts, football stadiums... Anything you can think of, we can make it virtual! Floor plans can even be designed for your brand making for a uniquely on-brand event experience for your attendees! Further, each unique floor plan is essentially a virtual building.  That means you could create as many virtual buildings as you might like to create, for example, a virtual convention center, a virtual campus, or a virtual city for that matter! Imagine running an event that simultaneously has a virtual convention center with keynote speakers and sponsors and also having a virtual restaurant open at the same time allowing attendees to move freely back and forth between the conference space and a more casual meeting space?  Now imagine we open a rooftop bar at 5 pm with some background music to completely change the feel of the event?  We could even have food delivered to our attendees!  With a little creativity, incredibly engaging as-if-you-were-there experiences truly are possible.

What’s the Future of Virtual Events and Other Virtual Event Solutions Now That We Seem to Be Moving to a “New Normal”?

COVID was a challenge like no other we've experienced in our lifetimes.  It will remain a challenge as well.  But, the lessons learned during COVID will not be quickly forgotten.  One of those lessons is virtual, works!  When done well, virtual events can create experiences that are almost every bit as good as being there in person.  And, they provide tremendous advantages over in-person events in terms of cost, convenience, accessibility, carbon footprint, and more than simply make virtual a superior solution to in-person events in most cases.  No doubt, we've reached a tipping point, or what we at iBreakthrough would like to call a "breakthrough moment" in history.  I would suggest that at least from a B2B standpoint, we are now a "virtual-first" economy. Virtual now does something that digital hasn’t always done well - it injects humanity.  Virtual can build meaningful connections, real relationships, and trust over distance, inexpensively, and at scale.  We all need more of that. As a result, smart companies will quickly discover how to make virtual their competitive advantage. Interested in more from iBreakthrough? Sign up to attend our event: How to Breakthrough to New Audiences Using Virtual Events! Featuring Kevin Greene; Founder, and CEO of iBreakthrough