Letter from Robb Smith: Integral Institute Website Gets a Makeover!
Posted May 27th, 2008 by Corey W. deVos
I’m excited to tell you that we've relaunched Integral Institute's website. This is not the new Integral Life portal that we've talked so much about, but rather the new face of Integral Institute online. We're close to launching our internal beta of Integral Life, and fairly soon we'll invite you to test it out with us, and join the integral conversation and community.
On the Integral Institute site, you’ll notice many changes in how we've structured the site. We're also changing the structure of the “President’s Circle” to an annual giving format called the “The Society of Integrals.” Throughout Integral Institute's history, donors of all kinds have been essential to our mission. They've celebrated our achievements with us, and they've helped us through the difficult times with their financial contributions, their wise advice, and in many cases, their friendship. Frankly, we don't know where we'd be without them, and feel grateful for their continued interest in our mission.
Our new donor structure contains different levels of involvement:
1. The Society of Fellows: $1,000+ annual donation
* Quarterly newsletter
* Free subscription to Journal of Integral Theory and Practice
2. The Society of Integrals: $10,000+ annual donation
* Quarterly newsletter
* Free subscription to Journal of Integral Theory and Practice
* Free annual membership to IntegralLife.com
* Invitations to special events
* Direct access to all Institute management, scholars and teachers
3. Board of Trustees:
* Major gifts
Currently we're putting together a new Board of Trustees composed of our largest donors. We're looking for people who are passionate about supporting integral as it engages the most complex and pressing issues of our generation--conflict, human trafficking, climate change, integral capitalism, governance, poverty, and trans-lineage religion. Would you like to serve on the Board of Trustees of Integral Institute and help us to set the direction of the integral think tank?
Please contact me if you have any questions, or want to become involved. We've got a lot of work ahead of us, work that we're excited about, and we would love to have you join us. You can reach me at rsmith@integrallife.com. You can also keep up with my on-the-fly updates on Twitter.
Loving regard,
Robb Smith
Chairman and CEO
PS. We'd love to hear your feedback about this new site in the comment thread. Thanks!
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It's about time! Beautiful
It's about time! Beautiful site! Absolutely agree with what Robb said on the site "Clarity of communication comes from clarity of purpose, and we hope the new site reflects that". I look forward to seeing the new facade on other I-I sites. It's about time Integral went under the knife! Nipping and tucking here and there can't hurt!
Re: Website makeover
Really I liked the "old" site MUCH MUCH better... It was much more intresting and "cool"... Out there on the "frothy edge" This is corporatized and BORING...
It might be ok for some 3rd rate MLM website, but not what i've come to expect fro I-I...
-Cain
Website Update
I agree w/ Cain on this one - this new layout really does seem 'institutional'. It may attract more investors with this palette, or appear more academic in flavor, but where's the chutzpa, the edge? The transcend and include?
New site feedback
Yes, corporate and straightforward which is fine as long as the heart shines through, but why the ultra small eight point type? For those with cataracts to come in vintage boomer years this could be a litigious case of ocular abuse. It's a big message so let's put it on a big screen so we can envision it properly.
One voice, many voices. As
One voice, many voices. As you look at the new I-I site realize that instead of one site for the voice of Integral, it is now a chorus of voices with I-I, Integral Naked, Holons and soon Integral Life. Each of these sites has more live content then the entire Multiplex did previously. I would say don't judge by one site alone, but find that which resonates with you.
I like it, less
I like it, less 'atmospheric' than the last design but I think more universal. Regarding the academic look I think it's justifiable considering how hard to please academics can be and that seems to be one of the areas thats 'calling out' for an integral worldview. People who already have integral altitude or are otherwise already sympathetic to the integral worldview should be able to appreciate the integral message regardless of the style it is presented, I would think.
Get some real work done
Sure, I like the site. But honestly, in my time around I-I&IN and as a member for several years, I'm getting bored of the repeated hype about new websites, new web portals, etc.
Seriously, I think there's more important work than revamping the website. ...at least, that's why I became a member. Maybe I'm wrong?!
On another point, does the new donor structure change the rules of the pevious/existing donor commitments you made?
Flatland...
Yes, I just put my finger on exactly what bothers me about the "makeover" It seems so "flatlandish", where's the depth, where's the beauty, where's the grace... It seems like they've all been sucked out... It makes me feel "deflated"...
-Cain
http://cain.gaia.com
Compare & Contrast...
Just compare the "old" design still up at the Integral Naked with the new...
http://in.integralinstitute.org/sitemap.aspx
vs
http://integralinstitute.org/
Which says, "I wanna come back here!!!" to you?
Yes to the new site
In the process of designing (or re-designing) a site, the question "what's the REAL purpose of this site" often gets lost. Looks like you managed to stay focused on this critical point.
If I remember the old site correctly, this new version is a screaming improvement - at first perusal anyway.
Two minor issues:
1. I agree that the font is on the small side. Strange given that the site is relatively light in copy.
2. The absence of a "Home" button is a pet peeve. I know the logo takes you there, but...
Overall, congratulations! The site is easy to navigate and communicates credibility.
Coach Justice
www.MenMasteringRelationship.com
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