How to make your virtual Christmas party exciting and special
If there’s anything the pandemic has taught us well, it is that not working together in the same physical space doesn’t stop teams from having fun. Virtual games, Zoom breakout rooms, and trivia events have become the go-to avenues where teams show camaraderie and feel a sense of belongingness. But just because these activities have yielded excellent results doesn’t mean you should throw the same thing at your team at every virtual get-together, especially during your virtual Christmas party, which is supposed to be the most special of them all. As you know, just like working remotely, boredom creeps into team members when virtual events come with the same content and format -- guess we’ve all heard of zoom or virtual fatigue. Below, we outline the most important ingredients teams need to infuse into their virtual Christmas party to make it as exciting and special as it should be.
Adding families to the virtual Christmas party
Humans get tired doing the same things every time, always going to the same places, or even seeing the same faces over and over. Not that seeing the same faces all the time won’t be fun, but if you want to make it special this Christmas, a fresh approach could come in handy. One of the best ways to do this is to invite family members. Teams should entice their members to bring along their families - children, grannies, moms, siblings, or their pets. While it may be difficult to convince a lot of family members to attend, the few to make it will spice up your virtual Christmas party and make it special. On one hand, it builds a great team culture and on the other, it helps strengthen family ties behind the scenes.
Short but with a fun variety of content
Just as people can leave a physical event out of boredom, any member of your team can leave your end-of-year virtual event - it’s just a click away. Not only should your virtual Christmas party be short, but it should also come with variety in the activities. Alternate between trivia and triathlon mini games or between karaoke and virtual Christmas cards. Like most things in life, people have different preferences, so alternating between different activities also helps to cover the “favorite” activity of almost every team member and keeps them engaged till the end of the party.
Provide prizes and souvenirs for attendance
One big problem every remote team faces is to get employees to attend a virtual event, especially during the holiday season when everyone has plans. And just because your team is “amazing” doesn’t guarantee attendance. Apart from having great families, team members also get lots of party invitations from friends and neighbors. A great way to get them to choose your virtual Christmas party over any of the other invites is to provide prizes and souvenirs. The prizes would entice them to attend while the souvenirs would help create a memorable party experience. One way to do this is to let your designer prepare company graphics with team members’ images as a celebration of their hard work, to be displayed on the day of the party. You can send employees gift boxes that are to be unveiled during the event. Or just send each member a company swag with their name on it. Here, nothing is small.
Integrate charity or giving sessions
As social beings, we love helping: volunteering for nonprofits, donating to a charity, or giving our belongings to the orphanage. Teams should include donation or charity sessions not only to create a memorable virtual Christmas party but also to instill a sense of care for society into members. One great way to do this is to put a price on every game or trivia question where winners donate the proceeds to a charity of their choice. Or the company could provide employees with a stipend besides their pay, where the additional amount is to be given to a charity of their liking.
Summing up, Christmas is a special event. While your company may have held many virtual events, what worked then doesn’t guarantee success this time, that’s even if they decide to attend. The ideas outlined above are some of the best ways to spice up this year’s virtual Christmas party for employees, the company, and their families.
Truth is, every company has a lot on the table during the holiday season, and planning such a virtual event for employees may be difficult. If you want to make your employees feel special this Christmas but are struggling to make it happen, Bar None Games’ team of experts is here to help.
