The holidays are a time for celebrating with family, friends, colleagues and clients and this year — as strange as it is — should be no exception. In fact, it might be more important than ever to liven things up. With so many of us working at home, it’s easy to feel disconnected and a bit blue. A party, even a virtual get together, can do wonders for boosting spirits, strengthening social ties and relieving everyone’s COVID fatigue.
The Bureau of Digital community recently held an online session to brainstorm ideas for remote holiday parties. Our members, who hail from all parts of the digital industry, are as creative as they come. Together, we cooked up a number of ideas for planning a fun-filled event.
The Bureau has landed on Zoom for our events. It’s pretty simple, and a mobile version lets attendees participate on the go. We’ve found that it lightens the mood when someone calls in from a park or other unexpected places, as one guest did recently. Everyone doesn’t have to be trapped at home, stuck in front of a screen. So make sure it’s easy for people to join wherever they may be.
Now to the fun stuff.
The key to a successful party is to make the event entertaining and engaging, so your guests are not just passively watching a bunch of talking heads on the screen. Involve them in interesting activities, play games, send themed gift boxes for guests to open, conduct interesting interactive polls, get everyone talking and sharing ideas and experiences with each other. Here are 10 ideas from our brainstorming session we think are bound to make your party the talk of the town.
1. Put on a cooking class
This is always a fun group activity. You can send guests the ingredients for a specific dish like a Bureau member recently did, or a gift card they can use to buy what they need locally. Then, have a chef walk them through the recipe and meal preparation in a master cooking class. At the end, everyone can talk about the experience and enjoy their meals together.
2. Host a trivia contest
Like bartenders, the MCs who organize and host those fun trivia contests in bars and restaurants are probably looking for work. Some Bureau shops have hired these game hosts to run a trivia night on Zoom. If you have more than 50 employees, we recommend having several breakout rooms, each devoted to a different topic — sports, movies, even company stuff.
3. Send surprise packages
Who doesn’t love opening up a package to discover what’s inside? There are endless possibilities with this virtual party idea. Send out a variety of snacks and treats and have guests open them during the party and compare what they got. Or send them props normally used in photo booths at parties — like goofy hats, big clip-on earrings, adhesive mustaches — then have the guests appear on camera and take photos. It’s a great icebreaker.
4. Have guests order their own treats
Send gift cards that attendees can use to buy their favorite dessert or beverage or another treat, then show what they bought. Or have everyone order a meal on you and eat together long distance. To simplify the logistics, pay DoorDash or another delivery service directly ahead of time for your guests’ meals, or send out gift cards. When everyone shops for themselves, it supports local businesses and it eliminates any issue with international customs for employees or clients in other countries.
5. Throw a virtual cocktail party
The Bureau Community has had a lot of success with this one. Send out a cocktail kit containing a set of bar tools (sporting your logo, of course) and mixers, plus gift cards for buying the alcohol locally. Then, to make it interactive, have bartenders demonstrate how to mix specialty drinks. Pro tip: To support your local bartenders and community, invite a bartender or mixologist from your team's favorite after-work watering hole.
Don’t forget: not everyone indulges in adult beverages, so be sure to include nonalcoholic options — and these can be just as festive as the high-octane ones! We’ve found that a cocktail party works best in smaller breakout rooms where guests can chat, with everyone coming together in one room for a toast.
6. Play games -- without the eye rolls
The possibilities are endless. Simple, basic games like charades never go out of style, and you can theme them to a holiday. Here are some of our favorites:
Five Things: A game like Five Things is an easy one to pull off virtually. Pick a topic— say, aliens in a movie — and have guests name five in that category.
Jeopardy: This classic game is one that everyone can enjoy. In fact, one of our members runs regular customized Jeopardy games that have become super competitive. To play virtually, the host shares the screen in presentation mode, and players ring in by typing DING in the chatbox.
Slideshow karaoke: This one is a blast. Display a slide with amusing images that the speaker has to tie into their presentation.
Office Olympics: One member hosted a virtual office olympics, which was admittedly cheesy, but proved to be the top-rated activity at their event.
Something in Common: This one is fun, too. Have two people talk to each other until they discover something they have in common. It’s fast and fun, and guests get to know each other.
Other games our members have used include: Never Have I Ever (just make sure the topics aren’t too personal), Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes, and Among Us. Our members also mentioned virtual escape rooms, Kahoot and Jackbox games like murder trivia.
7. Caption team photos
Ask folks to send in three photos of themselves and hold a caption contest. We had a lot of fun with a picture of an attendee standing on a camel in front of a pyramid. “Camel surfing,” anyone? Ask for “throwback” photos, like school pictures, and have everyone guess who it is.
8. Crowdsource the music
What’s a Zoom party without music?! A meeting. Have music playing when an event begins, so attendees aren’t met with silence. To make it interactive, have guests play “DJ” by contributing to the playlist. Combine the photos guests sent with songs that mean something to them to create a slideshow that will start the party with positive energy.
9. Think about timing
Our members are split on whether to host parties during or after work. After-hours events might attract fewer attendees, but daytime can be tricky if some employees or teams are too busy to take part. Some members have created a timesheet category dubbed culture or events so employees can account for their time during the workday. Whatever you decide, make parties voluntary. Forced fun is not fun, and you have to respect personal reasons for opting out. One member said they recorded events and posted them so those who don’t attend can see what it’s all about. And who knows? It might encourage them to join the festivities in the future.
10. Be creative with client gifts
Now that we’ve covered some party ideas, let’s chat client gifts — a simple way to strengthen the personal connection you have with your clients. One member suggested a holiday survival kit with items to reduce stress at a hectic time: aromatherapy putty, chocolates, herbal teas and such. Typically, group gifts are sent to the office so a team can share them, but that’s not an option with so many people working at home. One alternative our members suggested is making a donation to a charity or cause on a client’s behalf. Or let them decide where the money goes with a Giving Card or a service like DonorsChoose.
We hope these ideas and tips jump start your plans for the holidays. Our members had a great time brainstorming, which is something we do all the time, on a wide range of topics. Check us out: We’d love to have you join our community!