No matter whether your teams are still working from home, are back in the office, or are doing some combination of the two, team building is important now more than ever.
Between the stress of financial issues, the roller-coaster economy, the pandemic, and just life itself, it’s a given that most employees need that in-person interaction. Since one-on-ones and traditional team meetings are probably still out right now, company parties need to be fairly regular and fun to boot.
You don’t have to wait for a holiday either! Company parties can be held to celebrate everything from new clients, meeting goals & metrics, or just a quarterly get-together. But how do you ensure that those parties are fun?
That’s where today’s 4 tips come in. If you’re planning a company party or know you’ll be having one later this year, these fun company party ideas are sure to be a hit.
1. Get Creative with Branding
Sure, you want to brand the company throughout the party, but if you want the party to be fun, you should go a bit further than traditional napkins, pens, and paper pads. Cookies logo can be great any time of the year, while things like wine glasses and socks with your logo can make great gifts that many will love.
Have fun with your branding and set the festive mood right from the word “party.”
2. Get Everyone Involved
You’ve worked on strengthening everything from your data management to your content marketing strategy—now is the time to strengthen the team’s camaraderie.
First and foremost, try to encourage everyone to join. If possible, consider scheduling the party during work hours so that everyone can be there. Second, make it a potluck so that everyone can bring in their favorite dish.
This not only gets everyone involved, but it also keeps company costs down which can free up funds for other fun things for the party.
3. Throw an Untraditional Holiday Party
Instead of waiting for Christmas or New Year’s, think about throwing a fun party on some of the lesser-known “holidays.”
Try some of these out:
- A pie party on March 14th for Pi Day
- A potluck or vegetarian meal party for Earth Day on April 22nd.
- A breakfast party for National Donut Day on the first Friday of June.
- An after-hours rum and coke party for International Talk Like a Pirate Day on September 19th.
- After-hours margarita party for February 22nd for, you guessed it, National Margarita Day.
There are all sorts of fun little holidays that you could have a fun party centered around. Just be creative and inclusive and everyone is almost certain to have a great time. The best thing is, your employees will know that you appreciate them.
4. Highlight Their Talents
No, we don’t mean give out awards for work skills. Have a talent show and let your employees highlight their hidden talents. This can be on- or off-site and run as either a standalone event or as part of a larger party.
Get creative again and consider purchasing a few custom trophies for the top performers. But, a pro tip, don’t give out the company logo swag mentioned in tip 1 as prizes. That looks too self-serving and won’t be appreciated in most cases.
As you probably detected, if you want it to be fun then the main piece of your party foundation should be creativity. Parties don’t have to be the same old same old and you don’t have to wait for special occasions. Team building has always been important but these days it can actually be critical.