The holiday season has everyone thinking about what they can do to celebrate the end of the year – and what a year it’s been! After all the work we’ve put in and the fires we’ve put out, every one of us deserves a chance to unwind. And at Kabloom, when we talk about everyone we mean everyone.

Inclusivity is a process that should be incorporated in every aspect of your workforce – remote or otherwise. The same applies to your annual holiday party. So what if you’re holding it over Zoom?

You can still make the extra effort to make sure everyone feels seen, heard and respected. And making that happen can be as easy as planning with three key factors in mind.

Think About Cultures

The bigger your holiday party, the more perspectives and cultures you’ll be adding to the mix. And when it comes to experiences one size does not fit all!

It’s important to ask yourself questions like:

  • How would you describe the culture of your team or company?
  • More buttoned-up and professional? Or fun-loving and quirky?
  • What holidays do they celebrate?
  • Are people mostly introverted, or extraverted? Or an even mix of both?
  • Where are people based?

People in different countries may have a different idea of a good holiday party. Try to present options for all of the different personalities, so no one feels left out.

If you have teams across the world – in regions like the Americas, Europe, APAC and/or EMEA, you’ll want the holiday party to be accessible for each major timezone. Hosting multiple events at different times might be ideal.

If it’s a large company: you might want to opt for a general holiday aesthetic, without any religious references or calling it a “virtual company Christmas party” specifically.

You can design the event with greens, reds, blues and whites; throw up some snowy Zoom backgrounds; or screen share a warm fireplace.

It helps if you poll your company to understand how they want to celebrate. Then you can get a clear picture of what people want. You might be surprised by what you find!

Offer Flexibility & Choice

A key quality of a good party is having a variety of options. Let your employees choose their own adventure and explore topics that interest them.

We recommend offering two or more options at a time, such as in our Winterfest format.

We include Theme Rooms that are more edgy and niche: like stand-up comedy, karaoke, or a graffiti workshop. And some that are more tried-and-true: like trivia, a scavenger hunt, or a magic show.

Try to understand what your people enjoy, what they don’t. Do they like learning, competition, or interaction? Knowing these factors clearly will help you to design virtual parties that add value to everyone’s day.

Also, the holidays can be a hectic time of year. Just by acknowledging this – it’ll take some stress off of everyone’s shoulders. You can make your remote holiday party optional, but encouraged. Maybe you even shoot a message or gift of gratitude over to everyone… regardless of whether or not they can attend. That way everyone feels seen and appreciated!

Allow for Interactivity

A lot of companies want a unified experience across the board. Something that everyone can talk about later. And that’s important!

As for experiences, something entertainment-based (like a Magic Show or Stand Up Comedy) can work great with a larger audience of 100+ attendees. Something more interactive, like a scavenger hunt or an escape room, may be more suitable for a smaller group of 20-50 attendees.

If you stuff 200 guests into one Zoom call for an hour straight, it might be a snooze-fest! Try mixing it up and playing with the group sizes.

Here are some tips to keep your virtual holiday parties dynamic:

  • Use a lot of breakout rooms to give more people a chance to speak.
  • Open the stage for anyone who wants to share in front of the group (just don’t single anyone out!)
  • Kindly invite people to turn their cameras on, without pressuring them.
  • Try changing the topic, format or speaker every 10-15 minutes. We all have short attention spans now. Keep the call moving quickly – or people might start checking their emails.

One reason we burn out from Zoom calls is that they don’t feel natural, or similar to how we socialize in the real world. If you can weave your events with ample moments for interaction, your employees will be much happier!

How Kabloom Can Help

There’s a lot that goes into hosting a good company holiday party – even one held on Zoom. We’re sure you could do an awesome job on your own.

But… if you’re way too busy, or you’re working on a time crunch, Kabloom can help! We’re professional party people, and we can craft an experience that fits everyone in your remote workforce. We host large-scale and highly-customizable Virtual Holiday Parties for companies just like yours – with various theme rooms, and hosts that are professional entertainers from around the world.

Your workforce is diverse and unique. Let’s make sure your Holiday Party is too! Feel free to contact us today for an EOY celebration that everyone can enjoy.