Digital Christmas Party - An Alternative?

The classic Christmas party hardly existed in 2020 and 2021. Many teams opted for the digital and thus secure variant due to the contact restrictions in place. A digital Christmas party did not go down well with everyone. Find out here how international teams and local employees can celebrate a reflective Christmas together thanks to original ideas for the digital Christmas party.

Is There Any Festive Mood at All?

Many people find it difficult to imagine an online Christmas party. Chatting together, eating biscuits and drinking mulled wine doesn't really work optimally on purely virtual terms.

Nevertheless, in order not to completely miss out on this event, which is so important for companies and teams, many companies decided to organise a digital Christmas party in recent years. With the best ideas for the virtual Christmas party, company and employees could enjoy a fun evening at this new type of Christmas party despite the lack of physical presence.

Which Tools Are Suitable for the Online Christmas Party?

To hold a Christmas party digitally, the usual team meeting tools can be used to good effect. The most popular are those such as Zoom, Skype or Microsoft Teams, but there are many other online meeting programmes that staff can use to get together for a celebration.

It is important that the same technical requirements are met by all. Apart from a stable internet connection, a webcam and a microphone are needed. In many mobile devices, both are already integrated, but you can also add them externally.

Don't Forget the Christmas Decorations

If everyone involved chooses something Christmassy as the background, a festive mood is quickly created. For example, you can take part in the digital Christmas party sitting in front of the Christmas tree or the window lights. Candles and other Christmas elements in the visible environment further promote the cosy mood online.

Virtual Games - For More Fun at the Digital Christmas Party

To ensure that the company and employees have fun at the Christmas party, various virtual games are well suited. All employees come together online and have fun. Drinking and eating is also done together, but everyone has their own plate of biscuits and perhaps a well-filled mulled wine glass next to the monitor for toasting.

Ideas for an Online Christmas Party

There are many ways to make a Christmas party online a success. We have compiled the following examples for you:

• Online games (e.g. board games, Monopoly)
• Christmas quiz
• Virtual Escape Rooms
• Cooking courses
• Wine or beer tastings
• Advent yoga
• Mulled wine tavern
• and many more

Depending on the number of employees in a company, it may make sense to divide the participants into groups. In large companies, for example, the teams that otherwise work together can come together. Separate chats for private conversations are just as possible as joint communication. In small companies and start-ups, the online Christmas party can also take place in a small setting during a meeting.

Preparation of a Digital Christmas Party

To make your digital Christmas party a success, you need good planning and a little creativity. We have also summarised three important points that you should bear in mind when organising your digital Christmas party:

Send Invitations in Time

To ensure that everyone has time for the digital Christmas party and that the technology can be optimally prepared at home, an early invitation is important. This should be sent out four weeks before the event if possible. This way, confirmations and cancellations are received in time. Invitations by post are more stylish, but Christmas party invitations by e-mail are also suitable.

Technical Specifications

To ensure that all participants meet the same technical requirements, the tool should be specified in the invitation. For those who are not yet familiar with it, a short introduction before the Christmas party begins is worthwhile.

Outfit

For the festive mood, guidelines are often given for the outfit. For example, Christmas hats or jumpers may be worn, but festive dresses are also suitable.

Programme

The programme can be included in the invitation. Alternatively, it can be presented personally by the moderator at the beginning of the celebration.

This is a Good Way to Structure the Festive Evening

When many people come together online, a moderator should guide the group through the evening. At the beginning, it is most important that the participants get into the mood. Maybe they sing a little Christmas song together or toast together with a glass of mulled wine to lighten the mood.

Fun question and answer games are a good way to get everyone talking. For example, they can talk about Christmas memories from childhood, favourite destinations for the Christmas holiday or the planned festive meal. A relaxed round of chatting can move on to something more entertaining in the next step.

Whether it's an online quiz, a mystery dinner or an escape game, baking biscuits together and sharing favourite recipes, tasting wine together or other culinary highlights - there are almost no limits to creativity.

Wine tastings or brewery tours are now even available online, sometimes accompanied by professional sommeliers.

Karaoke is always a highlight at any party. If the mood is already very relaxed, maybe one or two people will dare to perform a song. Christmas songs are well suited for karaoke, but typical karaoke classics also work.

Secret Santa is also an absolute classic at Christmas parties. And it can even be done digitally. The Secret Santa partners are drawn by lot online, and the actual wrapping and sending of the packages can be done by post. At the digital Christmas party, the Secret Santa gifts are then unwrapped together.