Best Virtual Team Building Activities & Ideas for Business [Infographic]

Is your team working from home? Now more than ever, it takes great teamwork to overcome the challenges of remote work. That’s where virtual team building activities can help bridge the gap between employees.

Take your team building online with tons of options for virtual games, icebreakers, and team gifts. Suggest some of these fun ways to get to know each other outside the virtual office. You can also outfit your team with everything they need to perform their best, like personalized pens, logo planners, and custom coffee mugs.

RELATED: See our new blog post on holiday virtual team-building activities.

Here are some of our favorite virtual team building ideas and activities in a fun infographic to inspire your business:

Teams who play together, stay together! Just because your employees are working remote doesn’t mean you should skip the team building games. Virtual team building encourages your team to connect outside of their work duties.

This shows employees in a whole new light. Let them flaunt the talents you don’t normally get to see. When they do, you may find new abilities to take advantage of at work.

What Are the Benefits of Virtual Team Building Activities?

You have employees, but do you have a team? When your team plays well together, every employee is working at their highest capacity, both alone and with each other. Virtual team building games nurture that compatibility by enhancing these key skill sets:

Communication

With remote teams, a lot of communication happens online. That increases the odds of miscommunication. Getting back to real-talk with fun exercises boosts the ease of communication during the regular work day.

Trust

No matter which activity you choose, the more your employees bond, the more they’ll trust each other. That comes in handy during collaborations and under tight deadlines.

Leadership

Give every team member a chance to take the lead. Increasing leadership in every employee will build a stronger and more effective team unit.

Responsibility

Virtual team building activities give employees tasks that they can take ownership of. Each member will appreciate the responsibility given, and have the opportunity to rise to the occasion.

Connection

Being able to bond and relate to each other during games will foster a better dynamic at work. As team members become comfortable with each other, they’ll begin to share ideas more freely.

Best Virtual Team Building Games & Ideas

Increase morale, foster teamwork, and have some laughs in the process. Use these virtual team building ideas to break up the work week with a little fun!

I Spy

I spy, with my little eye… a great virtual team building game! Let your team know that you’re going to be playing ‘I spy’ on the next video call. Give them a chance to fill their backgrounds with whatever funny, wacky things they have around the house. Then whoever is ‘it’ can choose something in someone’s background and give everyone a clue what they’ve spied.

Happy Hour

It’s BYOB and sure to be a good time. Best at the end of a long work day, schedule some time for a happy hour where everyone presents a cocktail (or mocktail) they made. It’s fun to share recipes and get to know everyone’s taste.

Scavenger Hunt

The hunt is on. Kick this virtual team building game off by sending everyone their scavenger list. Think of things most people will have in their homes, and make them guess what it is with a riddle. For example, for a teapot, you could give the clue: Usually I’m quiet, but if you put me over heat, I’ll scream! The first to guess and gather all the items wins!

Guess the Drawing

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! Wait, it was a dolphin? Okay, so the creatives may have a clear advantage in this game. They can be the ones to dole out the subject of the drawing to whoever is up next. The objective is for one person to receive a subject to draw, and everyone else has 60 seconds to guess what it is. Give everyone a chance to draw. The person with the most correct guesses at the end, wins.

Virtual Team Icebreakers

Unlike virtual team building activities, virtual team icebreakers can be done before a meeting. Use these quick conversation starters to better get to know your team.

Show and Tell

Pick something for everyone to share on their zoom call. It could be a plant baby, their favorite mug, go-to book, or even items they found while traveling.

Cry Baby

Need a game that’s cute and embarrassing, all at once? Look no further. Ask everyone to submit a baby picture. Display the pictures and have everyone guess who’s who. 

Snack Time

Participants will eat up this virtual team icebreaker—and that’s the point! Ask your team to bring their best snack game, and show off what they’re eating.

Whether you play one of the virtual team building activities and games or choose a virtual team icebreaker, you’ll get to know even your longest-employed members better than before. And of course, it always helps boost unity and morale to receive team gifts. Give your team custom drinkware—like tumblers and mugs—or pens with your company logo so everyone can use them in virtual meetings and games.