25 Quick Virtual Team Building Activities To Try For Free

Remote work is here to stay. The reason for that is twofold.

First, remote workers are happier and more productive. Secondly, employers reap plenty of benefits too, including reduced operational costs.

While remote working has benefits, employee burnout remains an ever-present workplace issue. In an effort to deliver top-notch service, hectic schedules and bandwidth, problems can still occur. Thus, burnout still happens to remote workers. However, it is preventable.

Employers can boost morale and strengthen team bonds through engaging in virtual team-building activities. Engagement programs can keep remote teams engaged and increase employee retention.

While investing in virtual team-building improves engagement, some companies don’t do them due to minimal resources. But, even with a limited budget, there are plenty of virtual team-building programs you can organize.

Looking for cost-efficient virtual team-building ideas for your employee engagement plans? We have 25 (and three bonus activities!) team-building ideas here that you can do online for FREE.

25 Examples of Fun Virtual Team Building Activities to Try

Here are 25 ideas for fun and quick programs you can do for your remote team throughout the year. This list of activities can make team-building a regular occurrence for your offshore workers.

1. Never Have I Ever

The premise of Never Have I Ever is simple.

Everyone raises one hand on the video call. One individual shares one thing they haven’t done before that’s safe for work. For example, they can say, “Never have I ever been on a rollercoaster.” Those who have done that activity before will have to lower one finger.

The first person to lower all of their fingers is the winner.

Tip: Instead of lowering a finger, they can take a sip of their coffee or tea instead. The first person to finish their drink wins. It’s best for breaking the ice with a new group of remote teams during a virtual call.

2. 5-Minute Movie Night

Don’t have the time to watch hours of a film together? Consider doing a five-minute movie night instead. There are plenty of interesting short films available online, even on YouTube alone.

After watching the film, encourage everyone to share their thoughts. It’s a good exercise for encouraging your remote team to communicate their ideas better.

3. Guided Group Meditation

Mindfulness is a great habit that reduces workplace stress. If you want to encourage this habit, hold a guided group meditation. Plenty of free videos of five-minute guided meditations are available on YouTube.

Tip: Consider holding meditations together before starting the work day. That way, it sets everyone up for a peaceful mindset for tasks like strategy work which require more focus.

4. Charades

Charades is a great game that flexes one’s communication muscles. That’s because you act out what you want people to guess. 

Here’s how you can do this:

• Split the group into two.
• One person in each group is assigned to act out the words. They have 30 seconds to one minute to guess as many words as possible.
• The next team does the same.
• The group that guesses the most number of words wins.

Tip: This activity is great for teaching collaboration and nonverbal communication.

See also: Find out how things like a collaborative environment and more motivate Philippine remote workers here. 

5. Home Workspace Check-In

Sometimes, a simple check-in through team messaging channels can make your remote team feel connected. One easy prompt you can do is to check in with everybody’s workspaces or desks.

Encourage your team to share a picture of their work desk. It’s a great way to see your team’s personalities through their desks.

Tip: To make it extra fun, make a poll at the end of the call. There, everyone votes on who has the most creative workspace or who has the craziest setup.

6. Virtual Coffee or Tea Breaks

Organizing a quick coffee break together is a chance for your team to slow down in the middle of a workday. You can talk about how the day is going. Talk about your drinks of the day. Show off your cup collection. Any conversation topic is possible.

Here are some sample questions you can bring up during your coffee or tea breaks:

• What is your go-to drink order in a coffee shop?
• What are your plans for the weekend?
• What shows or movies are you currently watching?
• How do you prefer their eggs cooked?

These casual conversations are harder to facilitate with remote teams. However, you can emulate these conversations through these breaks.

7. Trivia Night

Trivia night is another excellent team-building exercise for your remote team. It’s usable for both small and large teams, too.

You can even create themed trivia questions. For example, if the holidays are coming up, you can ask holiday-related questions. If you have multinational offshore employees, you can incorporate their local holidays into the questions.

Not only is trivia night exciting, but it’s also a mental exercise.

Tip: Put members from different generations in one team. That way, your trivia questions can cater to multiple generations.

8. Two Truths and a Lie

Two Truths and a Lie is a great example of a quick activity to get to know your team members without forcing them to do so. 

Here’s how to do it:

• Each person mentions three statements describing themselves.
• One of those statements is a lie that the rest of the group will try to guess.
• The person with the most right guesses wins.

Tip: While this exercise is viable for large groups, it can be more time-consuming. Thus, it’s easier to facilitate for smaller groups.

9. Virtual Bring Me

A team-building exercise for work that can get people up and running is a Virtual Bring Me.

The premise is straightforward: ask your team to show you a certain item. For example, you can say, “Bring me an umbrella.” The first one to show it gets one point. The one with the most points wins.

Tip: Repurpose this game multiple times by setting themes per game. For example, the theme can be “office” or “the outdoors.”

10. Themed Karaoke Nights

Music is a great bonding point for many people. It’s also a great way to bond with your remote teams.

Holding a karaoke night is a great way to showcase people’s singing abilities. Even if you can’t sing, it’s a fun way to create a jovial atmosphere.

You can also create a theme. For example, maybe it’s R&B night or all Adele songs only.

Many free virtual karaoke apps are available, like Karafun and OpenKJ. However, you can also use YouTube. Look up the song title with the “karaoke version” at the end. You can find tons of available karaoke versions of songs that way.

11. Would You Rather

Another getting-to-know activity for your team would be a Would You Rather scenario.

Here you offer specific scenarios that are somewhat equivalent to one another. For example, “Would you rather go to the beach or the mountains?”

Then, your team votes on which they would prefer over the two. You can then open the floor to discuss why one person chose one over another.

Tip: Want a more introspective approach to Would You Rather? Kokology offers different Would You Rather scenarios that one can correlate to self-discovery. You can find books on Kokology as references.

12. Guess Whose Workspace

A fast and interactive virtual team-building game is Guess Whose Workspace. Here’s how it works:

• Your team submits a photo of their work setup.
• You or the organizer will randomly bring up the pictures one by one.
• Everyone will guess who they think that work setup belongs to.

Remote teams see their coworkers’ backdrops more than their workstations. This game provides glimpses of how their coworkers work virtually.

13. Themed Lunches

Having lunch together is something you miss out on with remote work. However, you can always organize themed lunches to make that a reality.

For example, the theme could be lunch items that start with the letter P. Then, everybody should have lunch with food that starts with the letter P, like pizza or pasta.

Tip: Do you have a multinational remote team? Consider setting a theme based on their local cuisine.

Remember to schedule this in advance as a consideration since some people plan their work lunches.

14. Personality Quizzes

Taking a personality quiz together gives your team a snapshot of what each other is like. Plus, it’s a chance for them to get to know themselves in-depth.

You can read through the questions together so everyone can share their results simultaneously. Myers-Briggs and the Enneagram test are two popular personality quizzes to try. Look for shorter versions of these tests to finish them fast.

See more: Discover the cultural traits and values that make Philippine skilled workers the ideal remote team.

15. Online Drawing Games

Show your creativity together even without drawing skills through an online drawing game. Skribbl.io works great as a free online Pictionary game for up to 20 people.

You can also have a makeshift Pictionary game by randomizing the term to draw yourself. Then, you can use the standard Paint software available on your device. Remember to set a 10-second timer for each drawing so everyone gets a turn.

16. “The Big Three” Bucket List

An aspirational activity that encourages goal-setting is “The Big Three” bucket list making. These don’t have to be work-related. They can be as far-away or silly of a goal as you want. It lets you know the three biggest desires that excite or matter the most to your remote team.

17. Work Snack Sharing

Snacks are the unsung companions of many workers. So, sharing each other’s preferred work snacks can be a fun way to get to know your remote workers.

If you’re working with an offshore team, you can even discover unique snacks that are local to them.

Tip: Found a food brand that has an international presence, including in your remote team’s countries? Organize a day where you all pick snacks from that brand. It’s a chance to discover unique flavors and similar offers from a familiar food brand.

18. Virtual Campfire Night

Hanging around at a campfire is quintessential bonding. But, it’s harder to do with a remote team. A happy middle would be organizing a virtual campfire night.

Some activities you can do during virtual campfire night would be:

• Share scary stories.
• Have campfire-themed drinks and snacks with a campfire as your virtual background
• Share interesting camp or nature-related stories.
• Do a virtual hike using online street views of your trail of choice. One person who has hiked the trail can be the guide.
• Hold a nature-themed Mad Libs game

Scheduling a campfire night to close a tough project can be great timing. It recreates the much-needed calming atmosphere of hanging out by the campfire but online.

19. Powerpoint Parties

A versatile virtual team-building activity is a PowerPoint party. The premise is you ask everyone to present for five minutes on any topic they want. (Work appropriate, of course!)

It’s a chance to show the individual interests of your remote team. You might even learn something new during these PowerPoint parties.

Tip: Make it more fun by creating themes for each PowerPoint party. For example, the theme could be “What’s Your Unpopular Opinion.” Playing around with the themes makes this a team-building activity that you can repurpose.

20. Name The Song

Another activity to reactivate your remote team’s competitive spirit is the Name The Song game.

Simply pick a well-known or popular song and play a few-second snippets.

Start with one second. Then, five seconds. Then, ten seconds. If they still can’t guess, play the entire song. The person with the most correct guesses wins.

Tip: If with a large group, split it into teams. If with a small group, play per individual instead.

21. Build a Work Playlist + Coworking

Working together in a virtual room can encourage productivity. Even if everyone is muted on the call, the virtual presence of coworkers keeps everyone accountable.

You can make it more interesting with a collaborative work playlist. Link it to everyone joining the coworking session so they can add their work song of choice. As the coworking session is running, this can play in the background.

Tip: Don’t want to build a playlist from scratch? Plenty of safe-for-work playlists are available for you to play in the background of your coworking session.

22. Show and Tell

Show and Tell is a way of sharing even simple things that bring you joy daily. Everyone brings one thing they want to share with everyone. Then, they talk briefly about its qualities and why they enjoy it.

It can be something as simple as a beloved souvenir from a trip. Or it can be their favorite work tool. It’s an exercise of gratefulness that can bring us more positivity in a workday.

23. Virtual Awards Show

A more involved virtual team-building activity that highlights your remote employees is a virtual awards show. 

Nicolas Bivero, Penbrothers CEO and Co-Founder, says of employee recognition regardless of the achievement: “Organizations can drive performance and build a culture where employees feel valued and inspired to excel.”

It’s best to hold this at the end of the work year. Nonetheless, being generous with positive feedback is something your remote team will welcome anytime.

Related: See how Servantex engages its offshore team by showcasing their contributions through awards.

24. Icebreaker Questions

While generic, there’s a reason why workplaces do icebreaker activities often. It’s because it’s a quick way of knowing more about someone.

Here are examples of Icebreaker questions or statements you can use:

• Describe yourself in three words.
• What’s your favorite movie?
• What’s a compliment you received that you still appreciate to this day?
• What’s your favorite joke?
• What is your morning routine?

These questions are useful for many situations. You can ask them during onboarding, job interviews, or to start simple meetings.

25. Free Online Word Games

Another simple virtual activity your team can bond over is online word games. The New York Times has great examples like Wordle and Connections. It’s a daily mental exercise that everyone can do quickly.

Tip: Some workplaces even have messaging channels dedicated to sharing game results. It can become its niche community for your team to bond over in the workplace.

BONUS: 3 Online Team-Building Ideas for Top Team Members 

Here are three creative ideas you can do for your next team-building exercise. These may involve some dollars spent, but a great way to engage your team’s excellent talents who deliver results consistently. 

1. Virtual Competitions

Premade gameshows are available to purchase online, making fun game nights for team building. Some recreate popular gameshows like Jeopardy and Family Feud. Some even provide game show services with a host facilitating the game.

You can even set up prizes at the end of the game show to motivate employees to win these game shows. Gift cards, gift baskets, and cash are some of the most common prizes for these competitions.

Tip: Most gameshows have a set number of players based on the game. Therefore, virtual gameshows are better for no more than ten players at a time.

2. Digital Book Clubs

Book clubs are a great way to engage remote employees while creating an intellectually stimulating environment. Here’s how you can do this:

• Everyone votes on a book to read for a set period. It can be two weeks. It can be for a month.
• Once that deadline passes, you can schedule a virtual call with the book club.
• Book club members then discuss their thoughts on the book together.

Tip: You can vote on what book you want to read and the majority choice wins. Alternatively, one person decides what book to read. The decisionmaker changes after every book club meeting.

3. Remote Gift Exchange

Are the holidays coming up? Consider scheduling a remote gift exchange between your remote team.

Given how interconnected the world is, it’s easier to deliver a gift to someone even from a different country. There are even websites dedicated to drawing names anonymously for gift-giving reasons.

Related: Working with a Philippine offshore team? Understand these Philippine holidays, so you can manage operations more effectively.

Why You Should Conduct Virtual Team-Building Activities

Virtual team-building isn’t just a band-aid solution for disconnected remote teams. Even highly engaged employees experience burnout. Investing in activities that connect your remote teams encourages better unity between them.

It’s an avenue for building motivation through the company. Doing it regularly shows employees that open communication is both welcome and encouraged.

This open communication can manifest itself in work. Given that you’re working with an offshore team, fostering open communication is crucial to your team’s success.

They’ll be better at giving positive feedback to coworkers. It also casually teaches offshore employees how to brainstorm, problem-solve, and collaborate virtually. These benefits can help you build and motivate a highly efficient offshore team.

See Also: Want to start offshoring? Here are different benefits to offshoring other than cost-savings.

Rev Up Your Team Spirit: Supercharge Virtual Team-Building with a Trusted Offshore Partner

The lack of social interactions in remote teams affects their work effectiveness. This deficiency can lead to poor work outputs.

By holding team-building activities regularly, remote teams can feel more connected to their colleagues and upper management. Thus, creating a more collaborative and engaging work environment.

Want to ensure connectivity and clear communication between you and your offshore team? Working with a dependable offshore company in your offshore destination of choice is vital.

They can help with HR functionalities. Plus, offshore companies also have local and cultural knowledge. That way, they can enact engagement strategies that work best for your offshore employees.

The more engaged your offshore employees are, the higher the retention rate. That means you save on recruitment and retention costs. You’re also building a loyal offshore workforce that you can rely on for long-term projects.