Virtual scavenger hunts provide an interactive and natural way for participants to bond. They are similar to traditional scavenger hunts, except that they take place online. Participants have to complete the list virtually by taking videos and photos. They move around, interact with their environment, and collaborate with or compete against one another despite their distance. The goal is to have fun, stimulate creative thinking, encourage collaboration, and promote engagement. Here are the ideas for employee engagement ideas on how they can adapt scavenger hunt activities for remote teams.
Use video conferencing software or virtual scavenger hunt apps
Using video conferencing software like Zoom or Microsoft Teams enables you to organize a fun virtual scavenger hunt. You need to create a list of items to find or challenges to complete and divide participants into teams. A moderator will explain the rules and distribute the list to the teams. Scavenger hunt apps can also help you facilitate a scavenger hunt. These apps prompt participants to complete challenges in various ways, from submitting photos to answering multiple-choice questions.
Before diving into our scavenger hunt, make sure there’s enough space on your phone for all the fun photos and videos you’ll capture. A quick tip: find and delete any duplicate photos or files. This is especially handy for iPhone users, who might find duplicates from using various cloud services or photo editing apps. Clearing these duplicates not just frees up space but ensures you’re all set for an uninterrupted adventure. Let’s keep the focus on the excitement and teamwork!
Compile a list of items and challenges
Think about what items or challenges you will add to the list. The importance of employee engagement in a scavenger hunt is that it facilitates communication and collaboration in an interactive way. You can pick and choose how difficult the scavenger hunt will be based on the ideas you include. Some items for your list could include:
- Coffee machine
- A favorite cup
- Board game
- Your favorite family photo
- A piece of workout equipment
- A musical instrument
- Reusable shopping bag
- Something handmade
- A sock with a hole in it
- Something sweet
- A photo of your home office setup
Some of the challenges in your scavenger hunt could be:
- Dance to your favorite song.
- Show off a talent
- Dress up your pet
- Do a handstand
Add some variety and creativity so the hunt isn’t just a game of ‘fetch’.
Set clear rules
You need to set some clear rules for your scavenger hunt. Make sure everyone knows what they need to do to win. For example, they must take a photo or video when they find an item or complete a challenge. Tasks shouldn’t be difficult to photograph or video. One rule could be that participants can’t use the same item more than once. For example, they can’t use homemade brownies for ‘something handmade’ and ‘something sweet’.
You will also need to outline the scoring system. You can assign point values to each item and challenge. The more difficult items and challenges should be worth more points. There are various scoring methods you can use, such as scoring per round or scoring per person. Scoring per round usually works best with team scavenger hunts. The first person to get back gets the point for the round, and no other points are given.
Set a timeframe
The timeframe will depend on the purpose of your scavenger hunt. If you plan to use it as an icebreaker before a meeting, it will obviously be shorter. If you want to encourage a team to work well together, you can have a more challenging hunt that takes longer. Countdown timers can help the moderator to keep track of time. Players must submit their entries within the stipulated time frame. The moderator should make players aware that the time is running out.
Award prizes to winners
The moderator will add up all the points and announce a winner when the scavenger hunt is over. Prizes offer a way to ensure team members stay motivated. Some ideas for virtual prizes include:
- A foodie gift card
- An Amazon gift card
- A half day off
- A movie or game voucher
- Udemy course
With continuous layoffs, employees now face a constant fear around their job security. To help them overcome this, team activities for everyone, whether regular or remote, become highly important. If you want to create better relationships between remote teams, Scavenger hunts can help to promote this. They enable participants to interact and have great fun together. Interacting in this way can make them more invested in the team and, therefore, the company. Virtual scavenger hunts also help to stimulate critical thinking and creativity. By helping to build relationships, they have a positive influence on your company culture.
