If you’ve stumbled across this piece, then the holidays must be just around the corner. Christmas decorations line the streets, and Starbucks has brought back everybody’s favorite Red Cups. Everyone in the sales office seems to be counting down the days to Christmas — daydreaming about time off with the family and raking in those sweet presents under the tree.
With the end of the year in sight and holiday PTO looking sweeter by the day, morale oftentimes slumps towards the end of Q4. However, there shouldn’t be any reason why the holiday season can’t be just as exciting as the world outside the office (dare we say, even more exciting?). Let’s talk about how you can bring holiday cheer and a shot of incentive into the office space:
How to make holidays at the office a hit
Really, there’s no reason why we can’t get the sales team as excited about coming into the office as they are about going on their Christmas breaks. Tis’ the season, after all! Making this an annual deal instead of just a one-time deal would be especially helpful in building that excitement.
So, to help you bring the Christmas spirit into the office, here are 5 ideas you can use today:
1. Host a team office-decorating session
Nothing brings out the joy of Christmas better than walking into an office that’s decorated for the holidays. There’s also the super-secret added bonus of boosting employee morale! Remember that you should ensure that all members of your team are included and just be aware of the several holidays that come to play at the end of the year, such as Bodhi Day, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, and Pancha Ganapati. This is great for keeping everyone involved and is a great way to learn about other cultures and beliefs, too.
Set a day where the team spends time decorating the office, it doesn’t need to be more than an hour or two. Just make a huge batch of hot cocoa, and get to it! Get your employees excited and involved even deeper by asking them to bring along any of their personal holiday decor to use at their desks. That helps bring a little piece of home and personality into the office, which is always a plus. Better yet, make it a decoration contest to see who can decorate their desk the best. Throw in a few coins to make this competition fun & just competitive enough.
2. Plan a holiday party
This might sound like a given, but you’d be surprised to find out that a great many companies still avoid hosting holiday parties. We’re not sure why; they’re always great fun! So, if you’re one of those companies that don’t already host an annual holiday party, you should definitely change that this year.
Parties aren’t just a great way to celebrate and reward the hard work of your sales team, they are the perfect opportunity to call out that hard work and help your team feel acknowledged and seen. Employee recognition is one of the best ways to boost morale, increase productivity, and create a culture of success, especially in sales teams. Don’t just assume that they’ll understand that’s what the party is for — state your appreciation out loud! Speech, speech, speech!
3. Provide Christmas bonus rewards
In the run-up to Christmas, many people find themselves short on funds and worrying about whether or not they will be able to purchase everything on their family’s wish list, which can cause a huge drop in morale and a massive spike in stress. Remember that all your hard-working employees are human, just like you: they want to be able to give something back to their families. Help them out and ease their burdens by providing them with a chance to make their loved ones happy — a year-end holiday bonus.
Whether the incentive is a little increase in commission, faster payouts, a lump sum of cash, or some additional coins, this is a tried-and-true method for boosting morale and productivity in the workplace. To clear up any uncertainty, just poll your team and find out what they think. Is there anything you could do to brighten their holiday season?
4. Schedule team 1-on-1s
The best way to kill employee morale is to treat them like nothing more than worker drones — especially when it comes to sales. Do you have a personal bond with your sales team? If yes, then great! Keep going in that direction. But if not, then you need to change that ASAP.
Take advantage of the approaching end of Q4 and the end of the year to touch base with members of your team. And we’re not talking about year-end reviews, either. Get personal with your team and invite every member to a 1-on-1 casual chat. Find out what they get up to outside of work and how things are at home. Discover their woes and ask them if there’s anything you can do to help. Being genuine goes a long way, especially during the holiday season.
5. Utilize sales gamification
We love to say it — introducing gamification into work is an amazing way to not just get the sales team engaged but also to boost morale. An easy way to introduce gamification to your team or just to keep your competitions interesting is to spice things up during the holidays by kicking off some friendly competition between staff. If this is your first rodeo in the world of sales gamification, get things started with a holiday-themed contest!
But why gamification? We’re glad you asked.
Why use gamification to spice up the holidays at the office
In a nutshell, we’re all human beings. There’s always a little piece inside of us that loves competition. And that’s exactly what gamification brings to the table, plus so much more. The reasons why gamification is such a powerful tool are universal — its benefits span across usage and time of year. We’re not kidding when we say that gamification is the gift that keeps on giving! Let’s take a quick look at the reasons why you should consider using gamification to spice up the holidays at the office:
1. It’s fun!
Your sales team is made up of tons of different personalities, player types, and unique people, so giving them the chance to find the fun that actually engages them is extremely important! For those chart-toppers, nothing lights a fire under them like a good old sales competition. For your sales reps that are looking for more social recognition, a shoutout from a manager could be all they need to crush their KPIs. Most of your sales staff will appreciate increased chances for success for the same reason that many of us enjoy playing fantasy sports. There’s always the little piece in us that loves competition — especially when it’s done in a fun and exciting way!
2. Boosts morale
The enjoyable and gratifying nature of sales gamification allows it to appeal to some of our most fundamental needs and drives, such as a sense of belonging, a desire to prove oneself, a thirst for praise, and the prospect of material gain. People are drawn to gamification because it appeals to their desire to be acknowledged for their efforts and progress toward a goal, so it’s no wonder that studies have found that 90% of employees are more productive with gamification in the mix. Sales gamification will help keep your sales team motivated, constantly looking for the next achievement or to unlock the next badge, and bakes in best practices into your reps' daily lives!
3. A great team bonding tool
Your sales superstars will be excited to teach others what they know, and they'll be more likely to do it in a gamified setting — especially when teams are involved. By utilizing a great sales gamification tool, contests are a great way to spark a healthy competitive spirit among your team as well as a great way to get everyone involved, whether it's to celebrate each other's wins or push them to boost their game and go for that top spot. While we all love positive reinforcement and acknowledgment of our personal achievements, there’s really nothing like invoking the team spirit and celebrating victories together.
How to use sales gamification during the holiday season
Now we’ve convinced you to get started on using sales gamification for your team this upcoming holiday season; you must be wondering where you should start! Great news: there are tons of ways to use sales gamification during the holiday season. Here are some of our top recommendations:
1. Utilize a rewards advent calendar
Turn your favorite sales gamification app into a winter wonderland that celebrates the holiday season by developing a rewards advent calendar. Starting on December 1, kick off your sales team advent calendar by offering different holiday-themed awards for each day leading up to Christmas. Keep it closer to the “advent calendar” theme by keeping each day’s prize a secret — because who doesn’t love a good surprise treat? You can always leave these rewards on a weekly basis that you can announce at your all-hands meetings if daily is too time intensive.
2. Run a holiday-themed competition
More likely than not, your preferred sales gamification tool would have a slew of winter-themed contests for you to choose from to help bring the cheer this holiday season. Boosting morale and productivity at work during the Christmas season is easy with a little friendly competition. While contests are fun at any time of year, it's always a good change of pace to have one that's appropriate for the season.
Prize Competition (Christmas) - SalesScreen from Dogu on Vimeo.
3. Host team contests
Remember when we said that gamification at the office can help boost team culture? Enjoy those same benefits coming into the holiday season by encouraging teamwork and collaboration by hosting competitions that are team-focused. Team contests boost morale and productivity by getting everyone working together toward a similar objective.
4. Promote the spirit of charity
Christmas is a time of giving, so why not reflect the spirit of charity within your holiday-themed competition? There are a variety of methods to show kindness to others and encourage good behavior throughout this season, so choose one that works for your organization and its staff. Here’s one thing you could try: host a competition with the prize being a donation to the charity of the winner's choice. Alternatively, you could reward physical or virtual badges to people who have participated in volunteer projects during this time of year.
So, whether you’re new to sales gamification or are a frequent flyer, utilizing gamification to spice up the holidays at the office is a must. Hopefully, we’ve given you some inspiration to take back to the office — and we wish you a happy holiday!
