One thing about bingo is that it is and always will be a classic. Everyone has heard of it and everyone knows how to play it. And even those who have never played a game of bingo before have surely heard the “B-I-N-G-O” song!
Bingo is a game that is super easy for everyone to play along and get involved with. It is easily one of our favorite games to play for team building events because it is so simple yet, just like magic, the game never fails to bring out an extremely fun and competitive side of every group we play it with.
Why is Bingo so Great for Team Building?
It’s a lot of fun! The most obvious reason that bingo is great for team building is that it is just SO much fun to play! The ease of the game and the competitive nature it tends to bring out of people makes for the perfect team building activity.
Bingo builds a sense of community. The game is well-known for being played at locations such as senior centers, community centers, churches, clubhouses, and more. This is largely due to the fact that bingo is a game that really creates and fosters a sense of community. Creating a sense of community is extremely important when it comes to building a strong and focused team.
Players exercise good listening skills. A game of bingo requires the use of several skills that are important to have in the workplace. When playing bingo, participants have to showcase attention to detail, sharp listening skills, and the ability to quickly scan their cards for solutions. As each number is called, players have to make sure that they are keeping their heads in the game if they really want to win.
Bingo builds confidence! Unlike a game of trivia where participants may feel less confident or even a bit inadequate after answering a question wrong, bingo is simple to play for anyone who is able to pay attention throughout the duration of the game.
Everyone has the same chance to win. Everyone starts off with one “Free Space” marked off, and the chance that any one individual will be crowned the winner is completely randomized! This gives a sense of everyone starting off in a fair and level position, with everyone in the same boat.
Virtual Team Building Bingo Games
As the times change and we shift more and more towards a work-from-home lifestyle, virtual team building events are becoming more popular than ever before. What better way to bring your remote team together than to facilitate a virtual team building event?
Get your remote team together and prepare for an awesome game of virtual bingo as an exciting team building activity! Participants can play right from the comfort of their own homes, on their mobile devices, or with printed out bingo cards.
Bingo… played virtually? Yes, we said it! It turns out that Bingo is actually one of the best games to play virtually with a remote team. It works well through virtual meeting calls as really only one person needs to speak at a time. For the most part, this would be the host. Then, once a player believes that they have won, they will shout out “Bingo!”.
Ideas that Make for Unique Games of Bingo
When it comes to creating the bingo board, there are many unique things you can do to make the game even more fun and different.
The traditional bingo card utilizes the letters B-I-N-G-O horizontally across the top and numbers listed down vertically for each letter.
You can change things up by making your own custom bingo cards.
Use Pictures Instead of Numbers. One fun idea is to change out the numbers for themed pictures. For example, how much cooler would bingo be if you were able to call out office supplies like “Stapler!” rather than just B-12.
Use Work-Specific Situations to get to know Each Other Better. You can even make bingo cards that are specific to your office and the people you work with. Call out work-specific situations and those who agree with or relate to them can mark off the specified space on their boards. This is a super fun idea for remote teams who don’t spend a lot of time together in person and want a way to get to know each other a bit better. Some fun examples for this include:
- Uses emojis in emails
- Prefers to work from a standing desk
- Joins Zoom meetings from the backyard
- Drinks more than two cups of coffee a day
- Joins Zoom meetings with their pajamas on
- Goes for walks on their lunch break
Get creative, these prompts are a lot of fun and will really help the team to learn more about their colleagues!
Utilizing Virtual Bingo as an Icebreaker Activity
Not only is Bingo great for team building, but it also serves as an excellent ice breaker activity. Playing a game of bingo is a fun way for a group of people who have never really met before to sit down and break the ice as they shout and laugh together throughout the game.
One way to make a game of bingo more icebreaker-friendly is by creating a game board that is specifically meant for participants to get to know each other better.
How do you do this? Create a board with personal characteristics, specific skills, or past experiences. Participants will then have to approach their colleagues to find someone who matches one of these characteristics in order to mark that square off their board.
Some examples of icebreaker ideas that you can add to your board include…
- Has traveled to Mexico
- Plays a musical instrument
- Is an only child
- Has a cat
- Was born in October
- Is a vegetarian
- Grew up in a different state
- Has blue eyes
- Works in accounting
- Drives a Toyota
Tweak these to fit your group and get creative! There are lots of variations that you can use in your icebreaker activity. As the participants move around and try to find colleagues that fit their bingo squares, they’re sure to learn a lot more about the people they work with!
Let team Building Unlimited Handle Your Next Game of Bingo!
Want to host a game of bingo for your corporate group but not sure where to start? At Team Building Unlimited, we offer an extremely fun, energized, and entertaining event called Bingo Bongo.
This is a regular game of bingo taken to new heights of excitement with entertaining hosts, amped-up energy, and an emphasis that is specifically placed on corporate team building.
The Bingo Bongo event can be customized to fit your group’s needs. The event can be hosted in-person, virtually, or in a hybrid setting. It can also be adjusted to fit the needs of a small team or a large team. We require a group with a minimum of 20 participants and a maximum of 1000 participants in order to book. The game lasts between one and two hours.
What Makes Team Building Unlimited’s Bingo Bongo Event So Special?
Bingo Bongo is Team Building Unlimited’s most popular and most requested event for a reason! It was our most requested event in all of 2021.
Classic bingo.. only with pumped up energy! Here at Team Building Unlimited, we really know how to set a game of bingo apart from the rest! Bingo Bongo is especially fun because we have taken the time to figure out what is needed to make players feel energized and excited to play.
Zany hosts make the game even more fun! Our hosts are the KEY to Bingo Bongo’s success and fun! When hosting the Bingo Bongo game, our hosts don’t use normal corporate speaking tones as they announce each number. We work hard to break the monotonous workplace discussion tone. This is why our hosts make an extra effort to be both entertaining and extremely zany! It makes for a refreshing break from the average work tone of talking “shop”.
The main character during the game is known as Rio. Rio is very reminiscent of the “coffee talk” character from SNL Live. Assistant characters, Razzle and Rocky, standby as Rio runs the show. All three hosts are able to capture and keep participant’s attention, as well as make them laugh!
A win = a celebration! The best part of all is, of course, when someone wins the game! In a game of Bingo Bongo, a win is not just simply a win… but it is a celebration! Rio, Razzle, and Rocky get the group excited and on board. They encourage all participants to get up and dance with each win, making for the most fun game of bingo ever!
Virtual Bingo with Team Building Unlimited
Just like with all of our other virtual team building events that we offer, we make it a point to make a virtual game of Bingo Bongo just as fun and just as seamless as an in-person game would be.
We have actually found that out of all of the events that we offer, Bingo Bongo is one of the games that tends to go the smoothest when played virtually.
For our virtual Bingo Bongo event, teams join a virtual meeting and have the same experience as they would in person. This means that the game is hosted by the same zany hosts, Rio, Razzle, and Rocky. They play along on a virtual meeting and we, of course, make sure to keep the same energy up when someone calls out “bingo!”.
The best part? We don’t use any apps to play the game, which means no download is required! We will simply set up links and send them out to your team so that they can access their Bingo playing card right from their device. They can then play right on their phones digitally or print it out to play along with a physical card.
We Bring the Fun to You!
Virtual Bingo
If you’re looking to host Bingo Bongo virtually for your team, we can host the team building event for teams anywhere in the world. Give us a call at 609-443-6550 to find out how we can get started planning your virtual game!
In-Person Bingo
If you are hoping to host an in-person game of Bingo Bongo for your team, rest assured that we can bring the fun to you! We offer our team building services in locations across the United States of America, Canada, and the Caribbean! Click here to see more about the locations that we serve.
Book Your Bingo Bongo Team Building Event
Ready to book your event? Our team members make planning and booking your team building event a breeze.
We are completely open to customizing the event of your choice to whatever your group needs. This includes the size of the group you are hosting the event for, the location (in-person, virtual, or more of a hybrid setting), and the way you would like to see the game played out.
In order to get started, give us a call at 609-443-6550 or fill out the contact form on our site. We will work with you to create a team building event that will be remembered by your team for years and years to come!