How Entrepreneurs Celebrated Diwali With Their Remote Teams?

The 'festival of lights', Diwali is celebrated with great pomp and show in our country. Families, friends, and colleagues all come together on this auspicious occasion to share greetings and seek blessings. However, since 2020 there are some changes in the way we are celebrating festivals owing to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Remote Working system.

Although entrepreneurs don't like to waste their time and money on such celebrations, they should understand that a festival like Diwali is one of the biggest marketing opportunities for their company. Along with that, they can make the office culture more engaging with celebrations and get-togethers.

There are several ways through which companies celebrated festivals along with their remote teams. We spoke to different entrepreneurs and they shared their unique and interesting ideas and plans by which they made Diwali 2020 interesting and engaging for everyone. So, let's take a look at them.

Zaggle
The British School of Etiquette India
Saba Group

Zaggle

Sparklers last only a few seconds, but the legend has lived for millennia. After the long war, when Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya, the city was dressed up with lamps and flowers. Diwali marks the return of the king and the Ramayana still remains India’s most enduring legend. Diwali or Deepavali means 'row of lamps' in Sanskrit. The festival marks the triumph of light over darkness.

However, given the effect of the pandemic on life, this season is bound to be very different from all these years. A new contactless and touch-free world together with a not-so-rosy economic scenario has not only seen a subdued but also a very different gifting culture emerging on the corporate front. Virtual Cards are the new way of gifting gifts to your employees working remotely by strictly following the government norms.

Digital Gift Cards were the trend this Diwali with so much of options available. Virtual Gift Cards are assortments of multiple clothing brands, Restaurants, Retail stores, Jewellery stores, Hotels, Entertainment options etc.  It’s all on a single virtual card providing corporates working remotely the liberty to choose where to spend their gift.

Companies like Zaggle and others who service this segment have seen a natural uptrend in the demand for virtual and digital gifting cards. According to Technopak, India's leading Management consultant, the total size of the Indian corporate & personal gifting market put together is about INR 250,000 crores today. Of this, the corporate gifting market in India is estimated to be INR 12,000 crores and is growing at over 200% per annum. This provides a peek into the size of business that digital gifting options have today.

"Zaggle has seen a huge demand for its digital gifting cards having already seen a turnover of Rs 2000+ Crores through them. It has introduced many innovative options for meeting client needs on a customised basis. The company expects to close this festive season, including Christmas and New Year, with a total turnover of Rs 5000 Crores from this segment. Zaggle has planned the following few activities: Having Fun With Employees' Talents: We hosted contests and gave prizes for creating festive-themed projects. Employees get creative and have fun with making photoshopped images, mad-lib RFPs, humorous gifs, and other playful versions of whatever it is they do best." - Raj N, Founder, Zaggle

The British School of Etiquette India

Niralee Shah, the CEO of  The British School of Etiquette India shared few ideas to get you started on spreading the merriment and virtual celebration to employees both near and far.

Share Videos and Photos of the Office Decoration for Diwali

Don’t let remote employees miss out on seeing office decorations, homemade treats, diyas and lanterns. Host a video tour, create a shared photo drive on dropbox or post pictures in your company’s chat or social media channels. Make them feel they are a part of the company although they are working remotely.

Send a Remote Care Gift

Send your employees a small care box of treats and have them open the box virtually. It can also be fun to open these gifts during a video call! Instead of gift hampers and gift exchanges during Diwali, give gifts that can be easily shared with remote employees. Electronic gift cards, concert/event tickets, travel packages, charitable donations and time off are all easily given by email.

Host Friendly Virtual Competitions

Get everyone in the spirit by hosting competitions that remote employees can easily participate in through video calls and shared photos. There are many competitions that you can host virtually Challenge your team to come up with the Best Diwali Dressiqutte or the best festive desk decorations.

Saba Group

"We planned to have a virtual Diwali celebration where our team members can dress their best in traditional dresses, create Rangoli’s & share pictures of them along with what they have created.  The best-dressed male & female and the most creative Rangoli design shall win exciting prizes that we have arranged for the activity. We also plan to have engagement activities such as singing, dancing, and virtual games like dumb charades, antakshari, Pictionary, trivia, and others.

We also played 'What’s On the Desk?' where we will ask them to submit a picture of an item on their work desk or any other belonging or any image on their mobile wallpaper. This shall be uploaded to our organization’s cloud drive. Then employees can start guessing the owners of those photos. The winner is the one with the most correct guesses.  We believe that such games allow employees to know each other better and bond. We plan to give our employees the chance to choose from two or three options and identify a gift that would be useful and helpful to them. We have also encouraged our team members to prepare delicacies and sweets at their home and exchange it among a group of team members through delivery agents. The joy of preparing for one’s team and impressing them will bring out the best in each employee & strengthen the relationship."- Malini Saba, Founder and Chairman, Saba Group

FAQs

What message does Diwali give out?

Diwali is a festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil.

What online platforms can be used to celebrate Diwali virtually?

Zoom or Google Meet is the best option for online platforms to celebrate Diwali with your colleagues.

How can you decorate your office this Diwali?

Paper lanterns, LED lights, Diyas, flower decorations, and Rangoli can be used to decorate the office.