With the pandemic came the lockdown that saw everything moving online, including meetings. And these virtual events that are hosted online bring together people from different parts of the globe.

So, with more employees working remotely, different virtual meeting platforms have proven great for hosting interactive sessions. However, although these meetings are great, keeping all the participants engaged throughout the meeting can be an uphill task.

In most instances, long and repetitive virtual meetings have made participants restless. So, if you are hosting a virtual meeting, here are several reasons why you need to make them enjoyable: 

 #1.To Increase Participation and Engagement

Once you make a meeting enjoyable by providing virtual corporate entertainment, you might start experiencing greater participation and engagement from the attendees. And engaged employees tend to take active roles in team meetings by sharing insights and ideas.

With constructive output from different team members, there will be an increase in the efficacy of meetings. Additionally, engaged employees won't interrupt the flow of the meeting by being destructive or negative towards their team members.

Most times, meetings are used to communicate high–value objectives. And by keeping employees engaged, you have a high likelihood of them remembering major objectives discussed in the meetings.

You'll also get feedback from engaged attendees on issues that may be affecting them negatively. And with this knowledge, you'll be able to find ways to boost team member morale and remove obstacles that slow down performance. 

 #2.To Boost Structure

 Effective meetings need a structure that ensures things stay formal with well-established goals that don't become time-wasters in the end. It enables discussion of ideas and solutions while staying within the parameters of the agenda.

In addition, boosting your structure helps keep your meeting productive and motivating. So, when organizing a virtual meeting, make sure it's enjoyable enough by keeping it balanced and organized. 

#3.It Facilitates Problem Solving

As discussed above, making virtual meetings enjoyable boosts engagement levels between team members. And once team members start engaging and offering their input, most problems might be solved.

Employees will be able to identify and take advantage of opportunities around them in the future. And this process is made possible by the power of problem-solving.

You can present a problem, let the members debate, and try to solve it. This way, you can make your meeting productive and members inspired and happy. 

#4.To Reduce Tardiness And Absence

 By making meetings enjoyable, more team members would want to attend them. And the more members look forward to the virtual meetings, the less disruption there is that affect your workflows.

Keep in mind that when there's a disruption in workflow, a decrease in the overall productivity of the entire team comes. In addition, the delay affects the company's culture as other team members might start perceiving it as acceptable.

When one team member comes in late or becomes absent, it damages the rest of the team member's morale. Thus, it might be time to increase the fun in every meeting. 

#5.To Promote Inclusion

Inclusion is very important in the workplace, and just like diversity, it's a vital core value. Employees who enjoy inclusion tend to be more engaged and have a higher retention rate.

Moreover, inclusion brings about a sense of belonging, which helps find a creative way for employees to work in a distributed environment. You might also help every team member to innovate, share new ideas, and speak up.

To enhance innovation, make virtual meetings enjoyable enough to promote inclusion. Innovations can also mean creating a diverse way of thinking, approach to problem-solving and diverse experiences that form presentation.

 #6.To Reduce Distraction

 Distraction tends to reduce the effectiveness of a meeting, especially virtual ones. For most people, the virtual meeting may not have direct supervision, or the meeting may be boring. Enjoyable meetings mean having a longer attention span, which is beneficial when discussing integral business matters.

Once you reduce distraction, your team members might have improved memory, leading to decreased stress. The lack of distraction will also impact the way team members get to interact with each other.

#7.To Facilitate Creative Thinking

With enjoyable meetings comes an increase in engagement and participation, facilitating creative thinking. And every meeting deserves team members who are willing to devise great solutions to different problems.

Creative thinking also allows you to look for new ideas you can implement in the company. In addition, it fosters better teamwork which in turn leads to bonding. Furthermore, employees with creative thinking tend to have boosted morale.

It gets easy to stay stuck in the same thought process that may delay innovation and keep your company in a routine. As a result, an enjoyable meeting that facilitates creative thinking will help you develop creative skills that may set your company apart. 

 #8.Heightened Productivity

 A fun meeting will boost engagement and facilitate creative thinking, but it'll also heighten productivity. And with increased productivity comes goal achievement as employees remain motivated to achieve the business's goals after the meeting.

In addition to hitting goals, heightened productivity will encourage efficiency when working. And efficiency is boosted by effective communication gotten from the inclusive meeting. By engaging team members, you'll provide clear direction on what you expect from team members.

To increase productivity, the goals should be clearly defined, and employees empowered to be focused. 

Bottom Line

Virtual meetings can be tiring and frustrating, especially for new users. And just like any other meeting, you'll need to keep engagement rates high by making the meeting enjoyable. As a result, you must make the team members feel involved throughout the meeting.

You can make the meeting enjoyable by doing several things, such as keeping the meeting short as most workers may not be able to focus for longer than forty-five minutes. In addition, try to incorporate discussion and presentation to allow members to respond and participate.

Remember to add participatory elements like games and team challenges to help break icebreakers. You can also incorporate visual aids such as video conferencing tools explaining concept ideas to the team.