Fun Activities

1. Increase employee morale

2. Motivate employees to new heights

3. Spark creativity

4. Strengthen teamwork

5. Facilitate open communication

6. Minimize stress levels

7. Reduce employee turnover and absenteeism rates

8. Improve trust between management and employees

9. Offer dynamic customer service

10. Improve productivity

For more information on each one click here now.

"A good meeting toy is like a rosary or a set of worry beads. It gives the individual a way to relieve tension, engage the senses and play."  From Fun in the Meeting Room by Bernie DeKoven, a.k.a. Dr. Fun 

Spring Energizer

Break people into groups. Give each group a piece of flip chart paper and give them two minutes to brainstorm all the words that come to mind when you think of spring. Examples: warm, flowers, renewal, growth, fresh, flowers, birds, blue sky, etc,

Once the two minutes are up, give them 7-10 minutes to make up a story about the training program (meeting purpose or unit function such as customer service) using all the words on the flip chart. They should select one person to record the group's story and then, going around the room, have each group read their story out loud.

As an alternative you can have the participants illustrate their story.

Give away office toys for prizes. Another great activity to do with any customer service training program.

Make Your Own Poster Contest

Distribute flip chart paper to each team. This is a great addition to any customer service training program. Have them create a poster that represents caring customer service (or whatever subject you may be in class for such as effective coaching, caring leadership, etc.

Hang the posters in a common area such as the cafeteria or a common hall way. Invite all employees to come visit the "Customer Service Gallery."

To add excitement either appoint judges to choose the best or let all employees vote. Award prizes to the winning team.

Word Search Puzzles

Distribute various word search puzzles to use throughout the day. Use ours or create your own. Keep checking back ~ We add more all the time!

Collages

 
Materials: This is a great activity for any Customer Service Training Process. Get a lot of old magazines, company publications, trade journals, etc., scissors, glue and poster board. Hint: Several weeks a head of time ask several people to save magazines and trade journals for you. Give a stack to each team to find pictures and words that represent customer service or whatever topic you want, and cut them out. Encourage them to find colorful pictures, they just look better!

Instruct the teams or groups of individuals to find pictures, words and phrases that represent customer service. They should cut them out and glue them onto poster board and make a collage of customer service related items. A tip of judging a good collage is one that has the right pictures and words but they should not have any poster board showing. Everything should be covered.

If you want to keep the collages to display cover them with ModgePodge that you can get at your local craft store.

Customer Service Scavenger Hunt

 
Create a list of items each team must find. (During National Customer Service Week use service related items to add to the excitement! These can be a combination of answers they must look up about the company and/or it's work process and fun items that they can find around the office.) The more creative you are the more fun it will be.

This is a great idea for National Customer Service Week or a good activity for any customer service training.

Balloons

Balloons indicate something special is going to happen. Make arrangements to get in before every one else (if that is possible) and tie a balloon onto each persons chair. Watch their faces light up as they come into work that day.

We sell a variety of balloons as a custom orders. Cute mylar shapes and all colors of latex balloons that you can have imprinted. Custom orders have minimum requirements. Let us know what your occasion is and we'll do the rest!

Office Toys

 
Of course at Business FUNdamentals we think office toys should be a part of everyone's life every day! If you're having fun, things always seem to go a little smoother and life is more enjoyable overall. Every time you laugh it makes you feel a little better. We can help you select office toys that are just right for any occasion. If you need assistance we're always here to help.

Hearts or M & M's

 
A cute icebreaker or energizer for meetings held around Valentine's day. Get little boxes of heart candies. Pass them around and ask everyone to take a least one. Also tell them that they can take as many as they like. When the package makes it back to you tell them that they have to tell the group what each one says and they have to say one thing about themselves for each heart they took. i.e. if you take one heart you read it and tell the group one thing about yourself. If you take 5 hearts you have to read each one and tell the group 5 things about yourself. It's a funny icebreaker. Until Valentine's day you can use M & M's!

Cookies

 
Here are two ways to liven up an afternoon at the office. Read and/or Hand out excerpt from All I Ever Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten by Robert Fulghum at 3:00 and serve milk and cookies one day of the week. Great activity for national customer service week or do during any customer service training program.

Hand out little bags of cookies and The Cookie Thief Story to demonstrate there is more way to look at things. Great addition to use with the Three Views of Reality Card in Dealing A Winning Service Hand our Customer Service Training Program.

Your Recipe For Creating PMCE's

(Positive Memorable Customer Experience - an AchieveGlobal term used in their training programs.)

1 Heaping Cup of smiles
1 Pleasant Greeting
2 Generous Tablespoons of "How may I help you."
3 Cups of Prepared Questions
2 Firmly Packed Cups of Listening
1 Large Package of Warm Empathy
1/2 Dozen Options
1 Pleasant Closing

Set aside 2 tablespoons of smiles for garnishing. Take the remaining cup of smiles and blend them with your pleasant greeting. Next, gently pour in the "How may I help you's." Then, fold in your prepared questions along with the listening. Delicately combine the warm empathy along with the 1/2 dozen options. Mix well. Top off with a pleasant closing and evenly sprinkle remaining smiles.

Serve to your customers and repeat.

Click here for a recipe that is ready to print.

We picked this card up at an AchieveGlobal conference a few years ago. It came on a 5 X 7 recipe card typed up just like a recipe. It says "Recipe from the kitchen of JDC" on the top. We're packrats and save everything!

For all you AG facilitators this is for you!

Here are some suggestions how to frame some of our popular Office Toys

Bendeez - Reminder to be flexible. Maze Pens - Thanks for helping us work through the maze.
Puzzles - Thanks for helping us keep all the pieces together or you are an important piece of our puzzle. Slinkys of all kinds - To help you spring back.
Smile Bubble Groan Hammers - To remind you to keep a smile on your face.
Bendy to remind you that you can hear a smile in your voice.
Star Fish with Story - Because one person does make a difference!
Little Prizes - Great for class room give-aways

Cake

Go to your local bakery and have them make a special sheet cake(s) for you. Most bakeries have balloons or confetti cake decorations that will fit nicely with any celebration. If you are using a theme have them write your theme on the cake.

Awards

When timing is right you can give out awards to your best customers and/or employees. We make all kinds of specialized little trophies customized with blue ribbons and award cards starting at $5.00 each. We also have trophies, plaques and ribbons and a variety of other promotional products to fit any need.

Create PMCE Place Mats

 
PMCE - is AchieveGlobal term meaning Positive Memorable Customer Experiences. It is a term they use in their Customer Service Training Program.

Here is one to use as a guide. This PMCE place mat was developed by Claire Winterton (An AchieveGlobal Master Certified Trainer). If you select the images above you should be able to print a pdf version of this placemat.

Splurge and order Pepperoni, Mushroom , Cheese and Everything Pizza to serve on them.

Hold a Talent Show

 
Remember the talent shows when you were a kid? They are a lot of fun and provide great entertainment. Announce the talent show and have people sign up. Select a time - such as lunch where they will be able to show their talent. This is a great way to see what other talents your colleagues have. It's a lot of fun to get to see the human side of the people we work with all day. Encourage management to participate too.

Treasure Maps

 
Bury hidden treasure and provide treasure maps that provide hints where your treasure is hidden. Our squeezies make great hidden treasure but we can also provide treasure chests full of treasure for you. If you need help with creating a treasure map our in-house artist can create one for you!

Paper Bag Dramatics

 
Materials needed: Lunch size paper bags. (You can find these at the grocery store in packages.) Feathers, colored paper, sequins, roll around eyes, pipe cleaners - just a variety of stuff they can use to decorate the Paper Bag. Instruct the individuals or teams to construct the best paper bag puppet. Have them give it a name and provide a venue for them to be displayed. You can combine this with the skit and hold a Customer Service Puppet Show.

Ice Cream Social

 
Hold an Ice Cream Social. If large companies have cafeterias that serve ice cream you can coordinate this with them. If not, catering and vending companies provide this service. Have it in the middle of the afternoon and try to keep it a secret so it's really a surprise!

Hold a Mr. or Ms. Customer Service Contest

Have employees nominate people for Mr. or Ms. Customer Service, other categories can include: Most Reliable, Most Helpful, or whatever best suits your work place. Give Certificates as a reward. We can custom design them for you with a minimum of 25 total certificates.

Confetti

Go ahead, make every one think your a little crazy! We have a variety of different types of confetti available through our promotional products division. An important note: Be sure to get the okay from management before proceeding. Have all the supervisors or managers decide on a time to go through the unit spreading confetti (this should make the cleaning crew very happy too). Come up with a slogan or what you will say. Go ahead be bold - skip through the aisles showering everyone with confetti and playing the song "Celebrate good times, come on . . . "

This is a fun way to start a meeting too!

Hats

 
We have your standard ball caps and beach caps but what about pirate hats, sailor hats, cowboy hats, feather hats, psychedelic wigs, rainbow spikes, halos, clowns & jesters, top hats, animal hats, hats with hair. We can special order them all for you. Standard ball caps are priced according to options. Some of the fancy hats do have minimums. Call us at 1-877-681-2410 or send email. Let us know what you're interested in and we can provide price quotes.

Streamers

 
Use paper streamers to throw when awarding prizes for the best skit, collage, paper bag puppet show, etc.

Design Your Own Tee Shirt

We have hundreds of different makes of clothing in our promotional products section. Click here now to see a sample. Let us custom make T-Shirts, Polo Shirts, Ball Caps, Bags, Jean Shirts, Jackets, you name it we can do it! Imprinted clothing does have minimum order requirements.

The price varies by item so please contact us for details. We can assist with art development too!

Beach Balls

Beach balls are fun and fairly safe to bounce around the office. You can have contests with them to see who can keep it floating the longest. These are a great gift for any summer conference. We can have them imprinted for you too. Or you can use our Beach ball Squeezie.

Bubbles

 
We carry smiley bubble pens as a standard stock item. We have bubbles that we can imprint your slogan or logo on the label too and we have many bubble pens available as a custom order. Send email if you're interested.

Fresh Cut Flowers

 
Make arrangements with a local florist to have one flower delivered for each person in the office. Then you can have management distribute a carnation or, if you really want to spring for it, give a rose to each person in honor of special occasions.

Halloween Howl

 
Have a Call Center Masquerade Party. Have everyone dress up in costume. You can pick a theme and give small office toys prizes for the best costume, the most scary, the best interpretation of your theme, etc. Serve fun Halloween Treats Click here now for Halloween recipes and ideas. Give out word puzzles: Here's one: http://kids.msfc.nasa.gov/events/HalloweenFind.asp

Thanksgiving Ideas

 
Q: Why did the Pilgrims want to sail to America in the spring?
A: Because April showers bring May flowers!

Curious about the history of Thanksgiving? Here's a good summary of the Pilgrim's first feast as well as the actual year the annual celebration began. Click here now to go there. You will find the history of several holidays here.

Curious about Thanksgiving Recipes? There are a ton of them on the Internet however we're Food TV fans so we go there. Click here now.

Interested in trivia to use in your next customer service training program? Try our Trivia Games or make up your own! Do you want more? Here's a site with all kinds of trivia. Click here now.

Mouse Pads and other Promotional Products

 
We have a variety of mouse pads and other promotional products available. Call and let us know what you are looking for. This is a great way to remind employees about key learning concepts all year through. Hide all the items around the office then pass out the hints and have individuals or teams go around an find everything. If you are prepared and don't go overboard with number of items in the hunt, the whole activity from beginning to end should take about 20 minutes. Scavenger hunts are a fun way for individuals in training to find out where things are in the office. You can add items such as: a signature from a manager, supplies they may need in a regular day, a fact about the companies history, a definition they have to look up, a fact off your Intranet, etc. They can learn while having fun!

Most of all, always have FUN!