Corporate Christmas party idea: online quest and digital gift shop

Ho-ho-ho! Winter is coming faster than you think, and it’s time to plan the corporate Christmas party. We have an idea for you: a fun online quest where people earn points and get cool branded gifts from your company’s swag shop.

In 2025, many workers still work remotely or in a hybrid model. According to the 2025 Forbes Advisor poll, out of 1100 respondents, 63% work from home offices. When employees are scattered around the globe, organizing a corporate Christmas party becomes a real challenge. How do you make everyone feel special and connected when they’re far apart?

Of course, you can organize an office Christmas party in the head office, covering everyone’s travel expenses, but it requires increased travel budgets to connect employees.

This year, let’s try something more cost-efficient, new, and exciting: a fun online Christmas game where everyone plays, earns points, and gets awesome branded gifts from your company’s swag shop!

Below, you’ll find:

A whole scenario of a virtual corporate Christmas party
Top online games for the party
How to create a free company gift store to reward the participants
34 ideas of gifts that you can offer in exchange for the earned points

Remote corporate Christmas party idea: an online quest

Think of it as a series of mini-games, all with a festive twist. Everyone plays (alone or in small groups) and earns points for challenges they complete. The best part is that all these points turn into real gifts that employees choose themselves!

Implementation steps

Create a committee with representatives from each department and define responsibilities. Every person is responsible for a specific task: gameplay creation, points calculation and leaderboard update, merch ordering and swag shop creation, hosting the online corporate party, overall project management, etc.
Design 5-7 fun online games around the winter holiday topic (find Christmas game ideas below).
Develop a points system and a leaderboard that should be updated every day.
Select and order branded gifts for employees.
Create a free digital gift shop where people can redeem gifts for the earned points.
Start the contest two weeks before the event.
Host a virtual corporate Christmas party.
Conclude with an awards celebration.
Assign bonus points to every employee based on the leaderboard and share links to access a swag shop.

7 top virtual corporate Christmas party games

Divide the Christmas game into two parts, allowing people to earn points before and during the online Christmas party. Thus, you create a festive atmosphere well before the party, stimulating competition and pleasant anticipation.

Before the online party

Ugliest holiday sweater/ best decorated desk contest. Hold this game two weeks before the online party. Ask people to snap a selfie in their ugliest Christmas sweater in their decorated home office and motivate others to vote in comments or reactions. The one who gets the most votes becomes a point-winner.

Meme generators. Ask people to generate memes related to the company’s agenda and events of the year. They can use free meme generators like Imgflip, Canva, or Viggle. Let them share the memes in a dedicated Slack channel or intranet and vote. Three top-rated memes get bonus points before the event.
Christmas cooks. Winter is the best season for cinnamon rolls, cookies, gingerbreads, cacao, mulled wine, and many other home treats. Why not stimulate people to cook, decorate at home, and share photos on a corporate social network to earn points? As cooking can be demanding, give away points to all the cooks; they deserve it.

During the online company Christmas party

Holiday quiz. A quick, fun trivia game about Christmas movies or traditions. For example, in the movie Home Alone, what city does the McCallister family accidentally leave Kevin behind when they go on vacation? Or what other American holiday was the “Jingle Bells” song originally written for? Define the game’s rules clearly: the first to enter the correct answer in the meeting chat earns a point.
Virtual scavenger hunt. Give a list of festive items or concepts (e.g., something red and sparkly, a holiday ornament from your childhood, a cup of hot cocoa, a gingerbread). Your players will find these items in their homes and show them on camera, or take a photo and upload it within a time limit. You give points for each item found.
Guess the song. Play short holiday tunes and have employees guess the song. The winner is the first correct answer in the meeting chat.
Guess the song by emoji. Present popular holiday song titles using only emojis (e.g., 🎵🔔🎵🔔🎵🛣️, “Jingle Bells”).

Why hold a remote corporate party with a swag shop

Everyone gets involved: It’s interactive and engaging, not just watching a screen.
Team fun: According to Owl Labs’ State of Hybrid Work Report 2024, 19% of remote employees experience loneliness at work. A gathering of such a kind builds team connection and gives everyone a reason to laugh together.

Virtual company Christmas party - Zoom meeting

Gifts that people love: People choose gifts from a swag shop, so they’re always happy with their prize.
Zero merch logistics for you: We handle the tricky gift-sending to all geographic locations.
Memorable. This party will be one they talk about for a long time.

How Swag42 merch shop makes it easy

Digital Christmas gift shop for employees — This can be your company’s Christmas gift shop

Swag42 Platform helps you turn points into presents. Look how it works.

Before the corporate Christmas party

First, you order branded gifts for employees and create a company gift store based on the Swag42 Platform. The platform is free of charge, and the swag shop setup takes 1 minute.

Create a special collection of holiday-themed or highly desirable branded items for the participants: premium sherpa sweatshirts, high-tech non-traditional gadgets like waffle makers or bio fireplaces, gourmet coffee sets, or stylish hats – all with your company’s logo.

Explore the full winter holiday gift collection

When the swag is ready, you set up a custom swag shop and assign points to every gift depending on its value.

1. Enter the shop name, URL, and short intro. Then, upload the logo.

2. Choose the items you want to display in the gift shop. Then, assign points to each gift.

You’ve done it!

Try the free Swag42 Platform

After the company Christmas party

After the party, the earned points are redeemed for gifts. You turn your team’s points into “gift money” that they can spend in your digital swag shop. More points mean cooler gifts!

Assign a fixed bonus points to all employees while giving extra points for completed tasks and won competitions.

No more guessing what people want! Your team picks exactly what they like – maybe a cozy blanket, a cool mug, or a Bluetooth speaker. Just share magic links to the swag shop with the correct number of points.

Santa mug wwith a lid for corporate Christmas party

Cloud-shaped string lights for company Christmas party

Once your team picks their gifts, Swag42 handles all the shipping. We send the selected gifts directly to their homes, no matter where they are. No stress and extra tasks for you or your team —track each delivery in real time on the platform.

Best swag ideas for a company Christmas gift shop

For your convenience, we’ve picked up the most suitable, desirable, and most ordered Christmas corporate gifts for employees that you can order from the swag shop.

Branded clothes

Comfortable, stylish, branded clothes give your employees something tangible that connects them to the team, even from afar. These items become cozy reminders of company and appreciation, perfect for feeling united during a virtual company Christmas party and beyond.

Denim overshirt with eco-leather details—from €67.40
Sherpa Fleece Jacket—from €100.84
Brushed Flannel Shirt—from €70.39

Branded teddy plush mittens for corporate gifts for employees

Warm vests —from €56.84
Hoodies—from €48.39
Sweatshirt with a plush Christmas patch—from €35.19
Warm socks—from €7.19
Mittens—from €30.79
Eco-wool home slippers—from €29.69
Blankets made from wool or fleece—from €32.56
Classic beanie hat—from €9.89
Reversible Scarf —from €29.00

Branded gifts for a holiday atmosphere beyond a corporate Christmas party

To extend the virtual corporate Christmas party cheer into employees’ homes, consider branded gifts that enhance the holiday atmosphere. These thoughtful items help create a joyful, festive environment. They are perfect for setting the mood and creating lasting holiday memories.