How to Host a Virtual Party

It’s virtual party time! Poply is here to help you host your next unforgettable online event. When you can’t physically gather with friends and family, Poply’s online invitation maker empowers you to spend quality time with your guests.

Poply’s mission is all about bringing people together. Both our site and app help people seamlessly connect, no matter how far away they may be. Poply has several features specifically designed for creating the ideal online event:

  • Use meeting links in place of a physical address
  • Clickable links
  • Time zone support

Drop a meeting link into your invite in place of a physical address. Any additional links included in your invitation are clickable so guests can quickly access complimentary websites. And don’t worry about juggling multiple time zones — we handle those adjustments for you!

With so many options, how do you choose what you should do at your online gathering? We have a few ideas to help you host an amazing virtual party!

Adult Birthday

Adults like to celebrate their birthdays, too! To really make your party memorable, choose an exciting theme and ask guests to do their best to join in with what they have on hand. The options are endless! Consider going formal — at least from the waist up! You could send out an on-theme cocktail recipe in advance and ask your guests to pour their beverages before your video call starts. You can even send a group card from the whole gang! You can find lots of options on our sister site, Birthday Alarm.

Kid’s Birthday

There’s nothing quite like the charm and chaos of a bunch of kids in an online meet-up! However, we all know how easily distracted and overwhelmed the kiddos can get. Our advice? Keep it short and sweet! Plan for about an hour and have a theme and corresponding activity lined up for the kids in advance. If the children attending are mostly local, you can arrange to have them drop off gifts and pick up favors or activity packets before the party. On party day, everyone can do the activity at the same time. A small craft project, coloring sheets, or a Lego building project would make for a birthday your kid will never forget!

Graduation Party

Sometimes an in-person grad party isn’t an option because family and friends are too far away or unable to travel. Your hard-working graduate can still celebrate their accomplishments with a virtual graduation party! Gather friends and family together on a video call and ask the grad to wear their cap and gown. You can create lifelong memories by having the graduate receive a bit of life wisdom from the guests — silly or serious!

Dinner Party

Having a tough time getting together for a meal with your pals? Having a dinner-time hangout on Zoom or Facebook Messenger is an easy and stress-free way to help busy folks kick back with their friends and loved ones. For the full dinner experience, pick a meal that you’d all like to try, drop a link to the recipe in the “Description” section of your invite, then prepare it in your own homes. If cooking isn’t the best option for your group, have each person order their favorite delivery or carryout meal. After all, there’s nothing that quite compares to good food with good friends! Some ideas from The Every Hostess can make a virtual dinner party even more special.

Cocktail Party

A virtual cocktail party or an online happy hour is one of the easiest ways to get together and socialize. Whether you’re chatting with the gang or winding down with your co-workers after a long day working from home, it’s great to gather and see familiar faces. Everyone can grab whatever drink they have on hand and settle in on the couch. Most video conference apps have backgrounds that can really add some fun and flash to your online meet-up. If you’re not sure where to start, try one of these cool images from Unsplash.

Baby Shower

For those who have a little one on the way but can’t meet in-person with their loved ones, a virtual baby shower is a lovely way to celebrate parents-to-be. When your loved ones live far away or your remote work team wants to throw an online party, a little pre-planning can help it go off without a hitch.

Ensure the best gifts by putting a link to your gift registry in the “Description” section of your Poply invite. Guests will be able to click through right from the invitation so they can make a purchase with ease. Encourage the future parents’ friends and family to send gifts directly to their home, then they can open their new strollers, stuffies, and cute little onesies on camera for all to see. When it’s time for the party, many baby shower games can easily be played online to keep the conversation rolling.

Love

When planning an important celebration of love — wedding, bridal shower, or anniversary celebration — the event location can sometimes be a bit too far away for every special person to attend. When some folks are unable to make the trip, your long-distance loved ones can hop online to celebrate the big day! Poply’s clickable links make connecting to a live stream or video conference service a breeze and time zone support ensures that everyone knows exactly when to log on (with no complicated time zone math required!).

For seamless event streaming, LoveStream provides top-tier, live video access for your unforgettable event. No matter where your guests may be, everyone can be a part of your magical celebration of love!

Just Because

Parties don’t always require a big event— sometimes it’s nice to get together “just because”. Grab your knitting supplies and get your girls together for an online stitch-n-bitch, host a remote version of your book or film club, or get all your far-flung relatives together for a check-in to see how everyone is doing.

Remote watch parties are another great way to connect with friends. Many streaming companies offer watch party support, complete with group chat options. Pop some popcorn and settle in for a great night with your favorite people!

Business Meeting

With the dramatic increase in remote work over the past few years, virtual events are a great way to keep businesses running smoothly. From casual hangouts to formal webinars, Poply can help you connect with team members and customers alike.

Use Poply to plan fun team-building activities. Whether you’re logging on for a group gaming session, celebrating a holiday, or brown-bagging it while having a chill hangout in your virtual breakroom, you can be sure that your team stays inspired and connected.

Poply also makes it easy to keep your clients in the loop. Inviting folks to an online Q&A session can be a great way to keep far-flung clientele in a close orbit. Have a brief “state of the union” address and then open the session up for questions from your audience.

Nightlife

Many musicians, DJs, comedians, and other performers stream their performances online. To host a watch party, invite your friends with a Poply invitation, then stream the show together.

If you’re a performer, you can customize Poply invites to reflect your unique style and brand. Promote your upcoming event with high-quality photos and videos to help entice your potential audience and make your Poply invite unforgettable. Add a streaming link to help get your fanbase hyped, then print out physical flyers with your Poply QR code and post them around town.