Ideas for small business owners to do during the World Cup

Whisper it quietly but World Cup fever is slowly gripping the UK. Expectations for England and the Three Lions are modest this time round, but the excitement World Cup fever can bring for a nation and retailers can be huge! We have produced a few tips and suggestions to ensure your employees remain productive throughout the tournament.

The Global audience is captivated for such a big event, as it captures fans, spectators and even naysayers. The opportunity for fans to see Messi, Ronaldo, Milivojevic and Neymar line up on the biggest world stage is a joy to behold. Nowadays it is so easy to voice an opinion with avenues such a Twitter, internet forums and other social media platforms allowing fans to rave or berate players at the ease of a button. This blog will give small business owners tips on how to motivate your work force over the next 4 weeks.

Offer a prize

Get your employees to pick the first 3 places (winner, runner up, 3rd place) and provide a tiebreak question, for example how many combined goals will Harry Kane and Neymar score in the 2018 World Cup? Sounds simple enough doesn’t it, but why not offer a prize for first place, the prize big or small helps with the feel good factor and increases staff buy in!

Even non football fans can join in, and stand a chance to win. Something that sounds so simple can last over 4 weeks and can help improve morale, motivation and drive up productivity.

Arrange rotas

The kick offs for Russia are primarily 1pm, 4pm & 7pm during the week, so based on that there is a good chance it will impact your workforce with some requesting time off. By not implementing an infrastructure to support your business during peak trading times, could put you and your company under pressure. If you think you’ll find yourself in this position, make it clear that you expect somebody to be available in any given department during a match, but add that how they organise their time is up to them. The fact you have done everything possible to accommodate everyone will no doubt be appreciated.

Staff performance

No manager wants to be too stringent or regimented during World Cup 2018, but regardless good performance from your workforce is expected. It is important to ensure staff aren’t too relaxed and they are aware of any impending deadlines and adhere to any client requests. A recent report in the Guardian stated workers are up to 12% more productive when they’re happy.

Create opportunities for socialising

It’s important to create opportunities for staff to get to know one another outside of work. We often spend more time with our colleagues than we do our loved ones. Maybe book a table in the pub after work and watch one of the games whilst having some quality social time with your colleagues. It offers a different approach to office environment and the football is common topic of discussion.

Introduce a TV in the Office

Making a TV available for staff to watch games in work during the tournament could actually save your business time and money – as otherwise your staff will have no choice but to browse iPlayer or ITV for a live stream or stay out for an extended lunch. This way once the final whistle blows your staff can return to work almost immediately and it also allows them to keep afloat of the scores. We don’t generally recommend sound for the commentary though!

Invite clients to watch the match too

If you are a small business owner the World Cup may be the perfect opportunity to network and build existing relationships. Why not propose going for one of the games? Or alternatively you could host the client at your business premises with a light spread and even a cold beverage. Small steps go a long way to building relations. What tips would you share?