Trivia team building

When I first moved to Long Beach, California last summer in order to offer team trivia for corporate groups in Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County and the entire West Coast, one of the first things which struck me was the sun.

As in, I was constantly sunburned.

I’d lived on the East Coast my entire life, and the only time I ever really thought about sunscreen was when I was at the beach, or otherwise exposed to the daylight elements for an extended period of time. Not so in Southern California. The ozone layer here is severely depleted; even minimal exposure to the sun is like being inside a nuclear reactor core. I was shocked to find myself burned from simply taking a short walk outside, or even taking a brief drive to drop my kids off at school. I didn’t like it at first, but I’ve since learned to put on sunscreen EVERY time I go outside, no matter how brief the excursion (click here for some other surprises I got when I moved to SoCal).

There was other stuff I discovered after my move here, things I could only figure out after I’d become settled. Mainly, how would running my entire East Coast operation remotely go? I gave myself the better part of a year to prepare, made every arrangement I could rationally think of: identifying and training corporate emcees to host trivia events, working out a streamlined event production process, and practicing how to delegate tasks large and small which I had previously assumed myself (follow this link for more on how I prepared for the move to Long Beach). But as I joked with comedian Christian Finnegan, one of the “Special Talent” emcees whom I have the honor of working with, after he hosted an NYC event soon after I relocated: you can’t see the leaks until after the ship is in the water. That is to say, despite the most careful planning and rigorous preparation, when you are trying something new and untested, you just don’t know what will happen until after it’s happened.

Which brings me to the point of this blog post (I may be long-winded, but I do eventually get there…)

Because what TrivWorks does is so unique – trivia team building for company events – I am well aware that some planners might be a bit hesitant about presenting our service to the decision makers, or bringing us aboard outright. As somebody who cut his teeth in this line of work by freelancing for two years at City Hunt, the country’s leading corporate scavenger hunt company, I know for a fact that what we do is definitely something different. Traditional office entertainment and group bonding activities in Los Angeles, New York or anywhere in between are well-established and proven, often for many decades: the aforementioned hunts, competitive cooking classes, sailing, ropes courses, build-a-bike, build-a-bear or what have you. Trivia, though? That’s a different story altogether.

Like my move to the West Coast, I find that planners such as yourself often don’t know what to expect with our events, even after receiving all of the information and assurances that they will be a success and well-received by everyone in attendance. We truly are the industry leader in this unique niche area, having done it since 2009 for a diverse range of Fortune 500 companies nationwide, and having been featured in many top-tier consumer and trade media outlets. But I realize that even with all of this, there is at times still some hesitation.

Until, that is, the event begins.

I always conduct post-event recap calls with all of our clients, and if there is one piece of feedback which I can consistently rely on from nervous new clients, it is this: “The moment it started, we all understood right away how much fun it was going to be!” I’ve got high-quality videos I can share with prospects, and even higher-quality testimonials – however, until groups experience our unique trivia team building activities firsthand, they really don’t know what to expect, or if it will go over well.

Trust me – it ALWAYS goes over well.

I don’t say that to be boastful; rather, I’m still in awe, nearly eight years after founding this company, that groups of all sizes, backgrounds and industries respond so enthusiastically to these events. It makes me so proud to hear that the audience had a blast, or when the organizer comes up to me afterwards and says, “That was SO much fun!” It’s an amazing feeling, and something I wish I could bottle up in some way and present to any new clients who may be feeling some trepidation about proposing TrivWorks for the next company function.

Why does it always go over so well? Probably because it’s a safe, low-risk offering. And really, that’s the concern the planner has in the end, isn’t it? That something they’ve recommended, with their name on it, will be an absolute flop; that it will be poorly received, reflecting badly upon not only him or her, but their boss, their department, their company. This is something I am keenly aware of, and what I have sought to address since I first hung out my shingle.

First of all, our events are professional. What does that mean? It means, everything audience-facing (ie: what your event attendees will experience) as well as your experience behind the scenes putting everything together, will be 100% polished. You’re not getting a bar trivia host from the pub down the block, or an actor from Craig’s List who’s never done this before. I only work with highly-experienced and trained corporate emcees, who can be trusted in front of ANY room full of colleagues, executives, board members or clients.

You’re also getting professionally-written trivia material, meaning we’ve got the experience and the know-how to make sure it is appropriately fun and challenging, and reflects well on you, the planner. I’ve been writing trivia for live audiences since 2006, and for corporate groups since 2009 – both my writers and I know what is acceptable for company events, and we can represent you and your professional/personal brand exceptionally well here.

Being professional also means we are here with you from beginning to end. As part of our services, we provide ongoing counsel throughout the entire process: from administration and booking the venue, to breaking your group up into teams, to incorporating your customization fun facts and key messages into the material, and everything in between. You can count on me to be extremely responsive in both my communications as well as my delivery of service, and I only work with event producers and hosts whom I trust to do the same. In short, you’re in good hands.

And so yes, I can assure you that when working with a professional trivia company like TrivWorks, your team building events are a safe bet. It will be smooth and professional, highly effective, and just an absolute blast for every single person in attendance. Your colleagues, clients or brand enthusiasts will be coming up to you afterwards thanking you for such a great time, and I will be here beaming, knowing that we’ve helped – while making you look great in the process!