What if the secret to hitting your sales targets… wasn’t in the numbers?
As Director of Sales at TeamBonding, I’ve spent nearly seven years helping organizations build stronger, more connected teams through fun, impactful experiences. But before we dig into my take on sales team building activities, let’s rewind for a second.
I like to say I’ve been in sales since birth. From lemonade stands and negotiating dessert allowances as a kid to running my own venture in eighth grade—SamBayTy Airbrush Temporary Tattoos (which dominated my hometown’s Bar & Bat Mitzvah market)—selling has always been second nature.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that sales team building activities aren’t just nice to have—they’re a must. The right activity can boost morale, build trust, and set your team up for measurable success.
In this article, I’ll share my best tips for making your next sales kickoff meeting not only unforgettable, but actually useful. Let’s turn “just another meeting” into the moment your team levels up.
Why Are Sales Team Building Activities Essential for Kickoffs?
Sales kickoffs set the tone for the entire quarter or year ahead. They’re not just about sharing targets and strategies—they’re about energizing your team and getting everyone aligned and excited about what’s to come.
In my experience, team building for sales teams is especially powerful during kickoffs because it:
Builds Real Connections
Team building helps your salespeople feel like they’re part of something bigger. It’s not just their role or their department, but a team united around shared goals. The right sales team building activities create that sense of unity that’s essential for collaborative selling.
As someone who’s moved from selling exclusively in the Texas region to managing nationwide client relationships, I’ve seen firsthand how crucial these connections are.
When your team knows and trusts each other, they’re more likely to share wins, collaborate on challenging accounts, and support one another through the inevitable ups and downs of sales cycles.
My coworker Jayne and I playing some Corporate Feud!
Creates a Lasting Impression
A little fun goes a long way. When your team genuinely enjoys themselves, it builds energy that sticks. You want them walking away saying, “That was the best kickoff we’ve ever had.”
Even better? When they share photos, stories, and experiences with teammates, clients, and even on social media. It reinforces your culture and gets them excited to keep selling and come back even more energized to the event next year.
Strengthens Company Alignment
Team building breaks down silos, builds trust, and ensures everyone’s aligned. It’s a powerful way to reinforce your company’s values and vision. For a sales team to stay motivated, they need to believe in what they’re selling and the company behind it.
I’ve seen this play out countless times with our clients. Sales meeting activities that incorporate company messaging in a fun, interactive way help reps internalize key selling points and brand values much more effectively than a standard PowerPoint presentation.
Drives Engagement and Performance
When people feel connected and supported, they’re naturally more engaged. That energy carries into their work and shows up in the results.
Team building isn’t just fun, it actually drives results! When your team is more engaged, they’re more connected to the brand, each other, and the bigger picture. This energy translates directly into productivity.
More engaged salespeople means more collaboration, more momentum, and ideally, more closed deals. And when you close more deals, that means increased revenue.
How Sales Team Building Activities Impact Performance
After eight years (and counting) with TeamBonding, I’ve seen firsthand how team building significantly boosts sales team performance:
Increases Brand Knowledge and Passion
Sales teams must LOVE and UNDERSTAND the brand to effectively communicate its value to clients. Here are a couple of great sales team games to boost brand knowledge and passion in your employees:
- Game shows: Customized corporate game shows reinforce critical product details after a sales kickoff—these can be particularly helpful in industries like tech and pharmaceuticals, where deep product knowledge is essential
- Sales team games: Fun programs like Corporate Feud help teams internalize brand values and key selling points in a memorable, competitive environment
Sharpens Presentation and Communication Skills
Presentation is critical in sales. Your team must deliver concise, powerful messages to capture client interest and trust. Here are some of my favorite interactive activities for sales teams to hone communication and presentation skills:
- Storytelling activities: Team PechaKucha trains teams to present clearly, concisely, and powerfully, perfecting pitches for client interactions
- Quick thinking exercises: Group improv games or Shark Teams AI build adaptability and quick-thinking skills, helping sales teams respond authentically and persuasively to client needs
Strengthens Collaboration and Creative Problem Solving
Big sales are rarely a one-person job; successful teams lean on each other to tackle client challenges. Here are some fantastic ways to strengthen collaboration and creative problem-solving skills:
- Team challenges: Programs like Beat the Box and Chain Reaction foster collaboration, break down departmental silos, and encourage teams to collectively take on challenges
- Lighthearted games: Fun sales games for meetings, conferences, and retreats alike help create the psychological safety needed for creative thinking and solution-finding
Shows Appreciation and Boosting Morale
Sales teams thrive when they feel valued—it’s well worth the time and money to recognize and reward their efforts with engaging activities that blend fun and competition. Here are a couple that top my list:
- Wine tasting: Our Winery Team Challenge combines in-house wine tasting and lively sangria-making competitions, giving your team a chance to relax after a long day, compete in a friendly atmosphere, and feel genuinely appreciated and motivated to achieve even more
- Culinary fun: Food brings people together and is an excellent morale booster—our Murder Mystery Dinner and the Ultimate Pizza Challenge are two very effective options that’ll have your team excited and laughing for hours at a time
Best Sales Team Building Activities for Your Next Kickoff
Investing in team building equips your sales force to deeply connect with your brand, confidently present solutions, and collaborate effectively, which leads directly to enhanced sales performance and stronger morale.
Based on my experience working with hundreds of sales teams across the country, here are some of my favorite team building activities specifically designed to energize sales kickoffs:
1. In It to Win It: High-Energy Competition
This is one of my go-to recommendations to kick off sales meetings because it perfectly matches the competitive spirit we need to succeed. In It to Win It is inspired by the hit TV show, and it’ll energize your team right out of the gate.
This fast-paced, competitive event is perfect for setting the tone and getting everyone engaged. It’s a motivational activity for sales teams of all sizes where members will compete in a series of minute-to-win-it-style challenges that require quick thinking, coordination, and teamwork.
2. Go Team-Opoly: City Exploration Scavenger Hunt
Here’s one that’s great for getting your team out and about in the city where you’re hosting your sales kickoff. Team-opoly is a fully customizable scavenger hunt that uses hilariously oversized pieces and fun challenges around the city of your choice.
This activity works wonderfully for sales teams because it combines strategy, teamwork, and friendly competition. All skills that translate directly back to the sales floor. It also provides meaningful roles for everyone to play, making it a perfect sales meeting icebreaker for getting everyone acquainted.
3. Corporate Quiz Bowl: Product Knowledge Game Show
Corporate Quiz Bowl is one of the most effective out-of-the-box sales meeting ideas around. The classic gameshow format tests your team’s knowledge of your products, industry, customers, and company culture in an engaging, competitive setting.
What makes this particularly valuable for sales kickoffs is how easily it can be customized to reinforce key messages from your strategy sessions. We’ve had clients use this to drive home new product features, competitive advantages, and pain points in ways that are more memorable than traditional training.
4. Team Improv: Thinking on Your Feet
There’s something special about watching a team of normally reserved or unsure employees completely transform after our Teamprov workshop. Thinking quickly, listening actively, and responding authentically are all core sales skills—and improv exercises develop exactly these capabilities.
I’m not the only one who thinks so, either. We had a chat with Robert Mattson, author of The Salesperson’s Guide to Storytelling, during a recent episode of the Team Building Saves The World podcast, and he shared some powerful insights on the importance of improv:
“What is a sales call, or what is an investor meeting, or what is a CEO talking to their employees, except improv? It’s like, ‘I know my script. I know what I’m gonna talk about, but I know things are gonna go wrong and people are gonna ask questions I’m not ready for. I have to have a bunch of stuff prepped in my back pocket that I can haul out so it looks like I’m smooth.’ That’s called improv!”
How to Choose the Right Sales Team Building Activity
One of my favorite things to do is hear about a team and help pick the best event—one that’ll solve their current goals and pain points, not just something that checks a box.
Here are some key things to consider when selecting sales team building activities:
1. Know Your Team’s Current Challenges
Is your team struggling with:
- Knowledge gaps about new products?
- Communication between sales roles?
- Morale after missing recent targets?
- Integration of new team members?
If so, pick activities that specifically address these challenges. For a team with knowledge gaps, game show formats work well. For communication issues, collaborative challenges like Chain Reaction might be more appropriate.
2. Consider Your Venue and Time Constraints
Some activities require specific space requirements or minimum time investments. Make sure the activities you select fit within your kickoff agenda and venue capabilities.
For example, if you’re in a hotel conference room with limited space, something like STEM Speedway might not be ideal, but Corporate Feud could work perfectly.
3. Match the Energy to Your Goals
Different activities create different energy levels. If your kickoff is launching an aggressive growth campaign, high-energy competitive activities reinforce that message.
Likewise, if you’re focusing on better collaboration between sales and other departments, choose activities that mix teams and emphasize cooperative problem-solving.
4. Incorporate Your Key Messages
The best sales team games don’t feel like forced corporate messaging—they naturally incorporate your key themes. Work with your team building provider to customize activities around your kickoff theme, incorporating product details, sales strategies, or company values into the challenges themselves.
Making Team Building a Consistent Part of Sales Culture
While sales kickoffs are perfect opportunities for team building, the most successful sales organizations make team building a consistent part of their culture. Consider:
- Monthly challenges: Create ongoing friendly competition with monthly sales team building exercises
- Celebration rituals: Develop specific team activities to celebrate wins and milestones
- Quarterly refreshers: Schedule smaller team building events quarterly to maintain momentum between annual kickoffs
- Virtual options: For remote or hybrid teams, implement virtual team building activities to maintain connection
The ROI of Sales Team Building Activities
After nearly a decade in sales and team building, I’ve become convinced that effective team building is one of the best ways to invest in your employees. The returns show up not just in immediate energy and engagement, but in:
- Faster onboarding of new team members
- More cohesive cross-functional selling
- Reduced turnover
- Increased willingness to share best practices
- Higher resilience during challenging periods
When your sales team genuinely enjoys working together and feels connected to something bigger than individual quotas, performance naturally improves. The right sales kickoff meeting, enhanced with thoughtfully selected team building activities, can set the stage for your most successful year yet.
Want to discuss which sales team building activities might be right for your next kickoff? Contact us today for help picking and customizing the perfect event for your team’s needs.
