How To Organize Your Virtual Baby Shower
COVID-19 has really changed a lot, hasn’t it? Who would have thought that we wouldn’t be meeting up in person for celebrations like baby showers or weddings? Well, remote meet-ups have become the new norm, and millions of people are still doing it.
Even though many restrictions are being lifted globally, virtual baby showers are still looking to take place in the future. They are a great way of connecting families and friends who live in different locations to each other. They are also wonderful ways to include the elderly and sick who cannot attend events in person.
If you need to organize a shower for yourself or are an expectant mama-to-be, keep on reading! We break down a step-by-step guideline of planning the virtual baby shower to ensure an unforgettable day. So, let’s get stuck straight in.
8 tips for organizing an unforgettable virtual baby shower
1. Find Out What Mama Wants
Organizing a remote baby shower on behalf of the mom-to-be? Check what she wants and what her expectations are — this is crucial! She might want her closest friends and family around her, and to keep it really small. She might be nervous of having too many people around her which could put her and her baby at risk. Or, she might want to have a big do and include people virtually that live far away.
It is also important to check when the mom-to-be will want the shower. She might want to have it long before the due date for health reasons. Or she could want it closer to the date as a last celebration before the baby comes. Check with her first and make sure that she has the dates open for it.
Make sure you consult her about the invitee list. You will want to make sure that you have fulfilled her expectations when it comes to friends, family and colleagues. It’s important to pass ideas through to her too. After all, you’ll want to avoid a baby shower that seems tacky as much as possible.
2. Decide On the Virtual Platform
There are a number of options available for you to choose from when it comes to platforms to connect everyone. Most of them are fairly straightforward and easy to use, even for those non-tech-savvy folks out there. If you’re worried that Grandma Pat in Canada might not figure it out though, put together a list of instructions.
Choose your desired platform and set up the meeting and send the link as well as the password and instructions to everyone.
Some of the platforms allow you to add a theme or a background, so play around with that to make it extra special. Lastly, make sure that there is good WiFi or internet connection at the venue where it will be hosted. While you cannot control all participants’ connection, it is important that the special lady has a smooth connection.
3. Get Those Baby Shower Invitations Out
With everything being digital for the event, it’s best to keep the invites digital too. There are tons of great sites which allow you to design and send invitations all in one place. Have a look at each and pick out the one with the features that suit your needs.
You can also design an invitation in Photoshop and send the invitations via email or even WhatsApp. If you don’t have Photoshop, no worries! There are also some great free platforms that give you the basic tools you need for design.
Remember to place all of the necessary information on the invite including the link to the digital meeting platform and the instructions for the grandparents. Also, include the details of the digital registry for the gifts.
4. Share the Digital Registry
Registries have evolved so much in the last decade. Nowadays, you can create a digital registry in a store, make it public, and then share it with your guests. This is much easier for mom to get what she wants and reduces the chance of duplicate gifts.
A lot of these stores now also include shipping and delivery. So, mom can receive all of the gifts together before the baby shower. Gift-giving has never been easier with these amazing online platforms. Ask your local retailer what services they offer and choose one that will suit your requirements.
5. Plan the Decor and Food
This may seem redundant if everyone is joining a link. But, it is still a baby shower afterall! It’s a celebration, meaning decor and treats are important. If no-one will physically be there with the mom-to-be, order some party decor and dress-up items. You’ll come across some great baby shower decoration options for you to choose from.
You do want Mom to feel special on her big day, so make sure at least some of the room is decorated, especially the video backdrop. Remember, you can change the background and theme of the meeting. It could be fun to ask everyone to change their backgrounds to match. They can also dress up according to the theme.
Lastly, look into getting hampers delivered to all attendees. There are excellent online options that allow you to send snack hampers and drinks to a list of guests. Organize for it to be delivered on the morning of the virtual baby shower. The idea is that everyone can enjoy the same treats in the virtual party!
6. Get Those Games Planned
You will want the baby shower to be as interactive and engaging as possible. Especially if everyone is joining virtually. You will want the guests to feel included and engaged. This is tough virtually as people cannot connect and chat among themselves as they would at a physical baby shower. You also don’t want it to be about only watching Mom open her gifts.
You will want to plan these games ahead. There are a ton of ideas that you can do that will get the guests involved. For example, “Guess the Baby” where they send their baby pictures and everyone has to guess who the baby is. Or “Name the Baby Song”, where you play a snippet of a nursery rhyme or song.
You can also create polls and get everyone to vote on various baby-related questions. When will the birth date be? How much will the baby weigh? Will the baby be a boy or girl? Will they come out with hair? Include prizes for the winners if you have the budget. A voucher for example.
7. Have an Agenda Planned
This could be something to include on the invitations. People might want to know when mom is opening her gifts and maybe only attend for that. You’ll need a proper schedule to fit in the games, social time, and enough time to open the gifts.
Getting hampers delivered to your guests? You will want to have this carefully planned too so that everyone receives everything in time. Try to keep the whole thing to around an hour or an hour and a half. Physical baby showers are different as there is time to socialize and chat. But, digitally, it does need to be more structured as guests can become easily bored.
Consider the following structure:
- Welcome from the host and the mom;
- General introduction of everyone;
- Catch up with mom on her health and progress;
- Virtual nursery tour;
- Play games;
- Open gifts;
- Wrap-up and good-byes.
8. Streamline the Gift Opening
When organizing the registry, make sure Mamma will receive everything on time. You don’t want anyone to be left out. So, it might be worth your while to keep track of everyone’s progress of buying a gift.
You will want the mom-to-be to be comfortable when opening the gifts. Make sure there is enough space and for it all to be properly recorded for everyone to see. Keep in mind that most of the digital platforms have a recording function. So, you can send a recording to someone who couldn’t attend digitally.
Lastly, keep a spreadsheet open to track who gave what. She will want to send thank you cards to the guests, and it’s up to you to make sure that this is recorded.
Wrapping Up
Now that everything is planned, all you need to do is make sure that it all runs smoothly on the day. Keep calm if things don’t go to plan. Mom-to-be is surely going through an exciting, yet daunting time of her life. Luckily Beginning.com is here to help guide her through this time.
Head on back to Beginning.com and have a look at the heaps of information we have for moms-to-be. We have masterclasses on pregnancy, giving birth and taking the baby home for the first time. We also have great sound journeys for never you’ll like to let go of stress and fully relax.