Employee benefits are one of the most valuable aspects of a compensation package, yet many employees struggle to fully understand them or simply default to same-as-last-year (SALY), leading to underutilized benefits or unnecessary frustration with their decision.
Employers who take an active role in benefits communication and education can significantly increase employee engagement, satisfaction, and overall return on investment (ROI) for their benefits programs. Stated another way—employers who connect their benefits to employees’ lives, see huge returns in investment and employee satisfaction.
With modern platforms like LearnYour Benefits (LYB), companies can leverage innovative technology to simplify benefits communication, promote year-round awareness, and ensure employees make the most of their offerings. Here are some essential ways companies can help employees maximize the value of their benefits.
1. Streamline Benefits Communication with Digital Platforms
Traditional methods of communicating benefits, such as dense handbooks and lengthy in-person meetings, can be overwhelming and ineffective. Instead, companies should invest in interactive digital platforms that simplify accessibility and the communication of information.
Alternatively, many small and midsized employers are using benefits enrollment software for communications. These platforms are focused on transacting healthcare, not education. They can be clunky to use and lack engagement.
Solution:
- Shareable content streamlines the review process when planning for family coverage.
- Video-based education replaces complex documents, ensuring employees understand their options without feeling overwhelmed.
- Mobile-accessible resources allow employees to review benefits information anytime, anywhere.
2. Enhance Awareness with Year-Round Engagement
Open enrollment is not the only time employees should be thinking about benefits. Many miss out on valuable services simply because they aren’t aware of them at the right time ✔ Watch for it: a blog on this specific topic coming soon.
Solution:
- Consider marketing best practices when communicating your benefits. Ensure you’re using tactics to raise awareness of your benefits, boost the findability of answers, and navigate employees to the proper websites.
We call this the Benefits Journey. - Implement a year-round communication strategy, where employees receive reminders and updates about their benefits throughout the year.
- Utilize automated notifications, such as emails, text messages, and push notifications, to keep benefits top of mind.
- Promote seasonal and situational benefits, such as mental health support during high-stress periods or financial wellness programs before tax season.
3. Increase Benefits Utilization with Navigation Tools
Even after selecting benefits, employees may struggle with navigating provider websites, accessing care, or understanding claims processes—and when they do, how you respond can greatly affect their experience. Are you able to offer affective and timely assistance?
Solution:
- Respond to questions by including links to specific resources, videos, or provider information to support your answer and help them find what they’re looking for.
- Offer navigation features like quick links to provider portals, claims assistance, and step-by-step guides.
- Use buttons and links in benefits portals to direct employees straight to enrollment pages or service providers.
4. Educate Employees with Engaging and Customizable Videos
A significant reason employees underutilize benefits is due to a lack of understanding or feeling overwhelmed by the complexity of benefit plans. Text-heavy guides are often ignored or misplaced, but video content can make complex topics more digestible – many studies show that video is far more preferred to written content.
Support your content with educational benefits videos
Solution:
- Support your content with educational benefits videos by choosing from a library of 100+ customizable educational videos on key benefits topics.
- Embed action-oriented messages and clarification within videos to encourage employees to take immediate steps.
- Update videos in real-time to reflect policy changes without requiring expensive production efforts.
5. Leverage Analytics to Measure Successes and Define Opportunities
Many companies struggle to measure how well their benefits programs are being utilized. Without clear insights, it’s difficult to refine strategies and ensure employees are getting the most value from their benefits. Analytics reveal which benefits pages, videos, documents, and links are (and aren’t) being viewed most often.
Solution:
- Utilize real-time analytics as often as you wish to track engagement levels and identify which benefits employees interact with the most (and the least).
- Use data-driven insights to adjust communication strategies, ensuring underutilized benefits receive more attention.
- Utilize LYB tools such as landing pages or header messages to respond with timely and focused content.
- Share regular reports with HR and leadership teams to optimize future benefits offerings – (Fun fact: Pet Insurance is often one of the most viewed offerings.)
Final Thoughts:
Empower Employees to Take Full Advantage of Their Benefits
Helping employees maximize their benefits isn’t just about providing information, it’s about delivering it in a way that’s accessible, engaging, and easy to act upon. By leveraging digital solutions like LearnYour Benefits, employers can ensure their workforce is educated, engaged, and making informed decisions about their benefits.
Investing in better benefits communication leads to higher employee satisfaction, improved retention, and a more productive workforce. If your organization is looking to modernize benefits engagement, consider implementing a video-focused, user-friendly platform that simplifies benefits education and promotes year-round awareness.
If you would like to see how a benefits engagement platform can transform your employees’ benefits experience, Schedule a free demo today!
And BROKERS… WE DO HAVE BROKER PROGRAMS as well.
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