Brokers are always looking for new opportunities to effectively partner with their customers. Providing ongoing, effective benefit education, communication, and support for companies and their employees is just the ticket to helping brokers stand out! The most recent Prudential Study of Employee Benefits found that employers’ top benefit strategy is to improve “the overall effectiveness of benefits communication”. According to Prudential, ensuring regular, effective benefit communication is so important that employers are increasingly seeking to give carriers and TPAs a role in benefit communication. Well it is time for brokers to step in and have a role too!
How can you communicate about benefits effectively with employees? Well, communicating about and engaging employees with their benefits on a regular basis, beyond new hire orientation, is important. Employers are gravitating “towards a year-round, more value-added benefits education and enrollment strategy” (Prudential). This is no surprise to brokers, who agree that benefit “communications and enrollment would be more effective if they took place at a different time of the year from medical insurance enrollment” (Prudential). Next, effective benefit communication should use employees’ desired method of communication, be it call center and/or digital benefit support.
Finally, ensuring easy access for employees to their benefit information is crucial. Many employees presently use their desktop (39%) or laptop (27%), but with the advent of the smart phone, nearly a quarter of employees prefer to use their mobile device to access their benefits (Prudential). With the number of mobile devices now outnumbering desktops and laptops (Kleiner Perkins Caulfield Byers 2015), a mobile app designed specifically for benefit functions is a must!
Is there a particular area where employers would like help? Well, a recent study revealed that employers would like help communicating with employees “during particular life events or life stages, such a marriage, divorce, or the birth or adoption of a child” (Prudential). Employees, nearly 63% of those surveyed, were similarly very interested in “being notified of benefit changes or options at the time of a life event” (Prudential). Employers and employees alike recognize the importance of knowing about benefit options available at the time of employee life events!
The question then becomes, how can employers communicate about these benefits effectively, especially when life events occur for employees? The answer is by turning to their broker, who can provide a unique and highly individualized approach to benefit administration and communication, complete with a comprehensive mobile app driven by life events that houses all benefit information!
With BalanceBenefits suite of benefit engagement services including 24/7 call center support, a mobile app, as well as administrative and member web portals, employees will receive just that – benefit recommendations tailored to their individual needs! Employees can select individual life events they need assistance with and receive benefit recommendations customized to meet their needs. Benefit notifications, plan information, and custom benefit recommendations are available immediately in the palm of employees’ hands by using our mobile app or with the click of a mouse on their desktop. Stand out, and become broker of record, by providing unparalleled customer support while assisting with benefit communication and education, by offering BalanceBenefits to your customers!
Learn more about our suite of benefit engagement services, including our BalanceBenefits mobile app, on our website. You can order “Beyond Benefits” by Gene Raymondi, CEO and industry thought leader, watch our quick integrated benefits video, or simply send us an email requesting more information.
We look forward to helping with your benefit needs!
