Legal insurance has existed in this country for nearly a century, yet only recently has it grown in popularity as an employee benefit. In response, brokers are including it in their expanded product offerings to clients.
The quality of legal plans varies, however, as does the administrative support offered to brokers in their sales and enrollment efforts. Brokers can boost sales by selecting a legal insurance provider that fully understands the steps necessary to foster appreciation of the benefit and drive participation in the plans.
Here are six tips to help drive greater awareness and participation in a legal benefits program — resulting in more engaged employees, reduced stress and increased productivity.
Try these six tips to success:
1. Use multiple channels. Communicating benefit information through a variety of channels — group meetings, emails, webinars, phone calls, one-on-one meetings, mobile devices and social media — captures the attention of a larger audience.1
2. Timing is everything. Employees are busy people, both at work and at home. Building awareness early allows them the time they need to review and evaluate all their benefit options. When employees receive communications at least four weeks prior to open enrollment, participation can be as much as four times higher than it is for those who allowed less time to communicate about the legal plan.2
3. What’s your frequency? Integration, timing and frequency of communication are important to educate all employees about the legal plan. Everyone learns differently and it often takes multiple touches to retain information.2 Our company’s internal research shows that implementing early, frequent communication campaigns during the enrollment period results in participation rates that are four times higher.2
4. Evaluate the enrollment method and timing. Nearly all eligible employees will review their health and welfare benefits during an open enrollment period, so having additional benefits available to sign up at the same time increases the visibility and awareness. Further, using the same enrollment method for both core and voluntary benefits can drive participation — up to six times higher. 2
5. What’s your payment type? Payroll deduction helps simplify the overall process for the employee, eliminating another payment they have to track on their own — and increases the likelihood they’ll retain the plan.
6. Employer support is crucial. A higher level of support and visible commitment from the plan sponsor signifies greater importance to employees and improves the overall success of the program. Supportive clients demonstrated nearly 10 times higher participation than those clients who viewed their plan as a “gap filler.”
As legal plans rise in popularity as a benefit, working with the right partner — one that understands how to drive awareness and participation in the plan — is a critical aspect of the program’s success.
1“7 Core Success Factors for Communicating More Effectively,” ARAG North America, 2014.
2“How to Choose Implement and Drive Participation from Your Voluntary Benefit,” ARAG North America, 2014.
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