The good news is you can do something to change this dynamic. The key is to make the benefits enrollment process — in fact, the entire benefits administration experience — simple, modern and personal for your clients and their employees. Here's how.

Help your clients develop a digital strategy

Employee benefits are now more complex than ever. Employers face challenges to offer a competitive benefits package, educate employees about their options, control costs, meet federal reporting requirements, keep up with employee changes and more. Technology can help with all those tasks, but only if it's easy to use. If not, it becomes another obstacle to overcome. In fact, a significant number of employers — 1 in 4— say developing a successful benefits technology strategy is a big challenge.

Your clients likely need guidance identifying the best benefits technology system, but they may not have asked for your help. You're not alone: Nearly 40 percent of employers say they haven't talked to a broker about their benefits technology needs. This technology aversion comes in many (mistaken) forms: more than a third think their company isn't large enough, 30 percent cite cost and 20 percent doubt it would be easy to use, according to research by LIMRA.

Yet the benefits of going digital are undeniable. A good benefits administration system can automate and streamline many tedious, time-consuming benefits functions, from enrollment to ACA tax reporting. The right technology can also improve the employee experience and generate better engagement while helping employers be more productive and efficient.

Helping your clients navigate the crowded, constantly changing benefits technology landscape doesn't have to be as overwhelming as it might seem. In fact, you don't even have to be an expert in benefits administration systems to offer this advice. Instead, it's important to choose the right benefits partners to work with. Look for a benefits partner that can offer different technology options, has relationships with numerous ben admin providers and understands how to seamlessly integrate them. Ideally, your partner will also offer tools to help you and your clients find the right system.

Combine high-tech with high-touch

Technology is essential, but it's not an end in itself. Rather, it's an enabler that makes enrollment and ongoing benefits administration easier. After all, you want to spend your time using your expertise to counsel clients and their employees, not on data verification.

Whether you conduct the enrollment yourself, use an enrollment firm, or partner with a benefits provider that offers benefits communication and enrollment as part of its services, you'll get better engagement if employees have the option to meet and talk with a benefits expert. Look for a partner that can provide experienced, licensed, knowledgeable benefits counselors with high business quality scores. If your potential partner doesn't track business quality or is reluctant to share this kind of information, keep looking.

Even if your clients use online tools for the actual enrollment, personal access to experts for questions and advice can drive stronger engagement and participation.

Set up success with education

A successful enrollment starts with an effective benefits communication plan. Employees can't value or take advantage of their benefits if they don't understand them. Many are also unaware of the gaps in their coverage and the potential financial exposure they could face in the event of an accident or serious illness. Here's just one example: 1 in 4 of today's 20-year-olds can expect to be out of work for at least a year because of a disabling condition before they reach the normal retirement age. At the same time, 71 percent of Americans would find it somewhat or very difficult to meet their current financial obligations if their paycheck was delayed by just one week, according to the American Payroll Association.

Make the education process easier by providing decision-support tools that help employees explore their needs and options. This is another area technology can help, with easy, interactive (dare I say fun?) websites that explain different types of coverage and the life stages where they're most important. And again, as mentioned earlier, work with a benefits provider that can offer true benefits counseling, preferably in person or at least by phone. Chat-bots may have their uses, but helping someone understand why they might need accident insurance or which cancer plan to buy isn't one of them.

Be sure your clients realize the value of a benefits education plan that covers the entire benefits package — not just voluntary benefits you're providing — including their major medical plan options. Not only will this comprehensive approach better enable employees to see what's the best fit for their personal needs and where they might have gaps in coverage, it'll drive stronger appreciation for the employer's investment in their well-being.

Insist on an active enrollment

Passive enrollments, where employees only need act if they're changing their coverage, deliver much poorer results than active enrollments. Drive stronger participation by asking your clients for working conditions that include mandatory attendance at benefits counseling sessions. In our experience, 7 in 10 employees who meet individually with a benefits counselor will end up buying coverage — not because benefits enrollers “push” them into it, but because they get the opportunity to ask questions and better understand their individual needs and the options available to them.

Here again, you can tap into technology to make attendance at benefits counseling sessions easier. Ask your benefits provider about enrollment scheduling tools that put the individual sessions on employees' calendars.

Create extra value

Considering sweetening the pot even more by offering value-added programs or services to encourage employees to attend benefits counseling sessions. Your benefits partner may be able to provide complimentary programs such as identity theft protection, discount cards or telemedicine services for employees who attend one-to-one meetings.

Help your clients take advantage of technology available to make their enrollments and ongoing benefits administration as effective as possible — but don't stop there. Combine high-tech with a high-touch approach that emphasizes benefits communication and personal support, and you'll create a benefits program that pays off all year long.

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Steven Johnson is vice president of Enrollment Solutions at Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company. He can be reached at 803-678-6599 or [email protected].