Are employees done with virtual?
It’s difficult enough to get information about benefits across when people are sitting in an office.
I recently had a conversation with a business associate about getting together to discuss some opportunities. Before I could ask whether to use Zoom or Microsoft Teams, she blurted out “I’m done with virtual.” Instead, we made arrangements to meet in person at a reasonably safe location. Her comment stuck with me–I think many of us are more than a little “Zoomed out.” This has some implications for the post-COVID benefits world.
Benefit-related communications with employees are almost certainly being coordinated through technology. The move toward working remotely is more than a passing fad. Some employees are working onsite; however, their employers are unlikely to permit on-site access for benefit professionals to conduct informational or enrollment meetings.
Read more: 8 tips for building a virtual open enrollment strategy
This is an issue for employers because both open enrollment and year-round benefits communications are essential elements in building employee job satisfaction. Therefore, if we are helping employers identify the best strategies for communicating remotely with their people, we need to concentrate on making those communications as effective as possible to engage employees who are likely “done with virtual.”
Here are some ideas to use when directly communicating with employees, as in open enrollment. They can also be offered to employers to help them manage benefit-related communications campaigns for their people.
1. Tell a compelling story.
Steve Jobs famously positioned his presentations as stories that had an almost magical element. Who can forget the way he introduced the iPod? He didn’t ask “Would you like a device to carry around in your pocket that can play music on demand?” Instead, he asked, “Would you like to carry a thousand songs in your pocket?” We can use stories to catch employee interest. Once we have their attention, we can provide the details.
2. Identify the purpose.
Think like an entertainer and not just an informer. Your message is competing with all the distractions and options battling for employees’ attention. It’s difficult enough to get information about benefits across when people are sitting in an office. When they are working from home and balancing work responsibilities with personal and family needs, employees are even less likely to focus on messages unless there is a compelling reason.
3. “The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do.” – Thomas Jefferson.
You may be excited about a new employee benefit and want to talk about every detail, but if they see a long message, they are likely to ignore it. Catch employees’ attention with the most essential elements and give them an option to get more information through “tell me more” links.
4. Think like an employee.
There are a number of issues facing today’s workers: the stress of working from home or in a workplace that could be unsafe, financial and family stress, medical expenses or worries, online security and privacy, and so on. Messaging should focus on items likely to be most important to employees. Focus on how the benefits respond to these most important issues.
Well-designed virtual meetings and digital communications can break through and provide a great service to employees. It’s up to us to make that happen!
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