Voluntary benefits are an increasingly important part of a competitive benefits program. But let's be honest, compared to major medical and other group benefits, voluntary sometimes requires a little more work to make it, well, work.

For one thing, there's a two-step sales process. First, you need to educate your clients about the need for and value of these coverages so they agree to offer them in their benefits enrollment. Then you need to do the same again with the ultimate buyers: their employees. To successfully leap that second hurdle, it's crucial for you to see benefits through the eyes of those employees — especially when it comes to learning about, enrolling in and paying for their benefits.

Nick Rockwell and Erin Marino, Eastbridge Consulting Group, Inc.

Best bets for benefits communication

Our research shows about two-thirds of employees prefer to learn about voluntary benefits on their own, either through emails, newsletters and other information sent by their employer, or by visiting a website or intranet. However, the other third of employees want to speak with someone, either in person, on the phone, in an online chat or during a one-to-one online video session.