5 Ways to Engage Your Employees During Open Enrollment

Open enrollment season can sometimes fall flat with your employees. You’re communicating tactical information, and although necessary, it’s easy to feel like you’re sitting through an inescapable lecture on how to watch paint dry.

For the last few years, OneDigital’s Communications and Benefits team have sparked a new wave of creativity and collaboration making the entire open enrollment process fun and engaging, for those creating the campaign and those sitting through it. We are sharing 5 objectives our team developed to help us make the most of this annual event.

1. Make it a Team Effort

   There are mixed reviews on the effectiveness of brainstorming, but our larger projects at OneDigital are only enhanced when we invite people to collaborate and bring new ideas to the table. While it’s good to have a person in charge of organizing your open enrollment campaign, you never know the creative geniuses you have in your midst. From the creative ideas to the necessary tasks, each member of our team heavily contributes to the finished product that our employees see every year.

2. Relate to Your Audience with a Fun Theme

   While we can all relate to the words “open enrollment,” there’s nothing better than putting a fun spin on the whole process. In the past, we’ve engaged our employees with themes like board games and music concerts, and this year, we are excited to launch a comic book theme inspired by the superhero craze you find in theaters. With something everyone can relate to, it makes our pertinent information a little more bearable and the participation rates increase.

3. Gain Knowledge for a Successful Campaign

   You don’t need a formal focus group to gain insight into what your employees want to know. Prior to OneDigital’s Open Enrollment kickoff, we personally connected with a number of employees to ask them how we could make our campaign more impactful. Short and sweet questions like, What confuses them about enrolling in benefits, Did they know about a handful of perks we offer just by being an employee and What information do they need to make knowledgeable decisions? Set out on your own live campaign to fully understand what your readers want to know.

4. Tailor Your Message

   The needs of every employee range from the age group they’re in, to the life situation in which they find themselves. This means that the information your employees require will be segmented and not one-size-fits-all. When OneDigital launched its Game of Life: Open Enrollment Edition each employee received information based on how they enroll (e.g. Employee-only, Employee + Spouse, or Employee + Family). Last year and this year, OneDigital has taken a multi-generational approach to educate those who are starting their career to those planning their retirement.

5. Engage in Multiple Ways

   In the same way, different groups are addressed, different mediums need to be used as well. Nowadays, it seems that no two people prefer to receive information in the same way. With this being the case, we need to expand the way in which we communicate benefits to our employees. At OneDigital, we send targeted email campaigns, utilize our intranet for announcements and details, and more recently, send printed materials to employee’s homes. Even in the digital age, we have found appreciation for a printed guide that allows employees the opportunity to compare plans with their spouses.

OneDigital’s enrollment events are only becoming that much more inventive and fun, which is necessary when trying to engage your audience. It’s not too late to implement some of these ideas, but now is the time to start thinking about creative ways you can enhance the open enrollment process for your employees next year. Contact your OneDigital Consultant for ideas on thinking out of the box during open enrollment to increase engagement and effectiveness.