How SMS Can Make Your Open Enrollment Process Easier
Text messaging provides an easy way to make sure your employees understand their new health plans. Here’s how SMS can make your open enrollment process easier. Direct communication speeds up the enrollment process and makes it easier to share information on the various medical plans available. Texts are received within minutes, while most emails are ignored.
This is a guest post by Ken Rhie, the CEO of Trumpia. “Text messaging is a quick and cost-effective way to improve awareness of your company’s open enrollment period.”
When you want your HR department to have a direct way to reach employees to choose health plans, text messaging is the answer.
Here’s why text messaging will make your open enrollment period run more smoothly:
It’s Easy to Share Open Enrollment Dates and Timelines
Digital communication is less expensive than traditional methods used to promote the open enrollment period when choosing health plans. Instead of creating all kinds of printed materials, digital materials can be created instead. While you may have a few employees that rely on posters and postcards, most will appreciate having a link sent regarding dates and timelines. Text messages are easy to refer back to at any time.
Boost Open Enrollment Awareness Via Keywords
Usually, open enrollment dates and deadlines include sending emails, printing handouts, printing info graphics, and mostly by answering questions through calls or emails. However, all of these methods have proven to be out of date and less efficient than new communication tools, such as SMS. A quick and cost-effective way to improve awareness of your company’s open enrollment period is to use mobile keywords. With a read rate of 98%, it is crucial to opt-in your employees to receive text alerts.
By advertising a keyword, such as “MEDICAL”, you can check to see who have received the requested information and are aware of the upcoming healthcare enrollment period. By creating multiple keywords, you can sort your employees into specific distribution lists to send targeted enrollment information.
For more information on how SMS keywords can boost your open enrollment awareness, text OPEN to 76000! (message & data rates may apply)
You’ll Save Valuable Time
It’s easy to track employees and created targeted groups by using texting. Once you have delineated different groups, you can make communications relevant to specific employee groups. Once you begin to send relevant, targeted information regarding various health plans to your employees, you won’t be wasting time on unnecessary communication. Employees will be aware of what is going on at all times without being inundated with too much information.
Bulk Messages Reach Everyone Quickly
Open enrollment periods are more successful when your employees have plenty of notice that the open enrollment period is beginning. When you send out a group text message to alert employees that the enrollment period is about to start, this will get employees thinking about their current health plan benefits. With the ability to remind employees that it’s time to think about benefits, employees will be able to make more informed choices.
Links to Specific Information are Easier to Share
Your employees will have questions about the various health plans that are available to choose from. When you have links to content created that explains each plan in detail, it’s easy to share these links through text messaging. This allows your employees to read about plans on mobile devices and have a set of links that can be referred to at any time within easy reach.
Questions Can be Answered With Automated Messaging
You will have a specific set of questions that are the most frequently asked. Instead of having an HR employee answer each question individually, you can save time with automated messaging. For example, an employee could ask, “When does open enrollment end?” and a text can be sent back automatically with the date the open enrollment period is over.
Feedback is Simple to Gather through Text Messaging
Text messaging is a simple way to gather feedback from your employees who just went through the open enrollment period. The process can be lengthy and complex for everyone involved. Asking for feedback right when the period ends will help you be more prepared for the following year. Providing a digital way to provide feedback instead of traditional paper makes it easier for you to collect data and analyze it.
The open enrollment period is a time that requires solid communication between your HR department and the employees it serves. With text messaging, communication will be streamlined. It is easier for employees to ask quick questions about health plans through texting. HR will be able to reach employees, even if they are on the go. It’s fast communication and improves the overall experience of open enrollment.
Author Biography:
Ken Rhie
Ken Rhie is the CEO of Trumpia, which earned a reputation as the most complete SMS solution including user-friendly user interface and API for mobile engagement, Smart Targeting, advanced automation, enterprise, and cross-channel features for both mass texting and landline texting use cases. Mr. Rhie holds an MBA degree from Harvard Business School. He has over 30 years of experience in the software, internet, and mobile communications industries.
