As a small business owner, you know that a benefits package can boost your ability to attract and retain talented employees, as well as increase productivity and lower costs associated with employees being out of work because of sickness or injury.

While benefits are an important safety net for you and your employees, the endless number of options, cost comparisons and administrative efforts can be overwhelming, especially when you’re unsure if employees will use or need the options made available to them. To help make this year’s open enrollment a success, our experts have compiled a list of the top nine benefits enrollment tips for you and your employees.

If employees aren’t enrolled or seem apathetic toward their options, it may be they don’t know about the benefits that are offered or the solutions they provide. Consider looking at enrollments from past years, as well as surveying workers to gauge their interest in products that you currently offer and options you may not have offered in the past. The key is to think broadly about your entire benefits package and use research – instead of assumption – to make informed decisions about what employees need.

When it comes to total compensation, employees are most concerned with the fundamentals: job security, base pay, health care benefits, time off and length of commute.1

Many studies indicate that spouses of workers are often the decision-makers when it comes to benefits decisions. Try opening up benefits meetings and surveys to spouses and partners as well as offering alternative communications that will make it easier for the partner to access enrollment information. Especially helpful are options easily accessible from home, such as mailings, and online information and portals.

Women make approximately 80 percent of health care decisions for their families.2

If you offer your workforce health insurance and employ fewer than 25 full-time workers (or 50 half-time workers), your business is eligible for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit. Several details surround the credits, including phasing out for businesses with average wages between $25,000 and $50,000. For more information about these credits, visit: irs.gov.

Small Business Health Care Tax Credits can be worth up to 35 percent of a small business’s premium costs in 2010, and will increase in 2014 to 50 percent.3

While many small businesses try to simplify with one plan option, benefits are not one-size-fits-all. The soon-to-be retiree will have different insurance and 401(k) needs than a single mom, or soon-to-be graduate. Providing employees two or three options can help tailor the overall benefits package to each unique situation. Additionally, look into low-cost voluntary benefits options that could help save employees money through tax-deductible savings accounts reserved for built-in expenses such as child care and commuting.

Some 58 percent of employees at small businesses say they would likely purchase voluntary insurance benefits offered by their employer.4

You don’t have to develop resources to communicate to your employees; leave that to the experts, and ask for enrollment tools and resources from benefits partners and consultants. Most insurance companies and benefits partners have materials available that are available for little or no cost to you.

Roughly 64 percent of small businesses use a broker or benefits consultant to help determine benefits options.4

Benefits can be confusing. Many employees say they make mistakes during open enrollment that can cost them up to $750.5 While workers acknowledge these mistakes, they may not be comfortable speaking up and asking for help. Plan to provide each worker with materials in advance of open enrollment and worksite benefits meetings.

Institute

Approximately 60 percent of employees don’t understand their health care benefit options.6

Some of your workers will especially need to know about your benefits plan and upcoming changes, such as new hires or impeding retirees. In addition, workers’ life stages will impact the relevancy of materials being presented. For instance, a recent college graduate and a seasoned employee will need different communications about the importance of investing in a 401(k). Take a tailored approach by opting for materials that address workforce segments and are written in easily understood terms. Then use multiple avenues to communicate the message, such as home mailers, emails, videos, benefits booklets, worksite meetings and more to help ensure your employees don’t miss out on important benefits.

Over 70 percent of companies report that mobile HR solutions help improve workforce productivity.7

Many individuals make mistakes during open enrollment and even when covered by major medical insurance, many workers are unaware of the financial burden associated with an unexpected illness or injury. Open enrollment is the perfect time to educate employees about the importance of benefits, as well as offer advice for calculating yearly health costs and practical savings plans.

Common Benefits enrollment mistakes include:5

• Approximately 26 percent put too little or too much in a flexible spending account.
• Almost 24 percent choose the wrong level of coverage or benefits they do not need.
• Some 15 percent do not check to make sure their coverage deductions are correct or if their preferred medical professional is in the plan network.

Use open enrollment as an opportunity to celebrate the options you provide your employees, as well as to kick-start a year of health and wellness. Because benefits are generally deducted from paychecks, it’s easy for your workers to forget about the options they have throughout the year. Plan for communications about total compensation, employee assistance programs and wellness incentives to occur to help remind employees of the important health and financial choices they made in the fall.

More than 2-in-5 workers agree that a well-communicated benefits program would make them less likely to leave their job.4

• 1John M. Bremen and Laura Sejen, Towers Watson (January 2012), “Advancing total rewards and the employee value proposition,” Workspan, The Magazine of WorldatWork, http://www.towerswatson.com/assets/pdf/6835/Workspan-Total-Rewards-Article-2012.pdf, accessed on August 10, 2012.
• 2United States Department of Labor, “General Facts on Women and Job-Based Health,” www.dol.gov/ebsa/newsroom/fshlth5.html, accessed on August 8, 2012.
• 3The White House, Small Business Health Care Tax Credit, http://www.whitehouse.gov/healthreform/small-business/tax-credit, accessed on August 8, 2012.
• 42012 Aflac WorkForces Report, a study conducted by Research Now on behalf of Aflac, January 24–February 23, 2012.
• 52012 Open Enrollment Survey of the Aflac Workforces Report, a study conducted by Research Now on behalf of Aflac, July 2012.
• 6ADP Research Institute, (July 2011), “Employee Benefits Communications: There’s Room for Improvement,” http://www.adp.com/tools-and-resources/adp-research-institute/insights/insight-item-detail.aspx?id={BF7C9CA0-9130-4511-8460-C1B7A3B279B6}, accessed on August 10, 2012.
• 7ADP Research Institute (April 2011), “Mobile HR Solutions Can Drive Employee Productivity, Build Satisfaction,” http://www.adp.com/tools-and-resources/adp-research-institute/insights/insight-item-detail.aspx?id={9CB7638D-7735-4473-A1FC-90FABBA3357A, accessed on August 10, 2012.