Throughout the year, HR has stiff competition for employee attention — the hottest Netflix shows, holidays and events, endless spam and emails from other companies or departments… there’s no shortage of distractions!

But guess what? During open enrollment, you have your employees’ attention! Don’t squander this opportunity to truly engage and educate your employees during a critical time of year. Here are four great tips to maximize your open enrollment:

1. Beep Me If You Wanna Reach Me – Text Messaging

The average smartphone owner spends more than three hours per day on a mobile device.  It might surprise you to learn that employees actually don’t mind receiving text messages from their employer on important HR communications and benefits alerts. This will ensure that employees receive fast and timely communications.

Pro Tip: Be sure that your text system is set to ‘opt-in’ to only reach employees that agree to this communications medium.

2. Lights, Camera, Action! – Educational Videos

Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it on video, rather than only 10% when reading a written text. By showcasing educational videos directly within the benefits shopping experience, you can ensure that employees have easy access to the resources they need at the precise moment they need it. Whether you are managing your video communication in-house, or you are partnering with a trusted third-party provider, here are a few best practices to keep in mind when designing your HR and benefits videos.

3. Snail Mail – Print Material and Resources

When was the last time you have received something in the mail that wasn’t a bill or junk? What better way to catch your employee’s attention than by good ol’ fashioned mail. It is an easy and affordable tactic to passively remind employees of educational opportunities coming up during OE. Whether you want to announce your annual open enrollment dates or increase participation for an educational benefits seminar, have posters and other print materials ready to send and increase awareness and buzz for your events!

 4. Electronic Carrier Pigeon – Emails

86% of professionals voted email as their favorite form of communication. The key to winning at email is to keep messages concise and informative, test your headlines to see what messaging sparks the most engagement, and use a mobile-friendly email solution. Email is still a tried and true way of notifying employees about important HR announcements. Check out these best practices to make the most of your efforts.

 Want to Learn More? 

You can also download our Open Enrollment Planning Playbook for more tips on how to plan, execute and measure your OE!