Open enrollment is more than a once-a-year event—it’s more like a season that requires consistent preparation in order to “win.”
In fact, the next year’s planning should begin almost immediately after open enrollment closes. It’s the perfect time to evaluate how the process went and how to improve because it’s still fresh in the minds of brokers, employers, and employees. Otherwise, you could fall victim to one of the popular open enrollment pitfalls.
How can you as a broker win every open enrollment season? Consider these three tips:
Start Smart
Utilize your “preseason” by taking time to assess all the information collected from the previous enrollment period immediately after it ends. How many people enrolled in each plan? Which plans saw a change in enrollment? What percentage of the population switched? Determine whether your desired goals had been reached by analyzing all of the data.
Employers recognize the changing benefits landscape and expect their brokers to evolve with growing employee needs and legislation. Do so by creating an outline of your goals for the next enrollment season and begin strategizing. Since there are so many uncertainties this early in the game – or “season” – just the framework should be set, and you can adapt as changes need to be made. It’s important to avoid using the same methods year after year. Fresh ideas and innovative methods will help you deliver the best service and options possible for your clients.
Don’t be afraid to rely on technology solutions for help. Utilizing the tools in a benefits administration software platform can help you see what employers are looking for, what employees need, and the best way to deliver it seamlessly.
Educate Employers
Once you have the framework laid out for the coming enrollment season, it’s time to coach your clients’ employees. According to the American Journal of Public Health, about 50% of all Americans do not fully understand health information, and about $232 billion is wasted every year due to insufficient healthcare literacy.
Employers and their employees should be actively engaged to get a deeper understanding of their benefits options. As healthcare reform becomes more complex, it’s important to use digestible information to keep employees in the loop. Make yourself available to provide detailed support as they make decisions as well.
Software tools are a necessary factor in this step. They can help you answer general inquiries and providing basic information, and address each employee’s individual situation. Their unique healthcare situations require unique plans, and having a tool that compares all of their options helps you make that happen.
Follow Through
After all that thorough preparation, it’s time to follow through. You can work with your clients to help keep their employees engaged throughout the year. Beyond the initial meetings, you can host webinars and send updates.
You can reach your whole client base in just a push of a button with automated software tools that let you send emails and push notifications through mobile apps.
Remote or traveling employees may not have the same availability as in-office employees, so reaching out to their emails and mobile device apps is an excellent alternative to in-person meetings and phone calls.
This step is becoming more important with each passing year as regulations around healthcare become more complicated. Regular communication allows your clients to stay ahead of any potential changes and can help avoid the issues those changes tend to cause.
Establish timeframes and track progress as the year goes on. As open enrollment approaches, start setting some more detailed goals. No winning season would be complete without a system to track points scored.
Visit claritybenefitsolutions.com for more information about open enrollment prep and how to make the process as streamlined as possible.
Sources
2. https://www.benefitspro.com/2017/01/06/open-enrollment-has-ended----time-to-start-again/
3. https://www.peoplekeep.com/blog/five-broker-tips-for-a-positive-open-enrollment-season
4.https://www.pacresbenefits.com/hubfs/docs/2017%20Ben%20Admin%20Survey%20Full%20Results.pdf
