For employees, pensions can seem complicated, or stuffy even, so to engage members successfully communications need to be about the message, not just its delivery, says Steve Watson, director of policy and research at NatWest Cushon.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently published an ‘occasional paper’ looking at some interesting themes in pensions communications. The paper, titled ‘Is timing of the essence? Testing when to engage UK pension customers’ assessed the impact and effectiveness of different pension email campaigns and explored the behaviours that can help drive people to pay their pensions some more attention.
It’s good research and shows that the message is more important than the channel.
The FCA said: “Overall, our research shows that it is challenging to drive initial engagement with pensions through emails and that adjusting the timing of emails to notable times may have limited scope to substantially move the dial on engagement.”
The question that really needs answering is ‘what is it exactly about pensions that people find most engaging?’ Or, rather, what information can engage those who are typically less interested in their savings pot?
A relatable pension
It’s crucial to make peoples’ pensions relatable. Pay Your Pension Some Attention, a great campaign we sponsor, is trying to do just that – and it’s a necessary effort. Recognising the problem of connecting with people, this year’s campaign used Gemma Collins to try and bridge the gap between seemingly ‘stuffy’ pensions and the general population.
Making pensions relatable means answering the questions people most want to know. For example: ‘what is my pension?’, ‘what does it do?’, and ‘what does it mean for me?
All communications and other aspects, like timing, are secondary enhancements on top.
The most perfect communication at the most opportune moment can’t engage someone when the message itself isn’t the right one. If they’re generally unengaged and have a lack of affinity with their pension, it’s not going to happen. Efforts need to go much deeper, and further, beyond plain email campaigns.
Find the right message
Simply looking at research to see what’s concerning the UK population is a good start to finding the right message. The climate and our environment are always around the top of the list when it comes to people’s biggest worries. Pensions communications need to relate to this and demonstrate how one’s own savings can help create a better future. It needs to be demonstrable and tangible, so people can see the impact they can make.
Without the core message linking pensions to something people care about, making most 25-year-olds think 40 years in the future is always going to be immensely difficult. But showing them how their investments can impact the world around them, improve it and make a tangible, measurable difference – that’s something all human beings can relate to.
For more on sustainable and ESG pensions read the Benefits Expert ‘Guide to understanding sustainability in workplace pensions‘.
Beyond email
Once the message itself is striking the right chord, that’s when the delivery becomes essential.
Pensions are immensely complicated, so to engage members it’s about boiling down the intricacies and talking about the savings pots in a clear, relatable way. Using the right language is the best way to keep people switched on once you’ve got their attention, which has been a delicate balance during the cost-of-living crisis that’s been deeply concerning for many.
The FCA’s research focused on email communications. Emails are one way to make sure someone receives a message – and it’s certainly more efficient than old-fashioned mail through the door – but even the regulator in its work admitted that some trial campaigns were confused with suspected scam and spam by recipients.
Instead of email, apps are much better ways to engage with many scheme members. Our Cushon app has a high download rate, and we find it’s a significantly more productive way to keep members up-to-date and provide information that can engage and educate.
This technology-based approach puts information in savers’ hands – literally. They can check on all the information and details of their pensions that they need to. Plus, an app can house all the extra calculators and guides people may want or need to help them figure out and organise their savings goals. But again the key is using simple, relatable language that speaks to people who aren’t familiar with the complexities of pensions.
Space to understand
Webinars are also a great way to keep some peoples’ attention. Not everybody consumes information and learns in the same way. Offering an informative session with which people can engage can often be the best format to help people and turn a complicated matter like pensions and saving for retirement into a message that cuts through and resonates.
Offering people a space to run through the basics, understand what’s going on and ask the questions important to them. Helping people understand the benefits of saving for their retirement is about communicating at their level and creating a feeling of comfort.
That’s why it’s crucial to interact in the way that works best for them. As the FCA concluded in its paper: “Our results were often sensitive to the age group or firm, showing that what works for one group of consumers may not work for others.”
