8 Steps to Better Employee Benefits Communication

Does this sound familiar? You’ve put together a competitive benefits package, but you still spend countless hours answering the same questions every open enrollment season. Your team seems overwhelmed, and you’re not sure they truly grasp the value of their perks. Creating a clear plan to fix this can feel like another full-time job. The good news is that effective employee benefits communication is about working smarter, not harder. It’s about creating a simple, sustainable system that provides clarity for your team and saves you valuable time. In this guide, we’ll break down the process into actionable steps for your small business.

Key Takeaways

• Make it a year-round conversation: Move beyond the open enrollment rush by sharing helpful reminders and educational tips throughout the year. This consistent approach ensures your team understands and appreciates the full value of their benefits package.
• Keep it simple and easy to find: Ditch confusing jargon and use plain language, visuals, and multiple channels to explain complex topics. Centralize all information in an accessible online portal so employees can get answers on their own time.
• Listen, measure, and adapt your plan: Find out what's working by asking your team for feedback and tracking key metrics like participation rates. Use this data to make smart adjustments to your strategy and better meet your employees' needs.

Why Clear Benefits Communication is a Game-Changer

Think about the time and money you invest in your employee benefits package. It’s one of your biggest expenses and a powerful tool for attracting and keeping great talent. But if your team doesn’t understand what’s available to them or how to use it, that investment isn't reaching its full potential. This is where clear, consistent communication becomes a true game-changer. It’s not just about sending a few emails during open enrollment; it’s about creating an ongoing conversation that shows your employees you care about their well-being.

When done right, a strong communication strategy transforms your benefits from a line item on a budget sheet into a tangible part of your company culture. It helps your team feel valued, supported, and secure. This builds loyalty and trust, which are the foundations of a positive and productive workplace. By making benefits information accessible and easy to understand, you empower your employees to make better decisions for themselves and their families, which ultimately benefits your entire organization.

How It Impacts Your Bottom Line

Let's talk numbers. Good communication about benefits has a direct and positive effect on your bottom line. When employees feel valued and understand the full scope of their compensation—including benefits—they are happier and more likely to stay with your company. This significantly reduces turnover and the high costs associated with recruiting, hiring, and training new staff. Furthermore, when your team knows how to use their benefits, like wellness programs or preventative care, they can address health issues early on. This proactive approach can lead to a healthier workforce and help manage long-term healthcare costs for everyone.

Keep Your Team Happy and Engaged

A great benefits package is only great if your employees know how to use it. Clear communication is the bridge between offering benefits and your team actually feeling the positive impact. When employees understand their health insurance, retirement plans, and other perks, they feel more secure and connected to the company. This clarity shows that you genuinely care about their well-being, which is a major factor in employee satisfaction. A team that feels supported is more engaged, motivated, and loyal, creating a workplace culture where people want to stay and grow.

Control Costs with Better Understanding

Helping your employees understand their benefits isn't just good for them; it's a smart financial move for your business. When your team knows the value of in-network providers or the benefits of a health savings account (HSA), they can make more cost-effective choices. This informed decision-making leads to better utilization of your benefits plan, which can help stabilize or even lower your insurance premiums over time. Our cost-reduction strategies often start with this foundational step, as empowering employees with knowledge is one of the most effective ways to manage your overall benefits spend without cutting corners.

Pinpoint Your Communication Hurdles

Before you can build a better communication plan, you need a clear picture of what’s not working. Many businesses face similar challenges when it comes to talking about benefits, from confusing jargon to simply not having enough time. Let’s walk through some of the most common hurdles so you can identify where your strategy might be falling short. Recognizing these roadblocks is the first, most important step toward creating a communication plan that truly connects with your team and delivers real value.

Cutting Through Jargon and Information Overload

Let’s be honest: benefits can be complicated. Terms like “deductible,” “co-insurance,” and “HSA” can feel like a different language to your employees. This confusion is a major barrier. In fact, research shows that only 41% of employers feel their staff can actually pick the best benefits plan for their needs. When your team doesn’t understand their options, they can’t appreciate the value of the package you’re offering. Good communication about employee benefits isn’t just about sharing information; it’s about translating it into clear, simple terms that help your people make confident decisions for themselves and their families.

Connecting with a Multi-Generational Team

Your office is likely a mix of different generations, backgrounds, and life stages, and a one-size-fits-all approach to communication just won’t cut it. A recent college grad might be most interested in student loan repayment programs, while a parent might focus on dependent care and life insurance. Someone nearing retirement will have 401(k)s top of mind. The U.S. workforce is incredibly diverse, which means you need to tailor your messaging to resonate with different groups. This means going beyond age and thinking about what matters most to your employees at their specific point in life.

Keeping Your Message Consistent

Is your benefits communication limited to a frantic info-dump during open enrollment? If so, you’re missing a huge opportunity. Benefits are a year-round asset, and your communication should be, too. A successful plan involves sharing regular updates and educational content throughout the year, not just in the fall. When you talk about benefits consistently across different channels—from all-hands meetings to email newsletters—you reinforce their value and build trust. This ongoing conversation ensures your team sees their benefits as a core part of their compensation, not just an annual administrative task.

Working with Limited Time and Resources

If you’re running a small or medium-sized business, you’re probably wearing multiple hats. Finding the time and resources to create a comprehensive benefits communication plan can feel impossible. The key isn’t to do more, but to be more strategic. Think of your benefits communication like a marketing campaign. You can use a mix of channels—like short videos, printed flyers, and team messages—to reach people where they are. Partnering with an expert can also provide the support you need, helping you implement effective cost-reduction strategies while saving you valuable time.

Build Your Communication Strategy

Once you know what’s standing in your way, you can build a game plan to get around those obstacles. A solid communication strategy doesn't have to be a hundred-page document; it just needs to be a clear, intentional plan for how you'll share benefits information with your team. Think of it as your roadmap for the entire year. It ensures your messages are consistent, timely, and actually reach your employees in a way they can understand and act on.

This is where you move from simply having benefits to helping your team get the most value out of them. A little planning goes a long way in turning confusion into clarity and appreciation. By outlining your goals, messages, and methods ahead of time, you can create a communication flow that feels helpful, not overwhelming. This proactive approach is key to building a benefits program that truly supports your employees and your business.

Set Clear Goals

Before you write a single email or print a flyer, ask yourself: What do we want to achieve? Your goals give your communication a purpose. Are you trying to get more employees to sign up for the 401(k) plan? Do you want to see an increase in the use of mental health benefits? Or maybe your goal is to reduce the number of questions the HR team gets during open enrollment. Getting specific helps you focus your efforts and measure your success later on. Clear goals transform your communication from just another announcement into a strategic tool for improving your business.

Define Your Key Messages

Now that you know your goals, you need to craft the messages that will help you reach them. The key here is simplicity. Ditch the industry jargon and complex policy details. Instead, focus on creating short, clear messages that highlight the value of each benefit. Think about how you would explain it to a friend. For example, instead of talking about "deductibles and co-insurance," you could say, "Here’s how much you’ll pay, and here’s what the plan covers." Using plain language ensures everyone, from your newest hire to your most senior leader, can understand and appreciate the benefits you offer.

Create a Communication Calendar

Timing is everything. A communication calendar helps you plan out your messages throughout the year so you’re not scrambling during open enrollment. You can map out key dates, like enrollment deadlines, and plan for regular reminders. You can also get creative and use holidays or company events as opportunities to talk about related benefits. For instance, you could send a reminder about using FSA funds before the end-of-year holidays. A well-planned calendar keeps benefits top-of-mind and helps your team make informed decisions without feeling rushed.

Choose the Right Channels

Your team is made up of individuals with different communication preferences. Some might read every email, while others prefer a quick text message or a video. To reach everyone, you need to use a mix of channels. Share information through emails, your company’s intranet, printed flyers in the breakroom, and even in-person meetings. Using different communication methods ensures that your important messages don't get lost and that every employee has access to the information they need, in the format they prefer.

Write Clear, Simple Content

When it comes to benefits, clarity is kindness. Your goal is to make complex information as easy to digest as possible. Write your content using simple, everyday language and avoid confusing acronyms or technical terms. A good rule of thumb is to write at a level that’s easy for everyone to understand, regardless of their familiarity with insurance or financial topics. Break up long paragraphs with bullet points, use bold text to highlight key information, and consider adding visuals like charts or infographics to explain complicated concepts. This makes your content more approachable and less intimidating for your team.

The Modern Toolkit for Benefits Communication

Gone are the days of a single, dusty benefits binder. Today, you have a whole suite of digital tools at your fingertips to make benefits communication clear, engaging, and effective. Using the right technology helps you meet your team where they are and give them the information they need in a way that makes sense to them. Many PEOs provide these tools as part of their service, which is a huge advantage for small businesses. Let's look at the key components of a modern communication toolkit.

Digital Platforms and Benefits Portals

A central online portal is your single source of truth for all things benefits. It’s a dedicated space where employees can log in anytime to find plan documents, watch informational videos, and get answers to their questions without having to track someone down. The best approach is to share benefit information across different channels, but it all should lead back to this central hub. This simplifies the experience for your team and reduces the administrative burden on you. A well-organized portal is a core part of a streamlined HR process, which is exactly what we help businesses build through our process.

Mobile-First Solutions

Your employees are on their phones, so your benefits information should be too. A mobile-first strategy means ensuring your benefits portal is easy to use on a smartphone and using mobile-native tools to connect with your team. Think push notifications for important deadlines or quick reminders via text. For time-sensitive information, it’s smart to consider adding texting to your benefits communication plan. This approach makes benefits accessible and convenient, which is crucial for keeping your team informed. Providing modern, easy-to-access small business employee benefits shows your team you value their time.

Personalization Technology

A one-size-fits-all message rarely resonates with everyone. Your team is made up of individuals with different needs and priorities. Personalization technology allows you to segment your audience and tailor your communications. For example, you can personalize the message by sending younger employees information on student loan repayment programs while sending older employees tips on maximizing their retirement contributions. This targeted approach shows you understand what’s important to them, which makes them far more likely to engage with the benefits you offer. As an employee benefits broker, we focus on finding plans that fit your unique team.

Analytics and Tracking Systems

How do you know if your communication efforts are actually working? You measure them. Modern communication platforms come with built-in analytics that let you see what’s resonating and what’s not. You can track email open rates, click-throughs on links, and portal login frequency. It's important to use a mix of quantitative data and qualitative feedback from your team to assess the impact of your strategy. This data is invaluable for refining your approach over time, ensuring your messages are hitting the mark and you’re investing your resources wisely. This is a key part of our cost-reduction strategies for clients.

Make Benefits Information Easy to Access

Let’s be honest: benefits documents can be dense, filled with jargon, and overwhelming for just about anyone. If your employees can't easily find or understand their benefits information, they won't be able to appreciate or use the great package you've put together. Making this information accessible isn't just about checking a box; it's about empowering your team to make informed decisions for themselves and their families. When information is clear and easy to find, you'll spend less time answering repetitive questions and more time on strategic work that moves your business forward. This clarity directly impacts retention, as employees who feel supported and understand their total compensation are more likely to stay.

The key is to meet your employees where they are. This means breaking down complex topics into simple, digestible formats and making sure the answers they need are always just a few clicks away. A great PEO partner can provide the platforms and resources to make this a reality, often offering sophisticated online portals and mobile apps that you couldn't build on your own. But even without a PEO, you can start implementing these strategies right away. By focusing on clarity and convenience, you can transform benefits communication from a source of confusion into a tool for employee engagement and satisfaction.

Use Visuals to Explain Complex Topics

Some benefits concepts are notoriously tricky to explain with words alone. Think about trying to describe how a deductible works versus showing it with a simple graphic. Visuals like infographics, short videos, and quick-reference charts can make all the difference. Instead of sending a long email about your 401(k) matching program, create a simple infographic that shows exactly how an employee's contribution grows with the company match. These visual aids cut through the clutter and help people grasp important details at a glance. You can easily create compelling visuals to share in emails, post on your company’s internal portal, or use during open enrollment meetings.

Share Information Across Multiple Channels

Your team is made up of individuals with different communication preferences. While one person might carefully read every email, another might prefer a quick video or a printed handout they can review later. To make sure your message reaches everyone, share benefits information across multiple channels. Use email for detailed announcements, a company chat tool for quick reminders, and virtual or in-person meetings for Q&A sessions. You could even create a short video series explaining each benefit. A strong package of employee benefits is a significant investment, so using a multi-channel approach ensures everyone on your team understands its full value.

Offer Self-Service Resources

Empower your employees by giving them a central place to find answers whenever they need them. A dedicated benefits portal or a section on your company intranet can serve as a one-stop shop for all benefits-related information. This hub should house everything from plan summaries and provider directories to FAQs and links to enrollment platforms. When an employee has a question at 8 p.m., they can find the answer themselves instead of waiting for business hours. This not only provides convenience for your team but also frees up your HR staff from answering the same questions over and over.

Use Simple, Everyday Language

Benefits and insurance are full of industry-specific jargon that can feel like another language. Terms like "coinsurance," "out-of-pocket maximum," and "vesting" can be confusing. Whenever you communicate about benefits, make a conscious effort to use simple, clear language. Swap jargon for plain-English explanations. For example, instead of "out-of-pocket maximum," you could say, "the most you'll pay for covered services in a year." Writing in a straightforward, conversational tone shows that you respect your employees' time and are committed to helping them truly understand their options. This builds trust and makes the entire process less intimidating.

Time Your Communications for Maximum Impact

Timing is everything, especially when it comes to employee benefits. If you only talk about benefits during the two-week open enrollment window, you’re missing a huge opportunity to help your team understand and appreciate the investment you’re making in them. A well-timed communication plan turns benefits from a confusing annual task into a year-round asset for your company. By strategically planning when you share information, you can reduce confusion, increase participation, and show your employees you’re truly invested in their well-being. This approach isn't about sending more emails; it's about sending the right message at the right moment. When you communicate effectively throughout the year, you build a culture of transparency and support. Employees are more likely to use their benefits wisely, which leads to a healthier, happier team and a better return on your benefits investment. It transforms benefits from a line item on a spreadsheet into a tangible part of your company culture that helps you attract and retain top talent. Let's break down the key moments in the benefits calendar and how to make the most of them.

Educate Before Enrollment

The weeks leading up to open enrollment are your prime time for education. Instead of dropping a mountain of paperwork on your team and expecting them to sort it out, use this period to lay the groundwork. Share guides, host informal Q&A sessions, and send out bite-sized information about the different plans and what’s changing from last year. Good communication helps employees understand their choices, which makes them feel more confident and valued. When your team feels informed, they can make decisions that are right for them and their families, leading to higher job satisfaction and a more engaged workforce.

Support Your Team During Open Enrollment

Once open enrollment begins, your role shifts from educator to supporter. This is when your team is actively making decisions, and they’ll need clear, direct, and easily accessible information. Make your open enrollment messages catchy and easy to find in a crowded inbox. Use clear subject lines like "Action Required: Choose Your Benefits" and highlight key deadlines. Ensure important information is memorable so employees don't miss it. Offering one-on-one support or dedicated office hours can also make a huge difference, especially for a small business with new employee benefits. The goal is to make the process as smooth and stress-free as possible.

Follow Up After Enrollment

Your job isn’t done once the enrollment window closes. The period right after enrollment is the perfect time to reinforce the value of the choices your employees just made. Send out a confirmation of their selections and a digital welcome kit that summarizes their new benefits. You can also share a simple guide on how to use their plans, like how to find an in-network doctor or access their new dental coverage. It's also a great time to regularly assess whether employees understand their benefits. A quick, anonymous survey can give you valuable insight into what’s working and where you might need to provide more clarity next year.

Keep the Conversation Going All Year

Don't let benefits become a once-a-year topic. To get the most out of your investment, you need to keep the conversation going. Share updates and educational content regularly. You could send a quarterly wellness newsletter with tips for using preventive care benefits or a reminder about the employee assistance program (EAP) during a stressful time of year. This consistent communication keeps benefits top-of-mind and encourages your team to actually use them. When employees use their benefits effectively, it contributes to a healthier, more productive team and can even support your company's cost-reduction strategies in the long run.

Measure Your Success and Keep Improving

Once your communication plan is in motion, you can’t just set it and forget it. How do you know if your messages are actually hitting the mark or just getting lost in the shuffle? Measuring your efforts is the only way to know what’s working and where you can do better. This isn’t about getting bogged down in spreadsheets; it’s about making smart, simple checks to ensure your time and resources are making a real impact on your team’s understanding and appreciation of their benefits.

Think of it as a continuous conversation. You share information, listen to the response, and adjust your approach accordingly. By tracking a few key things, you can move from guessing to knowing, ensuring your benefits communication strategy truly supports your employees and your business goals. This feedback loop is essential for refining your plan over time and making sure it evolves with your team.

Define Your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Before you can measure success, you need to define what it looks like. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are specific, measurable metrics that show you how effective your communication is. Don't let the term intimidate you; these can be simple data points you already have access to. For example, you could track email open rates, click-through rates on links to your benefits portal, or attendance numbers for informational webinars. These numbers give you a clear, quantitative picture of whether your messages are being seen and engaged with. Without them, you’re just hoping your communications are resonating instead of knowing they are.

Gather Employee Feedback

Numbers tell part of the story, but the other part comes directly from your team. The easiest way to find out if your communication is clear is to ask. You can do this through short, simple surveys, one-on-one conversations, or group discussions. Ask direct questions like, "On a scale of 1-5, how well do you understand your health benefits?" or "What is one thing about our benefits package that you find confusing?" This qualitative feedback is invaluable. It helps you understand the why behind the data and gives you direct insight into your employees' experience, allowing you to address their specific concerns and questions.

Track Participation Rates

One of the most telling signs of a successful benefits communication plan is how many employees actually use the benefits you offer. Look beyond just open enrollment numbers. Are employees contributing to their retirement plans? Are they using wellness programs or mental health resources? Low participation in valuable programs often points to a communication gap. If your team doesn't know about a benefit or doesn't understand its value, they won't use it. Tracking these rates throughout the year helps you spot areas where you need to provide more information or clearer explanations about the great perks you provide.

Use Data to Make Improvements

Collecting all this information is only useful if you act on it. The final step is to use your KPIs, employee feedback, and participation rates to refine your strategy. If you notice that emails about retirement planning have low open rates, maybe try a lunch-and-learn session instead. If feedback shows that deductibles are a major point of confusion, create a simple infographic or a short video to explain them. This data-driven approach helps you make smarter decisions, leading to more effective communication and better cost-reduction strategies as employees make more informed choices about their coverage.

Create a Communication Plan That Lasts

A great benefits communication strategy isn’t a one-and-done project you tackle before open enrollment. It’s an ongoing conversation that keeps your team informed and engaged all year long. When you build a plan designed to last, you move beyond simply listing perks and start showing your employees how their benefits can genuinely support their lives. This consistent effort reinforces the value of your investment and helps your team feel more connected to the company. A sustainable plan ensures that benefits remain a key part of your company culture, not just an annual administrative task. By thinking long-term, you create a system that can adapt as your business and your team evolve.

Find Your Internal Champions

You don’t have to be the only person talking about benefits. Look for internal champions within your company—managers, team leads, or even enthusiastic employees who genuinely appreciate the benefits package. These individuals can be powerful allies in spreading information and building positive momentum. When a colleague shares how a specific benefit helped them, the message feels more authentic and relatable. Your champions can help answer casual questions in team meetings or Slack channels, making benefits information feel more accessible. A successful communication plan relies on these advocates to personalize the message and ensure it resonates across different departments and roles.

Provide Training and Support

Once you’ve identified your champions, you need to give them the tools to succeed. This means providing clear, straightforward training, especially for managers. When managers are confident in their understanding of the benefits, they can field questions from their teams accurately and consistently. This prevents confusion and ensures everyone receives the same core message. We can help you create simple guides and talking points that make it easy for your leaders to discuss benefits. Equipping your managers turns them into reliable resources, which builds trust and shows your entire team that you’re committed to their well-being.

Plan Your Resources

Effective communication requires a multi-channel approach because people absorb information in different ways. Think about creating a mix of resources to reach everyone on your team. This could include detailed emails, a dedicated section on your company intranet, simple one-page flyers, or even short video tutorials. The goal is to make information easy to find and digest. By planning these materials ahead of time, you ensure you have a library of clear, consistent content ready to go. Our streamlined process helps businesses organize these efforts so that every employee can access the information they need, whenever they need it.

Develop a Long-Term Strategy

Benefits communication shouldn't stop once open enrollment closes. To get the most out of your benefits package, you need a long-term strategy that keeps the conversation going year-round. This can be as simple as a communication calendar with monthly or quarterly touchpoints. You could send reminders about using wellness stipends, share tips for understanding an EOB, or highlight a specific benefit that’s relevant to the season. Consistent, jargon-free communication helps employees remember and use their benefits, which leads to higher satisfaction and a healthier, more engaged team. If you need help building a strategy that works for your business, you can always book a free consultation with us.

Best Practices for Keeping the Conversation Going

Open enrollment might feel like the main event for benefits communication, but it’s really just the beginning. The most effective strategies treat benefits as a year-round conversation, not a once-a-year info dump. Keeping the dialogue open helps your team feel supported and ensures they’re making the most of the perks you provide. It’s about creating a steady flow of helpful information that builds confidence and clarity. By sending regular updates, answering questions before they’re asked, keeping the content interesting, and listening to feedback, you can transform benefits communication from a chore into a powerful tool for employee engagement. Let’s look at a few simple practices to keep the conversation alive all year long.

Send Regular Updates and Reminders

Think of your benefits communication like a friendly nudge rather than a formal announcement. A year-round approach keeps benefits top-of-mind and helps employees use them when they actually need them. Create a simple calendar to plan your messages. You can tie reminders to specific times of the year—for example, send a note about using FSA funds before the deadline or highlight mental health resources during a particularly busy season. This consistent contact shows you’re invested in your team’s well-being beyond the enrollment period. A great PEO partner can provide tools and support to help you automate and manage this ongoing communication.

Answer Common Questions Proactively

You can save everyone time and reduce confusion by anticipating your team’s questions. Instead of waiting for the same queries to pop up repeatedly, create a go-to resource hub. This could be a straightforward FAQ page on your company intranet, a series of short explainer videos, or a library of one-pagers that break down complex topics. When you provide clear, accessible answers from the start, you empower employees to find the information they need on their own terms. This proactive approach not only helps your team feel more confident in their choices but also frees up your HR staff to focus on more strategic initiatives.

Maintain Engagement

Let’s be honest—benefits information can be a bit dry. To keep your team engaged, you have to make the content interesting. Ditch the long, text-heavy emails and try using visuals like infographics or charts to explain complex ideas. Share real stories or testimonials from team members about how a particular benefit made a difference for them. You could even create short quizzes to make learning about benefits more interactive. When employees understand the real-world value of their benefits, they’re more likely to appreciate and use them, which is a win for everyone. Good communication makes your employee benefits package feel less like a policy and more like a genuine perk.

Adapt Based on Employee Feedback

The best way to know if your communication is working is to ask. Communication should be a two-way street, so create simple ways for your team to share their thoughts. You can use anonymous pulse surveys, set up a suggestion box, or hold informal Q&A sessions. Ask open-ended questions to understand what’s clear, what’s confusing, and what they’d like to learn more about. The most important step is to act on the feedback you receive. When you make changes based on employee input, you show that you’re listening and that their opinions matter. This builds trust and helps you continuously refine your strategy. If you need help getting started, you can always book a free consultation to discuss your approach.

Related Articles

• How Small Businesses Can Create Employee Benefits Packages That Boost Satisfaction | Inclusive PEO Brokers
• Finding the Right Employee Benefits Broker for Your Business | Inclusive PEO Brokers
• The benefits of strategic planning for your business | Inclusive PEO Brokers

Frequently Asked Questions

This sounds like a lot of work for a small business. Where do I even start? I completely get it. When you're wearing multiple hats, building a communication plan can feel like one more thing on a never-ending list. The best place to start is small. Begin by creating a simple FAQ document that answers the top 5-10 questions you always get about benefits. Then, make that document easy for everyone to find. You don't need a fancy portal right away; a shared document or a dedicated channel in your team chat app works perfectly. This single step makes information more accessible and saves you time, which is a win-win.

How can I make sure my message actually connects with my whole team, from recent grads to older employees? The key is to stop thinking about your team as one group and start thinking about them as individuals with different priorities. You can tailor your message without creating a ton of extra work. For example, when you discuss your retirement plan, you could include a section for younger employees on the power of starting early and another for older employees on catch-up contributions. It’s about framing the same benefit in different ways to show each person how it applies directly to their life stage.

How often should I really be talking about benefits? I don't want to overwhelm my team with constant emails. You're right to be concerned about overwhelming people. This isn't about sending daily emails but about creating a steady, predictable rhythm. A good starting point is a quarterly benefits highlight in your company newsletter or a quick mention in a monthly all-hands meeting. You can also send timely reminders for specific events, like the deadline to use FSA funds. The goal is to make benefits a normal part of the conversation, not a frantic rush once a year.

What is the single most important thing I can do to make my benefits communication clearer? If you only do one thing, focus on simplifying your language. Go through your benefits materials and actively replace every piece of jargon with a plain-English explanation. Instead of "co-insurance," try "the percentage of costs you pay after you've met your deductible." This simple change makes your benefits less intimidating and shows your employees that you are committed to helping them understand their options. Clarity builds trust faster than anything else.

How does working with a PEO broker help with all of this? Think of us as your strategic partner and an extension of your team. We help you select a PEO that often provides sophisticated communication tools, like online portals and mobile apps, that would be difficult for a small business to build alone. Beyond the technology, we help you craft the communication strategy itself. We know what questions employees typically have and can help you create clear, simple materials to answer them proactively, saving you time and ensuring your team gets the most value from their benefits.