Getting emotional with your pension communications

Pension Communications | Insights

Sam Charles , Digital Director

25 Aug, 2021 · 3 -minute read

Good pension communications appeal to people’s emotions and their imagination. So to get members really thinking about life after work while encouraging them to set retirement targets, you need to reach them in a way that connects on a personal level.

The human imagination is a powerful thing and the more we can help members to imagine their retirement, the more likely they are to plan for it.

We have to get people to take action. The reality is that people are simply not saving enough, early enough – and we have to make members take this seriously while they still have a chance to do something about it.

Emotional connection

Through the use of digital solutions, we can really help people envisage their life after work.

Fear of missing out (FOMO) is a strong emotion that can be powerfully addressed using interactive online tools – for example, using a modeller to illustrate the cumulative impact of not taking advantage of the company match can really encourage people to take positive action.

A simple question such as ‘Could you be missing out on free money?’ can make all the difference – it’s all about knowing your members and adapting your communication approach (and your messaging) as they reach new life milestones.

Behavioural analysis

When considering how to engage people with pensions, there is always the dilemma of either shocking members into changing behaviours or encouraging them to do so in a nice and gentle manner – the latter often conjuring up a long-term view of healthy looking retired couples walking along a beach without a care in the world; the former tending to rely on provoking a reaction to real-time events, such as the impact the current COVID-19 situation is having on the financial landscape.

So, shock or encourage? That is the question. Well, unfortunately, there’s no right or wrong here; it depends entirely on your membership, what you know about their level of understanding when it comes to the undeniably complex world of retirement savings, and their ability to plan for the future.

People are simply not saving enough, early enough – and we have to make members take this seriously while they still have a chance to do something about it.

Sam Charles

Digital Director

Go figure

Pension communications are still very much based on maths, which is why we need to help people understand exactly what the numbers mean for them. Giving people access to communication tools that can help them plan for the retirement they want is key to helping them realise that they have a responsibilty to look after their own financial future—and that you, as the custodians of their schemes, are here to help them do it.

Regardless of how it’s done, one thing’s for certain: we absolutely need to encourage people to save—and we need to make it easy for people to look beyond the figures to see their future experiences. It’s all about conveying the personal benefits of saving and the importance of taking action.

This is all about gaining new levels of understanding—on financial and emotional levels. To do this well you have to think like your members. What do they want? What do they need? What do they know? Where are they now? Where do they want to be?

Future perfect

If you haven’t asked these questions for a while, now is the time. Because things move pretty quickly these days, and the stuff you’ve had in place for X amount of years may not be delivering the level of service your members want, need or deserve any more.

Ultimately, this is about making people think before they act—and if they’re simply going through the motions, ignoring yet another annual benefit statement when it lands on the doormat and continuing to stay disconnected from their financial future, you’re failing in your approach to member engagement.

So get creative. Think about personalised video statements to help members understand what the numbers mean, look at introducing decision-making tools to help people understand the impact of their behaviours, help members set attainable goals by empowering them to build a picture of their retirement lifestyle.

Encourage them to save more. Now.

Member engagement in the digital age

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