How to make your benefit communications count

If you want all of your people to understand and value your benefits offering, you need to capture their attention and inspire engagement first.

You might have an impressive range of employee benefits, but you need to communicate them in a way that’s easy for all employees to engage with. If not, you will be at risk of isolating employees and disengaging them.

One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to creating effective communications, but including accessibility and inclusivity should be the norm. Every element – from your visuals and branding to structure and tone - plays a part in showing employees that you care about their wellbeing.

Understand your audience

Start by listening. By using surveys, focus groups, and other interactions to get feedback, you’ll be able to gather data that highlights what types of communications are working for your people and how they like to receive information. Analysing this data will allow you to segment your communications to better tailor them around particular audiences – by age or life stage for example.

According to the Royal National Institute of Blind People, more than two million people in the UK are living with sight loss, which can affect how they interact with your content. In the process of finding out what works best for your employees, you might also find specific, additional needs - such as sight loss and other accessibility needs – which need addressing.

Make key information stand out

Make sure key information is impossible to miss. Use design cues like bold text, contrasting colours or boxed content to highlight key messages and calls to action. 

People remember data and visuals far more easily than dense text. Use infographics, charts and visuals to present complex information in a clear, engaging way. 

Some of my top tips would be:  

• Use infographics to simplify complex data.
• Show figures as whole numbers or combine percentages with monetary amounts.
• Replace long bullet lists with flowcharts or icons for easier comprehension.
• These small design decisions can make your communications more memorable and meaningful.

Factor in accessibility needs

If your research highlights certain accessibility needs, make sure you factor these in when deciding how best to communicate your benefits messaging. The current format might not be best suited to some people, so by offering alternative formats, you’re letting them know they don’t need to miss out or settle for something that isn’t accessible to them.

These options could include braille, large font or audio transcript. Individuals with a physical or motor disability might struggle to pick up the phone and call, so be sure to give them more than one contact method. Including clear signposting to trusted external websites for support and information is another simple way to provide that additional help.

There are other simple things you can do to make sure your communications are easy to engage with without knowing the individual needs of your audience – for example using colours that are easy for people who are colour blind to view.

Use a solid structure and visual variety

A solid structure has a hugely positive impact on readability. 

• A concise contents list guides readers and aids screen reader navigation.
• Headings and subheadings organise content and improve narrative flow.
• Page numbers and colour-coded sections help orient readers, but ensure all colours meet accessibility standards (aim for ‘AA’ contrast).
• A hierarchy of headings and subheadings will help with the overall narrative flow and group information together nicely.
• Use visuals such as charts, tables, and icons to bring your messages to life.

Ultimately, well-organised, visually engaging content increases the likelihood that your audience will not just read, but act on your communications.

Representation matters

Make sure any imagery you use reflects your entire workforce. 

Whether using stock photos, animations, or campaign visuals, collaborate with designers to include diverse representations of ethnicity, age, ability, gender identity and sexuality. Make sure consideration is given to colours, fonts, spacing, closed captions and transcripts to meet different people's needs and inclusivity standards. 

Keep purpose front and centre 

Every design and content decision should make it easier for employees to understand, connect with and act on your message. Thoughtful design, diverse imagery, and a digestible structure don’t just inform – they empower employees to make confident, well-informed choices about their rewards and wellbeing.

If you’d like any further information on how to improve your benefits communications, please contact DrumRoll – BW's in-house communications agency – or your usual BW consultant. 

This article features contributions from Melissa Edwards, Copywriter at DrumRoll.