Open enrollment (OE) is one of the biggest—if not the biggest—initiatives for the HR department. In most cases, they’ve prepared all year, from choosing the insurance plans to getting the portal ready. But there’s one final step left to be done: Raising awareness of open enrollment among employees and getting them to make their selections in time.
Staging your OE communications plan around a theme is a great way to grab employees’ attention and inject a little bit of fun into benefits season. Here are seven of our favorite open enrollment themes:
#1 Sports
Ready, set, enroll! Kick-off open enrollment season by choosing one sport (or several) to theme your open enrollment campaign around. Football is a good choice since the season will be well underway by the time open enrollment rolls around. However, basketball, baseball, soccer and tennis are also popular options that will appeal to a wide range of employees. Sports-themed giveaway ideas include:
#2 Music
Rock en-roll your way through open enrollment with a music theme. Choose a genre like rock or pop or pun off classic bands that are sure to appeal to your employee demographics. Take your open enrollment on “tour” to each department and encourage HR employees to dress like their favorite rock star or folk musician to add a little fun to festival season — sorry, we meant open enrollment season. Music-themed giveaways include:
#3 Outdoors
Getting outside is associated with being healthy, making this open enrollment theme a natural fit. This is a particularly good theme if you live in an area with a lot of natural parks or work at a very outdoorsy office. Encourage employees to “choose their destination” (i.e., benefit plan) and to “assemble their equipment” (i.e., paperwork) before embarking on the journey of open enrollment. HR recaps can serve as trail guides, coaching employees through the OE process — ranger vests and hats not required. Outdoor-themed giveaways include:
- Custom emergency kits
- Promotional water bottles
- Personalized camping chairs
- Custom vests (including the best vests for men and best vests for women)
#4 Vacation
Open enrollment is kind of comparable to planning for a vacation. You have to research a lot of options and choose the best one for your budget and needs. HR reps can act as “travel agents”—or, for a more modern twist, travel influencers—helping people to book their benefits before the season is over. Of course, a vacation theme also ties into taking time off, giving you a natural opening to highlight how business gifts, like promotional sunglasses or branded beach balls, can enhance employee appreciation . Vacation-themed giveaways include:
#5 Movies and TV Shows
Has a particular movie or TV show dominated the office water cooler chatter lately? Let that be the inspiration for your next open enrollment. Try to choose a popular option, like Succession, so that even people who haven’t seen it will still understand what’s going on. Bonus points for any puns you come up with based on the title — Breaking Benefits, anyone? Obviously, appropriate giveaways will vary based on what you pick, but some options include:
#6 Games
Can you win the game of Life — er, open enrollment? Choose a popular board game or card game and update it to fit your open enrollment plan. Game shows such as Jeopardy or Family Feud are also great choices and provide an excellent chance to educate employees about their benefits options through the game itself. Giveaway ideas include:
#7 Health and Wellness
If none of these other open enrollment themes resonate with you, you can’t go wrong with a simple health and wellness theme. Health and wellness ties directly into OE season and gives you a great opportunity to encourage healthy choices among your employees. In fact, many companies offer a benefit credit for healthy behavior, such as not smoking. Health and wellness-themed giveaway ideas include:
Transform Open Enrollment with Pinnacle Promotions
Incorporating a creative and engaging theme into your open enrollment strategy can make the process more enjoyable for employees. Engaging and creative themes can make the open enrollment process more enjoyable and drive higher participation rates.
These unique themes can help your HR department connect with employees on a more personal level, making the open enrollment process not only informative but also enjoyable. Ultimately, the goal is to create a positive experience that encourages employees to actively participate in choosing their benefits.
By injecting some fun and creativity into the process, you can turn open enrollment season into an exciting and memorable event for everyone involved. Don’t miss the opportunity to make your open enrollment campaign stand out and leave a lasting impression on your employees. So, go ahead and pick the one that resonates with your workforce, and make this open enrollment season a memorable and successful one!
At Pinnacle Promotions, we are your go-to promotional professionals who can assist your HR department in creating customized promotional programs. Through our custom program creation, we can help with open enrollment efforts and enhance the onboarding experience. Contact us today at 877.300.2007, and let us help you make your next open enrollment season an absolute success.
