The Power of Storytelling in Employee Benefits
Leslie Carver 
It’s our responsibility to share the perks and benefits of working at our organization, but it’s also our choice how to do it.
We often can give employees a packet of forms or send an email with links and instructions. However, when we do that, we’re missing an opportunity to connect.
Think about your new employees. Do you meet with them before they elect their benefits? You probably review the plan highlights and deduction amounts. That’s a lot of information to process at one time. However, if you incorporate storytelling into this meeting, employees are more attentive and emotionally engaged. They can relate to the story and think about how they might feel in a similar situation. As a result, they will be more confident in their election decisions and retain more information about the plans.
When new employees listen to stories, they have a unique opportunity to learn more about your culture. You might share a story about how your EAP provided a specific service during the COVID pandemic. If they struggled during that season, they will have an appreciation for the benefit as well as knowing mental health is a priority for your organization. That is much more effective than just making a statement about supporting mental health initiatives.
Many employees are emotional when starting a new job. They may even be a walking combination of thankful, excited, nervous, relieved and scared. They may fly through the enrollment process and make decisions that have long-term consequences. For example, what happens when employees decline voluntary life insurance? They will probably need to answer health questions if they want it in the future. If they have pre-existing conditions, their request will be denied. However, if they understand that your plan has a guaranteed issue amount and they won’t be denied coverage, they may decide to enroll.
Of course, the terms guaranteed issue amount and evidence of insurability may sound like a foreign language to someone outside of benefits. That’s why it’s so important to explain life insurance through a story. When they hear about “Bob” getting coverage now and “Mike” being denied coverage later even though they both have Type 2 Diabetes, they’ll better understand the consequences of their decision.
Finally, storytelling is so powerful because it works for all learning styles and abilities. Whether your employees are visual, auditory or kinesthetic learners, they will be engaged. You can also take it a step further and incorporate video with subtitles for employees that are hearing impaired or speak English as a second language. The sky's the limit when it comes to serving your employees.
Any way you look at it, storytelling is good for you, your employees and your organization! If you’d like to talk about this or have any questions, let’s connect!