The document discusses using behavioral science to design employee benefits programs. It notes that employees face many limitations like memory, attention and willpower when making complex decisions. It then outlines six key obstacles (cue, reaction, evaluation, ability, timing, execution) that can constrain employee action in selecting benefits. The document proposes analyzing employee needs, crafting benefits to meet those needs, testing the design, implementing it, observing the results, and navigating challenges through a behavioral lens. The goal is to facilitate employee action and choice by understanding and addressing the psychological and behavioral factors that influence decision making.

1. Benefits and Behavior Change
February 6, 2014

2. Oodles of Behavioral Research

3. Topics
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Introduction: so many limitations…
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How employees decide (or not) about benefits
3
Practical Exercise
4
A behavioral approach to benefits

4. So many limitations…
memory
handling complex decisions
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attention
willpower
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5. Constraining employee action
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6. Employee Context is Vital
What’s Going On?
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Too many choices
Countless product options
Choice overload
Time
Work, love, play
Never urgent
It Makes Us Feel Bad
Employees
3
Scary realities; Deprival
Lots of baggage
It’s Hard to Maintain
We’re usually acting
on instinct & habit
Temptations abound
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7. Next Up – How employees decide
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Introduction: so many limitations…
2
How employees decide about benefits
3
Practical Exercise
4
A behavioral approach to benefits

8. Why don’t they use the program?
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9. 6 Obstacles to Action
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10. Cue
Did they really see it?
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11. Here’re the rules:
5 for shouting it first
1 for being silently right
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12. Cue
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When is the best day of week & time of day?
10:30am Monday
10:30am Tuesday
8pm Tuesday
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13. Cue
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When is the best day of week & time of day?
10:30am Monday
3.7% clicked
10:30am Tuesday
7.1% clicked
8pm Tuesday
1.6% clicked
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14. Reaction
Do your employees immediately shut down?
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15. Reaction
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Which version is more inviting?
27% boost in account creation

16. Reaction
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Who should send the message?
Benefits@CompanyName
Andrea@CompanyName

17. Reaction
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Who should send the message?
Benefits@CompanyName
41% opened
Andrea@CompanyName
42% opened

18. Evaluation
Is it actually right for them?
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19. Evaluation
What are employees really looking for?
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20. Evaluation
What are employees really looking for?
52% increase in clicks
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21. Ability
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Can they actually take action (and do they know it)?
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22. Ability
How do they know they’ll succeed?
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23. Ability
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How do they know they’ll succeed?
8.5% clicked
5.5% clicked
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24. Timing
Why should they take action now?
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25. Timing
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How can you create urgency?
“...If you sign up by 7PM today,
you are eligible to win a free
iPad mini!”
“...If you are one of the first 100
people to sign up, you are
eligible to win a free iPad mini!”

26. Timing
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How can you create urgency?
7.5% clicked
“...If you sign up by 7PM today,
you are eligible to win a free
iPad mini!”
9.6% clicked
“...If you are one of the first 100
people to sign up, you are
eligible to win a free iPad mini!”
13.1% clicked

27. Execute
What do they learn from the first experience?
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28. Execute
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What connects with their prior experience?
“Ask your friends”
“Inspire your friends”
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29. Execute
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What connects with their prior experience?
“Ask your friends”
5.9% boost in referrals
“Inspire your friends”
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30. Are All The Pieces In Place?
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31. Obstacle:
Cue
Try This:
Tell the Employees What the Action Is
TechniquesMake It Clear Where to Act
Clear the Page of Distractions
Reaction
Make Site Beautiful and Professional
Deploy Social Proof
Display Strong Authority on the Subject
Be Authentic and Personal
Evaluation
Prime Employee-Relevant Associations
Leverage Loss Aversion
Use Peer Comparisons
Run a Competition
Avoid Cognitive Overhead
Avoid Choice Overload
Avoid Direct Payments
Ability
Elicit Implementation Intentions
Default Everything
Lessen Burden of Action and Information
Deploy (Positive) Peer Comparisons
Timing
Frame text to avoid temporal myopia
Remind of prior commitment to act
Make it scarce
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32. Next Up – Practical Exercise
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So many limitations
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How employees decide (or not) about benefits
3
Practical Exercise
4
A behavioral approach to benefits

33. Exercise!
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34. Next Up – A Behavioral Approach
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So many limitations
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How employees decide (or not) about benefits
3
Practical Exercise
4
A behavioral approach to benefits

35. Facilitate Employee ACTION
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36. ANALYZE
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ANALYZE
what employees need
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37. CRAFT
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CRAFT the benefits package to
meet the CREATE criteria
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38. TEST
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TEST the design before full
implementation
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39. IMPLEMENT
IMPLEMENT
The benefits intervention
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40. OBSERVE
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OBSERVE
How the implementation goes and the
package’s impact
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41. NAVIGATE
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NAVIGATE
The inevitable challenges and find solutions
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42. Thoughts? I’m all ears…
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43. Summary
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44. Summary
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45. Summary
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46. Want to share your story?
steve@hellowallet.com
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47. Thank You!