Stakeholders from every corner of the retirement plan universe agree that increasing participant enrollment is a top priority. Vanguard believes they can solve the participation problem by learning lessons from an industry that grows every year: online shopping.
Rebecca Katz, head of Participant Strategy and Development at Vanguard, took to the firm’s blog on Jan. 26 to discuss how Vanguard is making it easier for plan participants, or would-be ones, to enroll at work and then stay on top of their investments once they begin setting money aside.
Katz explains that Participant Experience, Vanguard’s upgraded online interface, draws from some of the ways sites like Amazon are so good at drawing visitors in and getting them to buy items once they’re on the site. Much like Amazon’s “Buy Now With 1-Click” feature, Participant Experience has a series of one-click features that make it easier for participants to register for a plan, add more to their plan, and learn more about exactly where that money is going, as well as what it will mean once they reach retirement age.
One of interface’s most effective features is its new Meet Your Match “nudge” feature. Katz said that if active participants haven’t met their company match, an eye-catching image will appear on screen and encourage them to do so. In their pilot runs, more than 13% of all participants who saw the “nudge” clicked on it, and saved more money — a 159% increase over the control group that didn’t see the graphic on screen.
Do you think features like this will help increase plan participation across the board? Or are there bigger factors than changing online interfaces? Share your take in the comment box below.
