Boosting retirement plan enrollments using tablets and mobile devices

In an effort to help Americans better prepare for their retirement, ING’s U.S. Retirement division has launched a nationwide initiative that allows employees to instantly enroll in their workplace retirement plan by accessing ING’s online enrollment center through a tablet.

The program, ING iEnroll, is the expansion of an initiative first introduced in the Northeast during the past six months where tablets were used in group enrollment meetings with a select number of 401(k) plan customers. The goal was to help facilitate the enrollment process by providing employees access to the latest in mobile technology as a means to help them immediately enroll in their employer’s retirement plan.

Initial results from the program suggest that tablets and mobile devices can be powerful tools for encouraging individuals to take positive retirement savings action. According to industry statistics, the average participation rate in a 401(k) plan was 82.3% at the end of 2009.  However, for those attending an ING iEnroll meeting, ING found that those deciding to participate trended higher — nearly 97% took positive action by enrolling or re-enrolling in their company's plan using a tablet during the session.

“One of the biggest challenges our industry faces is getting individuals to take an important first step by joining their employer-sponsored retirement plan,” says Rick Mason, president of corporate markets for ING U.S. Retirement. “We believe this effort can help even more Americans get on the right track to achieving their goals.”   

During the interactive sessions, ING enrollment and retirement specialists educate prospective participants on the benefits of saving as well as the investment options available in their retirement plan. At the conclusion of each session, these individuals are then able to enroll instantly with access to ING’s online enrollment center through a tablet or their own mobile device. Mobile devices offer eligible employees the convenience to enroll when they are at their highest point of interest in participating in their plan. 

These enrollment sessions may also help existing plan participants understand the value of increasing their payroll contribution amounts while offering the same mobile access and convenience for making these contribution changes immediately.

“By personalizing the enrollment experience and offering employees another method to engage with their plan, we are making it easier to take advantage of these important retirement benefits in a way that is most effective for them,” says Mason.

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