Changing the look of a benefits microsite is more than just a facelift. It’s a signal to employees about your client’s commitment to a great employee experience.
As an HR communications specialist, it’s in your job description to ensure that your client’s employees are aware of and understand the benefits that are available to them. One of the best ways to do this is through the use of a benefits microsite, a dedicated website that provides employees with easy access to information about their benefits. But simply creating and launching a benefits microsite isn’t enough. It’s important to regularly update the design of the microsite and not just to impress employees with a fresh look.
Here are 4 reasons why:
1. To Signal Important Benefits Changes
As your client’s company evolves, their benefits offerings will probably change too. Just like a change in your favorite mobile app’s icon catches your attention, updating the design of the benefits microsite can signal to any employee that there are new updates to the site’s content. This way, they’ll be more likely to check it out and learn about the changes. These design updates can be small things like switching up the colors and imagery or bigger changes like reorganizing the navigation to reflect the addition of new benefits or providers.
2. To Keep up with Improving Web Technology
Web technology is constantly evolving and improving, and even a microsite that is only a few years old will likely not be making use of the latest usability and security features. In just the past year we’ve been able to give employees the ability to save their favorite pages or use a helpful chatbot UI to navigate their benefits information, just to name a few. By regularly updating the design of the microsite, you can ensure that your client’s employees are accessing an employee communication tool that is not only visually appealing but also as easy as humanly possible to use.
3. To Improve Accessibility
As we’ve written before, making sure an employee, regardless of ability, can access and use your client’s benefits microsite is becoming increasingly important. However, it can be tough to retrofit a website with accessibility features if they weren’t considered when it was first built. That’s where updating the design comes in. While you’re giving the microsite a facelift, that’s a great opportunity to implement some accessibility improvements. Accessibility often goes hand-in-hand with design, like making sure text has enough contrast or designing form inputs and buttons in a way that’s easy to use for everyone. By regularly updating the design, you’re not just improving aesthetics, you’re making it more usable for all employees.
4. To Signal You’re Listening
Keeping the benefits microsite in tip-top shape for your client means regularly checking how employees are using it and getting feedback through tools like sentiment surveys. By updating the design of the site and letting employees know about these changes, your clients will be demonstrating that they’re paying attention and making adjustments based on their needs. This can help improve employee engagement as it demonstrates how your client is responsive to employees’ needs.
To sum up, keeping your clients’ benefits microsite looking fresh and up-to-date is a must for any HR communications. Not only will it make the site look better and be more user-friendly, but it also sends a message to their employees that they care about their needs and are listening to their feedback. Plus, with all the new tech and accessibility standards coming out, it’s becoming more of a liability to be seen with an outdated site. So don’t be afraid to suggest giving your client’s microsite a little makeover every now and then. Their employees will thank you for it!
