Blog 
Spotlight 
News In conversation with my sister-in-law, a Head Teacher approaching retirement, it wasn’t long before the subject turned to pensions. An occupational curse. When I asked about her impending retirement, she declared that she would need to change her financial plans as her “final salary pension was rubbish”.
Given that Final Salary is the gold standard, I was rather taken aback. “In what way?” I asked.
“It’s not my final salary,” she replied.
After a moment, the penny dropped. She thought that she would be retiring on a pension that was equal to her salary in the year of her retirement, not a percentage of her final earnings. Where to start with this? If someone like her, who’s an experienced, highly educated professional, doesn’t understand her pension, the question is why, and what does that say about how effectively we’re communicating with members?
The problem wasn’t that my sister-in-law hadn’t received information about her pension. She almost certainly had. The problem was that after years of membership, she still didn’t understand what she was entitled to. That’s not an engagement issue. That’s a communication failure.
Information is not understanding
The pensions industry often talks about member engagement, but perhaps we’re focusing on the wrong problem. The real issue is whether they understand it.
For years, pension schemes have produced statements, newsletters, explanatory guides and regulatory communications. They’re often technically accurate, compliant, and comprehensive.
Yet many members still don’t understand the basics of how their pension works.
That’s because ‘information’ and ‘understanding’ are two very different things.
A communication shouldn’t be judged successful because it was sent. It should be judged successful because it was understood.
Poorly written communications
One of the biggest barriers to pension engagement is complexity.
According to the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, 1 in 6 adults have what are considered to be ‘very poor literacy skills’, equivalent to those who would achieve a GCSE grade D-G.
The National Literacy Trust suggests that said adult would struggle to read a bus or train timetable, or understand their payslip. If they cannot understand their payslip, there is a good chance that they will also not understand their pension and how it works.
Yet pension communications frequently rely on technical terminology, industry jargon, and lengthy explanations.
The result is predictable. Members skim communications, put them aside for later, or simply disengage altogether.
Plain English isn’t about dumbing things down. It’s about making important information accessible. These communications do not need to use fancy language or difficult concepts to get their message across. Instead, communication teams need to focus on keeping language easy and accessible for all, regardless of reading ability.
Members want to know:
- What do I have?
- What could it be worth?
- Am I on track?
- What should I do next?
The easier it is for them to answer those questions, the more likely they are to engage. to answer those questions, the more likely they are to engage.
Change the form
If pension information isn’t quick to access and easy to digest, it risks being ignored.
As a result, written content can be overlooked.
Nowadays, a wordy email or piece of paper through the door might not be the best option. People are instead checking information between meetings, watching short videos on their commute, and accessing services through apps throughout their day.
Short-form engagement is key. A video or a quick message on an app can be more effective than more traditional methods of communication. Don’t just rely on text; visual communication can also help you out.
Don’t risk your important piece of communication being something else added to the junk drawer; change the form in which your message is delivered.
Getting people engaged online will, for some, resonate better and help them plan ahead.
Find the right platform
Communication gaps are often symptoms of a wider engagement challenge.
Members are more likely to engage when they feel confident navigating their pension and when information is available at the moment they need it.
Technology on its own isn’t the solution, but the right digital experience can remove many of the barriers that traditional communication creates.
An app like Mantle’s My Pocket Pension simplifies member engagement, not just for communications but in other aspects of pension management too. When members feel more confident in exploring and controlling their pension, they are more likely to engage with communications sent.
A challenge for our industry
My sister-in-law’s misunderstanding wasn’t uncommon.
In fact, that’s precisely the problem.
If a Head Teacher can spend an entire career misunderstanding how her pension works, we should stop asking why members aren’t engaging and start asking whether we’re communicating effectively.
Because if members don’t understand what they have, they can’t value it.
And if they don’t value it, they’ll never truly engage with it.
The pensions industry doesn’t have an information problem; it has an understanding problem.
And that’s something all of us should be working to fix.
If you’d like to explore new ways to engage your members and make communications more meaningful, get in touch with the team at Mantle. Start a conversation with our experts today.
