Given that we are collectively facing one of the largest financial shocks of the last century, with 78% of UK employees worrying most about having no savings or encountering unexpected costs, it is crucial that employees are encouraged to protect themselves.
Employers can play a critical role in supporting their employees with saving, and one of the most impactful ways to do this is by launching a savings campaign within your organisation.
Here are four key principles to guide your campaign.
1. Know your people
Anyone who has witnessed England trying to win the world cup in the last 50 years knows that there is nothing more dispriting than being set a goal that is inherently out-of-reach. Every organisation is made up of an array of entirely unique individuals, and therefore their finances are also totally unique.
A savings structure that works for an unmarried, salaried employee, does not work for a zero-hours employee with three young children. Therefore, you should take care to ensure that you have (as far as possible) a realistic awareness of your employee base: income, dependents, financial obligations, and so on, in order to pitch savings content universally and representatively.
2. Focus on building savings habits
Starting to save can be difficult – especially for those who have never done it. Savings campaigns should ignite a lasting commitment to saving, rather than set concrete parameters where some individuals, perhaps those who are attempting it for the first time, could fall at the first hurdle.
Many of us are familiar with the NHS’s Couch to 5k running programme, and the premise is the same here. To build up a lasting behaviour requires incremental and manageable steps.
Even if savings are dipped into to cover unforeseen expenses or smooth out income, the general trend is still upwards,
Research carried out by Nest Insight reports that even if savings are dipped into to cover unforeseen expenses or smooth out income, the general trend is still upwards, proving the value of flexibility in the modern financial climate.
This flexibility is reflected in the increasing popularity of microsavings and automated savings. An automatic ‘roundup’ feature where any expenditure is automatically rounded up to the nearest pound, with the spare change going into a savings pot, is one example.
It’s crucial for business leaders to introduce a savings campaign that allows for flexibility. Why? Because the course of first-time saving never did run smooth, and flexible tools are the universal equaliser.
