1. QUICK TIPS FOR GIVING YOUR
HEALTHCARE COMMUNICATIONS STAYING POWER
BREAK THROUGH

2. Congratulations! The long hours of planning are behind you,
and open enrollment season is off to a great start. Take a
well-deserved breather for a moment and enjoy the victory!
Now, let your mind wander into the new year when
employees will start using their new plans and the questions
will begin to flow…
Looking Ahead
Give Your Communications
Staying Power
As a benefits leader, you work hard to ensure your workforce
has the information needed to navigate their healthcare
decisions. The problem is, you don’t always get heard.
On the following pages, you’ll find the essential tips and best
practices you need to make sure your healthcare
communications are getting through and getting
remembered – empowering your employees to get the most
out of their healthcare plans this year and the next.
Sound good?
GREAT! THEN LET’S GET STARTED!
$
How much is my deduc
tible?
What is my HSA
balance?
Whatwill
m
yprescription drugs cos
t?
Isittooearly
toget my free annual phy
sical?
| Break Through the Noise | 1

3. It’s January, and phrases like “meeting
your deductible,” “out-of-pocket
maximums,” “HSA,” “covered services,”
“coinsurance,” and “prior
authorization” have your employees
on edge.
Rather than making them feel like
they’ve been blown over by an
unexpectedly cold winter wind, we can
help you create the sensation they’ve
been wrapped in a warm blanket that
shields them from health plan
surprises.
Fast Forward
Each year, when employees start using their new health plans for the first time, confusion
abounds. You’ve been there. You know it’s unavoidable. In the new year, it’s as natural in the
benefits’ world as the sun rising in the east.
You answered their questions during open enrollment, but not every employee listens to each
word you say (What? Really?!), and details get forgotten. The rubber always meets the road
when employees actually start to use their new plans. That’s when the questions, suggestions,
complaints, comments – i.e., employee noise – starts to roll your way.
Now’s the time to embrace employee noise as an
opportunity to enhance your communications.
HOW? READ ON!
EMBRACE EMPLOYEE NOISE
LISTEN TO YOUR AUDIENCE, THEN CATER TO THEM
Health insurance terms are
unfamiliar and complex for
those who don’t live and
breathe benefits.
Help your employees out by
breaking terms down into
straightforward concepts and
providing simple, real-life
examples.
STRUGGLING TO BE HEARD?
You’re not alone. Only 20%
of employers
surveyed believe their communication efforts
were “very effective” at informing employees
about their benefits.1
??
??
+
+
!
!
$
$
| Break Through the Noise | 2

4. Mobile apps that
reach your employees
on the go
Short, catchy videos
Emails paired with electronic
newsletters, intranet articles, and
published testimonials
Digital posters displayed
on screens throughout
the workplace
Social media campaigns
that generate awareness
Don’t assume one communication
method will reach everyone.
Try a mix of media.
Go Multi-Channel
Find out which channels your
employees trust for health
information.
Listen
One company working with Castlight
found it could achieve a 75% registration
rate by embedding video links explaining
its benefits program
FACT
75%
Conduct a survey before the
next Open Enrollment
Whenever possible,
ask your employees,
“How did you hear
about this?”
Track which
channels are used
most frequently
Analyze engagement rates to
identify the most effective
communications mix.
Test and Measure
| Break Through the Noise
1 3
2
Bolster Your Communications
Request open and
click-through rates
from partners who
send emails to your
employees
Collect page
view data from
your portal
manager
Conduct A/B tests to
identify which visuals
and messages get the
best response rates
| 3

5. +
$
$
It’ll make your messages—and your company’s health benefits—feel more personal and engaging, and
help workers understand health plan specifics in the familiar context of their day-to-day lives.
Talk about healthcare in a way that resonates with employees.
Leverage the scenarios continuously
through a variety of channels to maximize
impact.
Share multiple scenarios that cater to
specific employee segments. Showcase
different benefits features and explain how
to interact with your benefits portal or
total health center.
Segment your communication messages to
reach employees in various demographic
slices or life stages.
Use employee questions to identify a series
of 3-5 common scenarios that your
employees experience.
Suzanne is picking up a
prescription at the pharmacy for
the first time after switching to
your company’s high-deductible
health plan. What should she do?
?
?
$
She didn’t realize her
prescription is subject to a
deductible, and she has to pay
the full cost for her medication.
Make them say:
“Hey, that’s me! I should
pay attention.”
| Break Through the Noise
Get Personal
Show how to interact with your
benefits portal to find the answers.
| 4

6. Pull out your highlighters, benefit leaders, and take note.
If you expect employees to behave like
healthcare consumers, you have to
communicate with them like consumers.
We’re not suggesting you spoon-feed your employees. Just
the opposite. We’re saying teach your employees to fish for
themselves.
Show your employees how to self-service in a way that
actually sinks in. And then show them again. And again.
Repetition is critical! Too often benefits leaders shy away
from it. We hear employers say, "Oh, we don't want to
over-communicate. We don’t want to annoy our employees."
But this fear can make employers under-communicate!
Identify a messaging cadence that works for your company
and stick to it.
Repetition Is Not Overcommunication
REPEAT AFTER ME:
THERE’S NO SUCH THING
AS OVERCOMMUNICATION First, there’s the noise factor.
In 2014, business users sent and received, on
average, 121 emails a day. By 2018, this number
is expected to grow to 140.2
Oh – and are your messages mobile
optimized?
Of those emails, employees opened 52% on a
smartphone.3
And though screens are getting
bigger, it’s still easy to miss important details
since only 24% of emails are designed for mobile
reading.4
Plus you’re vying for limited attention.
Another reason to send it again? Most
employees only read about 25% of company
emails, so it might take a few times to catch their
attention.5
Also, it’s just the way memory works.
With your first, second, and even third contact,
your message likely won’t sink in. In fact,
according to marketing expert Dr. Jeffrey Lant,
you need to contact your employees SEVEN
TIMES over an 18-month period before they’ll
hear and retain what you’re saying.6
Why Is Repetition So Critical?
per day
Emails
121
2018
2014
140
121
25%
| Break Through the Noise
Forget...
Forget...
Forget...
Forget...
Forget...
Forget...
REMEMBER!
52%
24%
| 5

7. About Castlight
Castlight Health, Inc. (NYSE:CSLT) is a leader in Enterprise
Healthcare Management. We believe great healthcare builds
great business, and U.S. enterprises can gain control over the
$620 billion spent annually on healthcare, transforming a
crippling cost into a strategic business advantage.
Recognized as a top 2014 software platform by the HR
Technology Conference & Exposition, the Castlight
Enterprise Healthcare Cloud enables employers to
understand and manage their healthcare investments while
helping employees make the best possible healthcare
decisions. Castlight is a great place to work, honored with a
Glassdoor Employees’ Choice award and recognized by Rock
Health for Diversity in Leadership.
For more information, visit www.castlighthealth.com and
connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
References
1
SHRM Survey Findings: State of Employee Benefits in the Workplace -
Communicating Benefits, January 2013.
2
Email Statistics Report, 2014-2018. The Radicati Group, Inc., April 2014.
3
Newsweaver customer data, 2012.
4
Hussain, Anuon. Hubspot, 2014.
5
EMPLOYEEapp’s 2014 Employee Communications Satisfaction Survey.
6
Business Insider, 2011.
It’s not enough to explain benefits changes
during open enrollment or when a benefit is
first offered. Keep talking about it.
Remember: simple, relevant, and repeated
messages are the most successful.
At Castlight, we’re standing by to help you
find the best way to lead your employees
through the ever-changing healthcare world.
Our integrated platform let’s you show
employees how to get the most out of their
healthcare plan without overwhelming them
or sacrificing their time.
Learn more at www.castlighthealth.com!
Bottom Line
SIMPLE REPEATEDRELEVANT
WP-017-A-BreakThroughNoise