Want the latest retirement plan adviser news and insights? Sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters.
In Practice May 27, 2026
Making Plan Communication Relevant for Multiple Generations
Advisers can take several approaches as they vie for different demographics’ attention and participation.
Reported by
Mallika Mitra
Gone are the days when communication between 401(k) recordkeepers, advisers, employers and participants was conducted via mail, in-person meetings and the occasional phone call. Now the many players that bring retirement savings plans to employees are able to contact plan sponsors and participants via texting, webinars, emails, podcasts and more.
“We’re all still in the attention economy,” says Courtenay Shipley, president and chief planologist of Retirement Planology. “You’re trying to grab people and eyeballs wherever you can and give people the opportunity to listen, to read … in as many different spots as possible, which is both terrible and awesome at the same time.”
But just because there are so many avenues of communication at their disposal does not mean advisers, providers and plan sponsors should use them all, Shipley says. It is important to consider the intended audience and the best way to generate engagement.
Generational Differences
First, advisers should understand an audience’s preferences. Retirement planning and financial advice is not one size fits all, and there are generational differences in how people are accustomed to receiving information. More than half (58%) of Generation Z and Millennial survey respondents said financial brand language does not reflect how they actually think or talk about money, according to a recent survey from Reach3 Insights. Additionally, 42% of respondents said the language used by financial companies felt out of touch with real life, while one-third said it appeared to be aimed at older generations.
Baby Boomers are more likely to pick up the phone, attend live events and read a printed newsletter, says Rebecca Hourihan, chief marketing officer at 401(k) Marketing. Gen X’s mentors were Baby Boomers, but their mentees are Millennials—who are inclined to communicate digitally—so their preferences tend to overlap with the two generations they are sandwiched between.
Despite strong interest in financial help, according to a report by the CFA Institute, “Next-Gen Investors: A Guide for Wealth Managers and Financial Advisers,” Gen Z and Millennial investors expect to receive advice in very different ways than older generations. Younger investors expressed a preference for active participation and collaborative, hybrid advice models that blend human expertise with technology-enabled personalization. Gen Z consumers tend to respond to referrals via social media, Hourihan adds.
Topics That Stick
Getting in the weeds about complex topics usually does not generate participant interest. Discussing the ins and outs of target-date-fund glide-path construction or a quarterly review of investment plan menu changes are not likely to drum up engagement, experts say.
“At the end of the day, we’re all humans, so a lot of the macro topics are always going to be popular,” Hourihan says. Younger participants respond well to discussion of savings and budgeting, while older participants may be increasingly interested in topics like caregiving. For participants nearing retirement, Social Security, Medicare and estate planning may be top of mind. “Those are macro topics advisers should always have as part of their education carousel.”
Ideally, advisers can educate the masses and use their content strategy as a pipeline that leads to one-on-one conversations, Hourihan adds.
Shipley says she recently had a surprising amount of people show up in person to learn how to get a mortgage, which she says speaks to the current climate regarding the feasibility of buying a home. In short: Being relevant is key.
Mediums That Work
Shipley says while her advisory firm has not tried podcasts targeting employees, it has published ones targeting plan sponsors, and the listen rates were low. LinkedIn Lives, on the other hand, have worked well with plan sponsors when sticking to about 10 minutes, she says.
To reach participants, Shipley has seen success with webinars—as long as they are targeted to a specific audience. She says firms can use the recordings to send out teasers to get more views and build a library for when employees engage and ask questions about specific topics, such as Social Security.
Eric Henon, founder of and managing partner in EACH Enterprise, says he has not found Facebook or Instagram to be productive when trying to engage participants, but his firm is starting an initiative to use Snapchat and TikTok.
“Most people would be hard-pressed to write more than two paragraphs, and we have to keep that in mind when communicating with people,” Henon says. “Videos—and short videos in particular—are becoming the default communication for participants.”
Henon also recommends monitoring Reddit and says both Charles Schwab and Fidelity Investments do a good job of responding to posts on the platform within hours. He says firms demonstrate outstanding client service by being able to address issues right away or at least signaling that they pay attention.
Focusing on Personalization, Engagement
Human capital management software is key for employers looking to engage with employees, Henon says. Some platforms allow segmentation by variables related to a retirement plan, such as long-term or part-time data, or by those with annual wages of more than $150,000, which can be especially helpful for targeting communication.
An employer using HCM software to communicate about the retirement plan “significantly enhances the quality of data that is exchanged between the two and reduces the error rate considerably,” Henon says. “If they use the segment data … it generates better outcomes”
While most employees already have access to retirement plans, emergency savings programs, financial education resources and adviser support, Jennifer Rayner, the founder and CEO of Moniwell, a digital engagement platform, says the bigger challenge for employers and advisers is getting employees to consistently take action at the right moments. According to Rayner, Moniwell typically sees 20% to 40% of employees take measurable action through ongoing engagement messaging, while maintaining texting interaction with as much as 85% of an employee population.
Even within texting, there are specific best practices.
“We consistently see stronger participation when communication is broken into smaller, conversational touchpoints instead of large informational experiences via logged-in dashboards that employees must proactively seek out,” Rayner says.
She adds that trust matters more than the channel itself, and she has found that engagement is strongest when communication is positioned as an extension of the employer’s existing communication relationship with employees.
“Employees are significantly more likely to engage when messaging feels timely, relevant and directly connected to their employer experience, rather than outreach coming from a third-party provider or financial institution,” Rayner adds. “The future likely isn’t about choosing one communication medium over another. It’s about understanding which medium best supports the specific behavior or outcome an employer or adviser is trying to drive.”
« How Advisers Can Help Modern Families Navigate Wealth Transfers