Dive Brief:

• The end of the year might sound like a good time (New Year's resolutions, etc.) for employers to encourage employees to make changes that will help them save for their futures, but 401(k) communications during the busy holiday season probably will go unheeded, according to Employee Benefits News.
• A major hurdle: inboxes are "bursting with emails about deals and shopping," experts say – meaning retirement planning emails have a slim to none chance of capturing anyone’s attention, according to EBN.
• Rebecca Katz, principal and head of Vanguard’s participant strategy and development, told EBN that sending retirement messages between Thanksgiving and New Year’s probably won't be effective.

Dive Insight:

“First, the mindset of most people at this time of year is around consumption and spending. If you are sending a message about retirement savings, it is like offering a kale smoothie at Mardi Gras. It is good for you, but is not accepted,” Katz told EBN.

Katz recommends that plan sponsors send out retirement plan messaging between September and November, because that is the time employers offer open enrollment. People can sign up for health and life insurance benefits during that timeframe.

Cindy Lapoff, legal and regulatory consultant at Manning & Napier, told EBN there are good, specific retirement planning messages employers can offer at year's end. For example, employers can remind employees to maximize pretax retirement plan contributions for the year, and anyone who can "top off their contributions or make the maximum IRS contribution" before the end of the year should do it.