We were delighted that our client, National Grid, took home the Pension Scheme Innovation Award at last week’s Pension Age Awards.

The judges were impressed with the new online retirement tool developed for the National Grid UK Pension Scheme, which gives members a more detailed understanding of their benefits and helps them to make sense of their retirement options. Once members are within a year of their earliest retirement age, they are also able to access free retirement advice paid for by the Trustees.

Wordshop was able to help by developing and implementing a multi-faceted communications plan, to encourage take-up of ‘My Retirement Planner’ and the offer of paid-for advice. Access to the tool was via the Scheme’s existing member portal, My Online Services, so we had to consider how to help members through the registration process for that site.

The campaign started off with a teaser leaflet being mailed to members in the run-up to the launch, which encouraged them to pre-register for the website. This was followed by an invitation letter and personalised activation key, which was sent out with a user guide to all members. Finally, members who had not yet registered before the activation code expired were sent a reminder mailing. We also produced two animated videos – one that set out the registration process for My Online Services in a clear and simple set of steps; and one that covered the importance of online security and members keeping their account details safe.

The print production was complicated, with various versions of the launch flyer produced for six different categories of membership – in addition to the personalised activation code printed on each invitation.  Certain deferred members were also issued one of three Rule Change letters, informing them that as a result they could access their benefits earlier. As is the Wordshop way, everything was produced accurately, on time and within budget.

To date, take up has been very positive, with over 2,800 members signing up for the planner since it launched in the summer. In addition, the site looks well used, with members visiting it around five times on average.