Some trends in the industry are obvious while others are morehidden—out of sight and under the surface. We call these“icebergs.”

The iceberg addressed here involves declining voluntaryparticipation rates. Ironically, no one seems to be talking aboutit.

Consider the average participation rates, by product, of some ofthe most frequently sold voluntary products (as reported bycarriers in 2014).

On average, the rates are down by seven points. All of theproducts' rates (in the chart) have declined with the exception ofaccident insurance, which has remained steady. Even if we look byenrollment method, the rates have dropped in the last few years.The low participation rates suggest we're missing a large number ofpeople who need the coverages we offer, but they aren't gettingeither the information or support to decide to buy it.

There are multiple factors at work here. First, we're seeingmore worksite products written by brokers and carriers with lessexperience with voluntary enrollments. They often use the methodsthat worked well on the employer-funded side but either don'trealize there are other options with typically higher participationresults or they're uncomfortable using a different method. Toachieve good participation rates, we have to answer both employerand employee needs. Employers want to minimize employee time awayfrom their job. Employees want to talk to someone and getreassurances that the decisions they are making are the right onesfor their family.

To find the right solution, we have to first recognize that notall cases and employees are the same. We have to do what is rightfor each case. Second, we have to refuse to accept enrollment toolsthat don't allow us to achieve good results. There are options outthere, so look for them. And lastly, we have to do more than askemployers how they want us to enroll a case. We must educateemployers on why it takes more than passing out kits or forms tohave a successful enrollment. At the employee level, a goodenrollment is a multi-step process of education, communication andreinforcement.