Last month, we discussed some of the reasons Spanish speakers are reluctant to participate in employer-sponsored benefit plans, as well as some misconceptions that prevent some benefits providers from even trying to reach this market. However, there are many ways to improve participation rates by improving communication. While of course translation is an issue, it is just as essential to educate Spanish speakers as to the role benefits play in overall financial stability in this country and to address their misconceptions head-on.

Some strategies for conducting successful enrollment meetings are as follows:

Hire a professional translator for written material. Trying to cut costs by using a computer program or a bilingual employee who does not have translating credentials sends entirely the wrong message. Any reader will assume that if the company did not make the effort to have the translation done well, the topic cannot be terribly important. How would you feel if you were to read sales material that included the phrase, "Their are many advantages …" Would you want to do business with the company that produced it?