In the last few weeks, mobile has been very much front of mind in our office. Of course, the launch of our new mobile childcare voucher service has a lot to do with that.  But as I have been looking more closely at the trends which will dominate employee benefits in the next two years, mobile benefits provision really stands out. Here are five reasons why:

1)      The mobile internet will become the internet – with smartphone and tablet penetration due to reach 65% by 2016 and one in three adults accessing the internet every day through a mobile, phones and tablets are on their way to replacing laptops and desktops as the primary access to information at home and in workplace. 

2)      It’s what your employees will expect – as more and more services are delivered via smartphone and tablet apps or mobile websites, employees will increasingly expect “corporate services” relating to HR, benefits and basic workplace admin to keep pace with the change they are seeing elsewhere.  If employees can pay a gas bill via a mobile you can be sure they would like to book leave or pay their childcare provider from the comfort of their sofa. 

3)      Mobile will help you reach all your employees –while online delivery and administration of benefits has benefited many businesses, offering the same services to a workforce based in the field, warehouse or retail outlet has been more challenging. By taking benefits away from the PC, smartphones and tablets offer employers a break-through opportunity to improve take-up and communication. 

4)      It’s better suited to benefits admin – one of the big trends driven by the mobile internet is the rise of simple but effective mobile sites which make it easier to check information and quicker to carry out basic transactions. Bringing this type of functionality into the employee benefits space will allow employers to offer better services for employees.

5)      You know more about what works – and what doesn’t – the last reason why mobile will drive benefits in the next few years is its ability to give you all the reporting you need about usage trends, spend, benefits take-up, response to communications and other trends you need to watch.  These may already be available to you through your reporting but mobile will give a better picture as it reaches a wider proportion of your employees.

Of course, there isn’t a magic switch you can reach for which will allow you to go mobile overnight. But the number of employee benefits being offered by mobile will only increase from here and the trend looks unstoppable both from the perspective of the opportunities it offers employers and for employees for whom it will offer better access and convenience.  So if you have yet to think about how the mobile internet will impact on your business now is the time to start.

 Andy Philpott is sales and marketing director at Edenred – you can access more insights on our knowledge hub –  www.edenred.co.uk/ehub/ 

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