Tips from the Team: Census Reminder Blast Emails

It seems like we just rang in the new year, yet we’re already close to the end of February! This likely means that census data collection for 12/31/23 plan years started weeks ago, and data is rolling in from plan sponsors. What about those who you are still waiting on—especially those who might need a corrective refund by 3/15! If you haven’t already sent them a nudge, now is the time for a Census Reminder Blast Email so they can work through the data collection steps on PlanSponsorLink (PSL).

You already know that the Census Request Blast Email template limits available recipients to Plans with Annual Administration Projects launched, for which a Census Request hasn’t yet been sent. The Census Reminder Blast Email template works in a similar way. Once the Census Request Blast Email is sent, Plans are eligible for a reminder until the data collection process is finished. When you initiate the Census Reminder Blast Email, you don’t have to include filters to narrow down which Plans have data collection remaining—PensionPro does that for you!

One simple option is to send the same reminder language to all Plans with unfinished data collection. When you set up the Blast Email template with the language you wish to use, just make sure your Mailing Type is Census Reminder. You get to choose when to initiate the Blast Email, so you can set the wording of the Subject and Body based on how close to the deadline you are:

• If you sent the Census Request at the end of December, your first reminder is likely a general follow up in mid-January to be sure they saw the first email.
• Perhaps the next one at the end of January is a little more specific about the March 15^th deadline.
• As you inch closer to the deadline, you can send more frequent reminders that reference due dates to avoid rush fees or potential excise tax due for late corrective distributions.

Let’s say you want to send a Census Reminder Blast Email to the Census Contact of Plans with data collection for 12/31/23. You can keep the Filters step simple based on Project Period End and Plan Contact Role, then select all Plans when you reach the Recipients step:

Another option is to create reminders with different wording based on where the plan sponsors are in the process. Using the Status by Task report mentioned in our January post, you can see exactly which portions of data collection have been completed. Create a few Blast Email templates with appropriate messages, and as you work through the Blast Email steps, select the Plans which each should be sent to. For example, picture the following scenarios:

• Client A is very close to being done. They have confirmed their company information and ownership details, and even have the census imported, but they just need to attach a few payroll documents and complete the approval step. They get a gentle nudge as a reminder that you’ll be ready to work on their contribution as soon as they finish up.
• Client B started but didn’t get very far. Maybe they need an outreach so you can find out if they have questions as they get their payroll information together.
• Client C hasn’t started at all, so they need a more direct reminder. You can also check the PSL Last Login field on their Contact record to be sure they have at least logged into PSL. Maybe they logged in to check out data collection but didn’t start it, or maybe they didn’t log in at all. In addition to a reminder email, they likely need a phone call to make sure they know that data collection is waiting for them.

While you are working through the census data provided by the plan sponsors who responded right away, we hope you find that Census Reminder Blast Emails can help easily reach out to those plan sponsors who did not. Good luck with the final countdown to March 15^th!