Five steps you can take to encourage employee vaccination by making the process as easy as possible.

If you would like to encourage employee vaccination at your company, there’s no downside to offering incentives.

As part of your efforts, you’ll also need a communication plan to let employees know what’s available.

And at cloudHQ, we have the perfect tool to help.

1. Use SMS Text to Provide Information

Nothing is more effective than SMS text messages for communication campaigns.

Text messages have over a 90% open rate and are often read within seconds. Compare that to emails, which may not be read for hours or days, if ever.

At cloudHQ we offer a free tool called MailKing that includes the ability to send SMS text message campaigns.

If you have a Gmail account, you can use MailKing to upload a list of contacts, create a SMS text message, and send it directly from your computer — all within a few minutes and with no additional software needed.

This is the fastest and most effective way to send updates about how your organization is helping employees get their vaccine shots.

In addition, you can track who opens your messages – then have managers follow up with anyone who didn’t open the message.

Here’s a quick video showing you step-by-step how to set up a text campaign:

 

 

2. Offer Paid Time Off for Vaccine Shots

Offering an extra paid time off is one of the easiest ways companies have found to encourage employee vaccination.

You can offer part or all of a day off to receive a vaccine shot. If needed, you could offer an extra day of paid time for any side effects a staff member might experience the day after.

3. Offer a Vaccine Reward

A wide range of companies are offering rewards and extra payments to encourage their workforce to receive a vaccine.

For example, Kroger is offering $100 bonus to employees who choose to receive the vaccine. And Instacart is providing a $25 vaccine support stipend to help offset lost time a shopper might spend getting a COVID vaccine.

4. Share Resources and Information

Share information from non-partisan, widely-recognized experts as part of your larger employee vaccination strategy.

In many cases, people will trust information from local sources as much the voices they hear so often on national news sources.

With this in mind, try to find information from local resources in your area — as well as national resources.

5. Have Leaders Model Behavior

Every company has a culture, and employees will often look to leaders for a sense of normal behavior in an organization.

In your communication strategy — including your SMS texts about vaccines! — feature your senior leaders getting their shots. And encourage your managers to get their shot and talk to their teams about how they can get theirs.

Make Employee Vaccination Easy!

Helping your employees get vaccinated helps protect them and everyone they might interact with at your business. And a strong employee vaccination program will make the process as easy as possible.

Whatever incentives you offer, MailKing for Gmail with SMS text messaging can help you communicate the details of your plan with every member of your team. All in just a few minutes.