Prudential Retirement Expands Product Offerings

The Experience Prudential Retirement program was designed to strengthen collaboration between financial advisers and plan consultants.

Prudential Retirement also expanded its mobile capacities, allowing participants to review their savings portfolios and calculate retirement income on a mobile device. It will also help business partners provide effective, targeted customer service. Prudential says participants will be able to access their balances, personal rates of return, and year-to-date contributions with less navigation, as well as link to the company’s full-service Web site.

The company is also rolling out its Retirement Income Calculator app, available for free from the Apple Store, Google’s Android Market, or BlackBerry’s App World. Users can input relevant information (their age, salary, current retirement savings, etc.) and calculate their estimated monthly retirement income and estimated monthly retirement income need. The calculator is also available through Prudential’s participant Web site, which provides specific guidance on steps participants can take to achieve their financial goals.

These new products aim to meet growing participant interest in digital tools. According to Eric Feige, vice president of E-strategy, Prudential’s research found that compared to 2010, respondents who are very interested in mobile media grew by 85% in 2011, and those very interested in social media grew by 57%.

“While most people view the total savings they have accumulated and the figure looks big, they are often surprised how quickly the funds decrease,” said Kara Segreto, chief marketing officer of Prudential Retirement. “Our experience with providing the calculator to plan participants has repeatedly shown that when employees view the monthly estimates, they are motivated to increase contributions into their retirement accounts. We see sharing the calculator as one additional, important step in helping Americans achieve retirement security.”