NASFUND Buka branch kicked off its annual marketing calendar by visiting employers in Arawa recently.
The trip is part of the overall branch marketing awareness drive to ensure contributing employers are informed and updated about the features of the new system.
The new system will enable employers to load their monthly contributions, create new membership numbers for new staff and other features to save time from driving 4 hours to the NASFUND branch based in Buka town.
The visitation also updated employers and employees about the new forms that are required by the system; services that could be accessed by members such as housing advances, the new member online portal and the benefits of using member ID cards to purchase goods and services through the membership discount program.
The team also visited Buin where one of its employer’s Covec Buin Project was located. The team was able to load online the employers contributing using the new the employer portal.
Payroll and account manager, Jack Wang, who was guided to upload the contributions, was amazed to see the contributions being loaded immediately.
“It is impressive to see NASFUND coming up with such services to help employers like us who are further away from the township to gain immediate access to superannuation information and to upload contributions at our own premises,” he said.
“It is good that the FUND is trying to move with what other countries are doing in tapping into technology platforms and making life easy for all of us.”
The Buka branch also took part in the Yumi Wan Festival at the Bel Isi park in January to promote the new member online service.
With the increasing number of smartphone users in the region, the service is reliable for members to access their superannuation account using smartphones.
The festival saw a total of 32 members signing up and 123 forms distributed and collected afterwards from employees around the town area.
NASFUND’s Buka officer-in-charge, Geita Goasa, said this was the first time the branch had taken part in an event to meet and mingle with the public and members.
“We learnt valuable feedback from members and those who enquired. The festival was also a personal development for me and my staff. It brought us out from our comfort zones in staying within our office and serving members behind the counter.”
She said the experience of mingling with the public and understanding the views of people who stopped by gave her an understanding on how people still need to be made aware of the products and services that NASFUND provides.
The Buka branch looks after 25 employers who are actively contributing to the FUND with more than 3,000 active members.
(Buka branch officer-in-charge Geita Goasa with staff of the Covec Buin project after conducting the awareness session)