Join us at the AARP LivePitch!
Join Seniors in Touch at the AARP Health Innovation@50+ LivePitch in New Orleans on September 21, 2012. We are proud to partner for this LivePitch event as a media partner, and our CEO will serve as head company coach for the final eight contestants.
AARP Health Innovation@50+ LivePitch, Friday, September 21 at the New Orleans Convention Center is the premier showcase featuring the most exciting start-up companies in the “50 and over” health technology and innovation sector. The pitch event offers the venture capital and angel investor community as well as the media, the opportunity to connect with these outstanding start-ups.
Health Innovation@50+ takes place at the annual 2012 Life@50+ AARP National Event & Expo in New Orleans, which is attended by 20,000+ members and guests from across the U.S. and the globe.
The unique dual-pitch format allows start-ups to pitch leading venture and angel investors as well as AARP consumers. The day starts with companies pitching the judges and investor audience. In the afternoon, AARP members will be allowed into the room and companies will have the opportunity to redirect their pitch to the consumer audience and gain valuable consumer feedback. At the end of the day two grand prize winners – a Judges’ Winner and AARP Consumer Winner – will be announced.
“I’ll be directing the two other company coaches and working directly with the 8 finalists on both the Judges and the Consumer pitches,” says Brian Lang, CEO, Seniors In Touch. “It’s a very exciting event, and we are honored to participate.”
Houston Business Journal feature article
Houston Business Journal
by Molly Ryan, Reporter
Friday, June 22, 2012
Seniors in Touch plugs elderly into Internet, social media
Get ready for your grandma and grandpa to enter the social media era.
The backers behind Seniors in Touch, a touch-screen system developed to help seniors better communicate with friends and family, are gambling that it could transform the way seniors interact with all forms of technology.
Sprouted from an idea hatched by Donald Sapaugh, president of Houston-based University General Health System Inc. , Seniors in Touch hopes to capture a piece of the $2 billion senior technology market, which is expected to grow to $20 billion in the next 10 years [more]
Improving Reputation Management of Senior Living Through Social Media
Seniors In Touch was at ALFA 2012 in Dallas for their annual Community Conference. At ALFA’s request, our CEO authored a report on the session “Improving Reputation Management of Senior Living Through Social Media.”
Here’s an excerpt -
The session “Improving Reputation Management of Senior Living Through Social Media” at ALFA 2012 today in Dallas addressed the opportunity and the liabilities presented by the growing prevalence of Social Media as part of the fabric of our daily experience. Senior living executives cannot avoid addressing a Social Media strategy for marketing, a Social Media policy for employees, or Social Media innovations for their residents and the family of their residents. According to Pew Internet, 81% of younger boomers (46-55) and 76% of older boomers are online.” Facebook users 55 and older grew by over 900 percent in the past year, now accounting for 9 million users, says the most recent report from Facebook’s Social Ads Platform.
See our CEO at SXSW Interactive!
“Transforming Social Media for the Senior Community”
March 13 | 9:30 AM
Omni Hotel | Capital Ballroom
Today 40 million people are over 65 – the largest and fastest growing demographic in America. With Baby Boomers retiring, over 10,000 people a day turn 65, a trend that will continue over the next two decades. Americans age 50+ are increasingly likely to have a cell phone, a laptop or tablet, or a game console, and represent the fastest growing age segment to adopt to social networking and hypernet technology.
What’s the opportunity? A connected lifestyle that blurs boundaries across home, work, leisure, and retirement, smoothly connecting our online and offline lives. Unfortunately, this tech-enabled lifestyle is not yet widespread among older age ranges, hampered by technology choices that are complex and difficult to use.
To enable a connected living and social aging experience for older consumers, vendors need to begin to design for all, and entrepreneurs and the venture community need a more dynamic relationship with this huge and underserved growth market.
To see and hear the presentation, visit: http://seniorsintouch.com/sxsw
For more information on SXSW Interactive, see: http://sxsw.com/interactive
Brian Lang
Chief Executive Officer
Seniors In Touch
Seniors In Touch Joins Houston Technology Center
FRIENDSWOOD, TX, May 25, 2011 – Seniors In Touch, LLC (SIT) today announced it has been accepted into the Accelerator Program at the Houston Technology Center (HTC). Named by Forbes as one of “Ten Technology Incubators Changing The World,” HTC’s Information Technology Program provides strategic and tactical management, in-depth business guidance, and access to investors and technical service firms.
“Working together with HTC provides resources and access to capital that will help accelerate our commercialization,” says Brian Lang, Chief Executive Officer of SIT. “We’ve worked diligently to create an innovative, patented Family Communication System for residents of Senior Living Communities. With HTC’s help, that system will more quickly deploy and improve the quality and length of life for senior adults.
About Seniors In Touch:
Seniors In Touch is a patented Family Communication System for residents of Senior Living Communities. Providing today’s technologies to senior adults brings families together, improving quality and length of life for senior adults. One of the greatest challenges for Senior Living Communities is generating communication between senior residents and family members. Seniors In Touch leverages patented technologies into an innovative system, enhancing communication between seniors and their families in secure and simple online environments.
About Houston Technology Center:
Named by Forbes as one of “Ten Technology Incubators Changing The World,” the Houston Technology Center provides education, insight, and access to capital that entrepreneurs need for commercialization. The Houston Technology Center is a business accelerator and the largest technology business incubator in Texas, advancing the commercialization of emerging technology companies in the greater Houston area. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, HTC assists Houston-based entrepreneurs within several key sectors: energy, information technology, life sciences, nanotechnology and and NASA/aerospace technologies. For more information, visit http://HoustonTech.org.
Social Media Success for Senior Living
By Brian Lang, Chief Executive Officer, Seniors In Touch
Excerpted from Continuum, April 2011
American College of Health Care Administrators
Long term care professionals must adapt New Media tools to serve their own purposes. While Senior Living executives are increasingly aware of the dizzying array of New Media and Social Media tools that are available to them, leveraged use of these technologies often remains elusive.
“Social Media” has become a shrill buzz-term in our collective ear. What does it really mean? Where New Media is defined as “technologies that enable digital interactivity” by Wikipedia and includes e-mail and a Web presence, Social Media is further defined as “a blending of technology and social interaction for the co-creation of value.”
Most long term care facilities have long embraced New Media in the form of well produced Web sites and distribution of e-mail newsletters. More progressive facilities or larger chains may have even extended their digital marketing to Facebook and Twitter, both of which tend to define Social Media for most people.
Facebook now has 149 million active users in the United States, and seventy percent log on daily. That’s roughly half the population. Senior Living facilities are increasingly creating business pages at Facebook and inviting the families of residents to become “Fans.” These Fans then receive posts to their daily Facebook News feeds whenever a facility makes an announcement or “Wall” post.
The marketing value of Facebook is especially appealing when looking at the growth of the 55+ age group between January 2010 to January 2011. This demographic is the second fastest growing segment on Facebook and increased by 58.9% in the past year, with membership growing from 9,763,900 to 15,516,780 members. When you take into account that an advertisement on Facebook can be scheduled to only appear in certain geographic areas and within certain demographics, the advertising dollars that are spent on Facebook are extremely cost effective.
The very fabric of Facebook starts with knowing the location, age, and interests of it’s members. The average age of an Assisted Living resident is 86.9 years and they will probably won’t be found online. However, the adult child of that Senior is very likely above 55 and increasingly available to be targeted on Facebook. For the children of aging Seniors who are looking for long term care options, this means a well placed ad by a Senior Living facility could show up on their Profile page next time they log in.
Having a business presence on Facebook should not be confused with their third party applications. Businesses in more than 190 countries build applications on the Facebook Platform and users install more than 20 million applications per day. Additionally, globally more than 250 million people use external Web sites to interact with them using Facebook ID.
But it’s very possible the Social Media revolution for long term care providers will not be found in marketing. The real revolution may be in how Senior Living facilities embrace emerging technologies to connect families and improve the quality of a resident’s life. Social Media is life changing because it is enables connections, shared values, and personal expression.
According to Senior Living consultant and pioneer Jim Moore, “Seniors have stories to tell involving a lifetime of distinguished achievements. They want to share these accomplishments with anyone who will patiently listen. Many also have untapped artistic and intellectual talents that, properly structured, would significantly enhance their life satisfaction. Many ladies want you to sit and hold hands while some of the men want to reminisce about war and workplace battles won and lost. The staff hugs them, calls them by their first names and monitors their well-being. But as an 85-year-old lady told me at dinner one evening, ‘I just want to talk to someone from the outside world who is really interested in what I have to say.’”
Accrediting organizations and New Media professionals should increasingly work together to introduce best practices and curriculum that train long term care providers not only for the marketing uses of New Media, but also to extend Social Media in ways that connects families and residents. As “a blending of technology and social interaction for the co-creation of value,” Social Media’s most powerful use for long term care professionals is in how it is used by them to improve the quality of life for their residents and how it is extended to enrich their connection to family.
Activities directors could emerge as the center of the Senior Living Social Media revolution. Where Facebook will increasingly provide a great marketing platform and connection to family for facilities, today’s average resident of a Senior Living facility will likely never use Facebook.
Easy first steps in adopting Social Media for residents involve sharing pictures, exchanging memories, and direct conversation with family via video conferencing. The following suggestions assumes that a facility has already collected e-mail addresses for the family members of residents and have added them to an e-mail distribution list (for a free distribution list, visit GoogleGroups.com):
1) Since Seniors can’t get enough of photos, family members could be invited via e-mail to participate in an upcoming photo sharing activity. Using a free photo sharing service such as Flikr.com from Yahoo! family members could get be contacted via an e-mail distribution from a facility and be given a week or two to organize their photos. Many people already have accounts at Flikr and this could be an easy first step for an Activities Director to coordinate. A newer, free Social Media site for photo sharing can be found at CoMemories.com and is set up where several family members can collaborate together to create shared photo albums. Seniors could privately view the results, or share photos with friends during an afternoon activity.
2) Family members would be invited to start sharing memories about their loved one at Blogger.com from Google, a free blogging service. This could chronicle the Senior’s life beginning with childhood and include schooling, marriage, and children. Military careers can be honored, academic accomplishments celebrated, and careers chronicled. A model for how families could share these memories with their loved one can be found at 1000Memories.com, a Web service that helps digitally honor the memory of a loved one.
3) To super charge the Social Media experience for residents, schedule an afternoon or evening of free, face-to-face video conferencing using Skype.com. To coordinate times for this event, use Doodle.com, a free scheduling tool that will help you coordinate when family could sit down and Skype with your resident. Or use LiveStream.com, a free service that will allow facilities to share a broadcast from the computer where residents will be viewing pictures or reviewing the results of the online creation of their life story.
Facilities need only invest in a computer connected to the Internet with an inexpensive webcam to bring these Social Media activities in-house. Invest in a touch screen desktop computer with a built-in camera from Hewlett Packard or Apple – your Seniors will never have to touch a keyboard to participate. Add a tablet to your inventory. Apple just released the new iPad, complete with a forward facing camera (for video conferencing). In the second quarter of 2011, Motorola and Samsung will be introducing a touch tablet with a forward facing camera using the latest operating system from Android (by Google) that will be as fully featured as the iPod but cheaper. Residents could use these tablets to comfortably sit in a great room with friends and share pictures or memories over a cup of tea, or staff could use these devices with Memory Care patents to review life experiences together.
It’s these kinds of technologies that not only will increase the quality of life for your residents, it could also contribute to the length of their stay. “In these economically challenging times, it may be difficult to consider investing in technologies,” reports a recent issue of Long Term Living Magazine. “Yet, quality-focused communities are finding that investing in technologies can enable them to better fulfill their mission and objectives. Technologies can give them a strategic marketing advantage, help better manage risk, and generate additional revenue.”
Senior Living executives and accrediting organizations can expect to see many new technologies and “mash-ups” of New Media emerging in the near future that are being appropriated for long term care related fields. These will likely include hardware and software combinations that embrace ease-of-use products and services that keeps Seniors connected and helps eliminate feelings of isolation.
Innovation for the residents of Senior Living facilities is going to come from forward thinking companies, accrediting organizations, and professionals who understand Social Media as it applies to the aging demographic. By now we all know that Facebook was launched by a 19 year old who wanted to meet girls. Social Media for Senior Living will succeed when it helps facilitate family connections and improves the quality of life for residents of long term care facilities.
Authored by Brian Lang, Chief Executive Officer of SeniorsInTouch.com, a family communications product for residents of Senior Living facilities. Mr. Lang is also the author of the best selling guide for families from the 90s called “Making the Internet Family-friendly.”
Seniors In Touch Partners With NAAP
FRIENDSWOOD, TX, March 25, 2011 Seniors In Touch (SIT) announces the execution of a strategic relationship agreement between the company and The National Association of Activities Professionals (NAAP). The two organizations will work together in the ongoing development and marketing of the interactive SIT family communications system, and a portion of every sale will be contributed to help fund NAAP.
“NAAP has a longstanding commitment to improving the quality of life and of care for Seniors. Embracing technology solutions with pioneers like Seniors In Touch is where we need to be moving in the future,” says Irene Taylor, Executive Director, NAAP. “The interactive connection to family that SIT provides to residents of Senior Living facilities is revolutionary.”
“We are excited to serve Senior Living facilities together with NAAP,“ says Brian Lang, Chief Executive Officer, SIT. “For almost 30 years NAAP has provided excellence in support services to Activity Professionals through education, advocacy, technical assistance, promotion of standards, and peer and industry relations. It is an honor to innovate together to facilitate family connections for residents of Senior Living facilities and improve the quality of their lives.”
Free webcams are being given to Senior Living professionals referred by NAAP who sign up to find out more about the SIT system. “We want Activity Directors to experience firsthand how our system is super easy to use and how it immediately connects residents to loved ones,” says Lang. To sign up to receive a webcam and get more information, all members need to do is visit http://seniorsintouch.com/naap.
Lang believes that accrediting organizations and New Media professionals should increasingly work together to introduce best practices and curriculum that train long term care providers not only for the marketing uses of New Media, but also to extend Social Media in ways that connects families and residents. “It’s these kinds of technologies that not only will increase the quality of life for your residents,” he says. “It could also contribute to the length of their stay.”
About Seniors In Touch
Seniors In Touch is a patented family communications product for residents of Senior Living facilities. Utilizing the latest in touch screen computing combined with established communication tools, seniors are able to send text and video messages to persons in their contacts via a secure, user-friendly, touch interface. A camera built into the touch screen with video e-mail technology, creates a simple communications solution for senior adults. Those who wish to type can, but it is not required. Seniors In Touch also provides photo-sharing services and limited Web access for news, weather and sports that is approved by the administrator. The system also includes Life Story. A very unique feature, this allows the senior and their loved ones to create and maintain a living legacy and journal of the senior’s life. A family member serves as the administrator of the Seniors In Touch account to provide approved and safe interaction for the Senior adult.
Seniors In Touch Announces Patent
FRIENDSWOOD, TX, Jul 20, 2010 - TrinityCare Senior Living, Inc. today announced they have been awarded a patent for the Company’s interactive family communication system, Seniors In Touch (SIT).
“Seniors In Touch allows senior adults to use a simple touch screen computer system to send and receive video messages, email, pictures, and other digital media,” says Brian Lang, Chief Executive Officer of SIT. “Family and friends from across town or across the nation can share messages, memories, and daily activity using the Internet, hand held technology, and other creative media. The award of this patent recognizes SIT’s technical and social media innovation.” The Company previously announced the implementation of this technology together with CoVideo Systems, a leader in providing video emailing, conferencing and presentation tools.
Seniors In Touch Partners With CoVideo
FRIENDSWOOD, TX, Jun. 2, 2010 - TrinityCare Senior Living, Inc. which develops, manages and owns faith-based senior living facilities, today announced a partnership with CoVideo Systems in the development of the Company’s interactive family communication system, Seniors In Touch. CoVideo Systems provides Seniors In Touch with streaming video email services that facilitate effective communications between senior adults and their families.
“CoVideo Systems’ streaming video technology is an ideal platform for Seniors In Touch. As a leader in their industry, they provide their invaluable expertise as we continue to move forward with development,” stated Brian Lang, CEO of Seniors In Touch. “With this partnership, senior adults and their family can now quickly and effectively communicate via text emails, photos and video emails. Utilizing touch screen computers allow seniors to navigate with a simple touch of an icon. Seniors In Touch’s intuitive design guides users through each activity making it accessible to both novice and expert alike.” ”CoVideo sees great potential in our partnership with Seniors In Touch. Keeping seniors in communication and as an active part of a loved one’s life is a project we are proud to be involved with,” stated Ed Mugg, CoVideo Systems CEO.
Seniors In Touch Appoints New CEO
FRIENDSWOOD, Texas – April 28, 2010 – TrinityCare Senior Living, Inc. which develops, manages and owns faith-based senior living facilities, today announced the development of Seniors In Touch, an interactive family communication system, as well as appointing Brian Lang as Chief Executive Officer. Seniors In Touch utilizes the newest computer technologies including touch screen computers to exchange text and video messaging, providing senior adults a safe and secure portal to intuitively and effectively communicate with family members via the Internet.
“Seniors In Touch is a very exciting development that will facilitate greater communication amongst seniors and their families. Most senior adults in our communities have very little knowledge of computers or the Internet. With this system senior adults will be able to communicate with family via text and video messaging through an easy to use touch screen interface,” stated Donald W. Sapaugh, Chairman and CEO of TrinityCare Senior Living, Inc. and founder of Seniors In Touch. “With Brian Lang as CEO of the project, he brings leadership and expertise to oversee the development and implementation of Seniors In Touch. Mr. Lang’s invaluable experience is a great asset to our team.“
“It’s been my pleasure to work with many nationally known values based organizations on the Internet over the past 15 years. In this new endeavor, I believe the work we’ve started at Seniors In Touch is significant in that it will positively affect the daily quality of life of the senior adults and families it serves,” stated Brian Lang, CEO of Seniors In Touch.
About Seniors In Touch
Seniors In Touch is an interactive communication system for senior adults and their families. Utilizing the latest in touch screen computing combined with established communication tools, seniors will be able to send text and video messages to persons in their contacts via a secure, user-friendly, touch interface. A family member serves as the administrator of the Seniors In Touch account to provide approved and safe interaction for the senior adult. Seniors In Touch will also provide photo-sharing services and limited web access for news, weather and sports that is approved by the administrator. The platform will also provide executive directors of senior living facilities a platform in which to communicate with both the senior adults and their families.