Launched this August on KickStarter, TechDen has found a way to uniquely differentiate itself in the market by operating by the age-old slogan, “out of sight out of mind.” The TechDen product is a physical home and charging station that provides families a way to give their mobile devices a time out. Paired with an innovative app, parents and children are able to collaborate to set healthy boundaries and expectations for screen time. When a device is not in use, it is locked away in the "Den" where it sits until the child is permitted to use the device again.
The goal, the company says, is to eliminate the distraction of an always-on and accessible device.
According to Sarah Voss, head of marketing and communications for Madison-based TechDen, the concept is the brain child of James Symons, the CEO and part owner of LocknCharge, a company launched by his father out of Perth, Australia, in 1998. LocknCharge was founded in order to provide secure charging and transport solutions for laptops and mobile devices within schools. The company expanded to the United States in 2010, finding a home in Madison. They have since expanded the concept into businesses, hospitals and other verticals across the country, eventually leading to the birth of TechDen.
As a father of two young girls, Symons recognized the mobile device use conflict parents were experiencing with their children and the challenge of managing multiple devices in the home. He attended a 2016 conference where he learned that the number of devices in an average home had increased from two to over five devices. After collecting extensive data and insight from other parents, Symons believed his device management concept could translate well and find a unique place in the home. In 2017, he began to put together a team and started to formulate a mission and product that would help families formulate positive technology habits.
To use TechDen, parents set up “sessions” within the TechDen app, which are windows of time during which children can use their device. Within each session, parents can set a maximum allowable screen time of up to one hour. If a session is not currently active, the Den remains locked and children cannot remove their device. When not in use, TechDen charges and stores up to two iOS or Android devices. It recognizes each child’s device and notifies you which devices are charging, and which are in use for better monitoring.
Once a session begins, a child can remove his or her device from the Den. The TechDen app is activated and begins a time count down via drop down notification. When the allotted time is up, the child is then prompted by another notification that it is time to return the device to the Den. If the product is not returned within five minutes, parents receive a notification on their own mobile device, prompting them to have an in-person conversation with their child.
Conversely, if the product is returned on time, the child can earn points toward a reward that has been previously established by the family.
“What we know as parents is that if we are able to incentivize our children in a positive way, we are also teaching them a very healthy routine,” said Voss. “From TechDen, they learn that there is a time to use a device, and that’s great, but there are also boundaries.”
According to Voss, the company chose KickStarter as its first point of promotion as they saw it as the perfect platform to validate the concept. The campaign launched on August 7 with a 45-day goal of raising $50,000 dollars. The KickStarter fund surpassed its goal and currently stands at $52,230.
Over the next several months, the TechDen team will work to improve the product based on sampling and customer feedback. They will kick off a second stage of testing this week with an in-home, three-week trial with a group of 30 families. This is the second set of families that TechDen has tested in-home with. Based on research TechDen conducted with 1,100 families across the United States, they have established their target audience as families with kids between the ages of five and ten.
In terms of early feedback that they have received, Voss noted that parents have requested additional storage slots within the Den as well as noted interest in an on-demand lock and unlock component that would allow access to the den beyond the standard session times. These components could be worked into the next TechDen product iteration.
Voss said that the first priority is to ship TechDen to KickStarter backers by the end of December. TechDen is also now accepting pre-orders on its website for a discounted price of $199 through the end of the year. Beginning in January 2019, TechDen will be available for purchase for $229.
The TechDen team has four full-time employees on the front-end of the business, two based in Madison and two based in Perth, Australia. TechDen and LocknCharge also share many resources, most specifically on the engineering and app development fronts.
From a marketing perspective, TechDen will make a big play on social media using Facebook, Instagram and YouTube for advertising including featured testimonials across platforms. They also plan to do a great deal of cross promotion including work with mom blogs.
“TechDen is all about finding that perfect balance of device time,” said Voss.
