Thursday, April 26, 2007

Connectivity For the Residents in Your Building

Seniors continue to be the fastest growing group of people crossing the digital divide, using the Internet to reach out to their friends and family, explore new interests, take courses, plan travel, and using cyber space to keep mentally and socially active.

Seniors want to be connected; they expect to be able to connect. To attract them to your property, you have to provide connectivity.

Many senior living sites try to meet this connectivity expectation by setting up a couple of computer work stations in a "computer room" or corner of a common room. Residents come to the computer room, log on, and connect; reminding us of the very early days of the telephone, when hotels would have dedicated "telephone rooms" for their guests. But can you imagine asking your residents to come to a "telephone room" whenever they wanted to make a telephone call? The same is true when it comes to using the Internet.

Owners who have dedicated computer rooms in their buildings report that computer rooms do not expand computer/Internet usage beyond the current "active" group of users and do not promote increased social interaction, in fact, residents seek privacy for their Internet "conversations" and are actually less likely to use the room when other users are present.

Like the telephone, an Internet connection belongs in every room. And for the same reasons, privacy, security, comfort, and convenience.For the cost of outfitting a typical computer room, you can give 160 residents the skills and equipment needed to access the Internet from the safety and privacy of their own unit.

Plus, once your building is wired and connected, you, as the owner/operator, can use the system to:

  • Communicate events, reminders, menus, health-related and other appointments, etc. to your residents
  • Cut distribution costs on marketing material
  • Communicate with family member decision-makers and physicians
  • Document staff/resident interactions
  • Generating additional revenue
  • Create activities for the residents to develope content
Enhance your building’s attractiveness and competitiveness by giving all your residents the advantages of Internet connectivity. It’s easy. It’s affordable. It contributes to your uniqueness within your marketplace.

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