TouchPoints Basic is the latest Indiegogo campaign to win flash funding from Arrow, as part of the Arrow Certification Program.

Imagine suddenly waking up in the middle of the night, crying, drenched in sweat and your heart beating out of your chest. Confused, you frantically try to figure out what’s happening, but have no recollection of a bad dream. Now, imagine this happening to your child.

That’s exactly what Vicki Mayo, entrepreneur and co-founder of TouchPoints, was experiencing night after night with her four-year-old daughter. Exhausted after months seeing her child suffering from horrifying night terrors, she turned to close friend and fellow mom, Dr. Amy Serin. Serin, neuropsychologist and also co-founder of TouchPoints, encouraged Mayo to try a technology she had invented.

“That night, during the middle of a particularly heinous night terror, I put what would later become Touchpoints into my daughter’s hand, and she went to sleep in thirty seconds,” recalled Mayo.

Enter TouchPoints

Created to help her patients deal with stress, Serin had been using this technology in her office and studying its effects for over a decade. After seeing the device work magic on her daughter’s night terrors, Mayo knew it could help millions of people, both adults and children, around the world.

Determined to bring this life-changing technology to the masses, Mayo and Serin formed a partnership and founded TouchPoints in December 2015. The duo hired their first engineer in January 2016 and and began working on hardware, determining a way to turn TouchPoints into a device that anyone could use, wherever they happened to be. Within eleven months, they launched their first product, the app-controlled TouchPoints™ original.

How TouchPoints Alleviates Stress

From alleviating anger to improving sleep and focus, these non-invasive wearables uses neuroscientific technology to alter the body’s response to stress. How? By stimulating the brain with a gentle vibration on either side of the body, TouchPoints employs Bi-Lateral Alternating Stimulation Tactile (BLAST). This changes one’s reaction to stress, modifying the fight, flight or freeze response. While using TouchPoints, users experienced an average of over 70% stress reduction in just 30 seconds. Learn more about the science behind TouchPoints here.

Touchpoints Basic on Indiegogo

Taking what they learned from user feedback on TouchPoints original, Mayo and Serin set out to create a more affordable, kid-friendly version of the device. Known as TouchPoints basic, this new iteration is designed to be more durable, water-resistant, colorful, and works without an app control.

“We created TouchPoint basic in response to feedback from thousands of moms and teachers about what they needed for their kids at home and at school,” explained Mayo.

Looking for a different experience, Mayo and Serin decided to launch their new version of TouchPoints on Indiegogo for the first time. “We loved the concept of crowdfunding because it builds a great community, but we were ready to try Indiegogo because we had heard that Indiegogo was very friendly.”

And they weren’t disappointed. From valuable feedback to 24/7 assistance, the TouchPoints team was amazed by the support they received from Indiegogo. “The team that I worked with was amazing,” exclaimed Mayo. “I can’t speak highly enough about Indiegogo and I tell everybody about it.”

Crowdfunding for Good

Unlike a lot of startup businesses, Mayo and Serin didn’t turn to crowdfunding as a means to make money. Instead, they used the platform to enable their product to help as many people as possible. “This was never about money… [money] was never the motivation or the emphasis of creating TouchPoints,” explained Mayo.

When it comes to doing good, the TouchPoints team doesn’t stop there. In order to maximize the positive impact their product can have, Serin and Mayo make it a priority to use local vendors whenever possible. Likewise, every box that is kitted and fulfilled is packed by legally blind individuals. They’ve even created the Touch of Hope Scholarship Fund, which has allowed them to donate one of their life-changing devices to someone in need for every two that are purchased.

“This belief in conscience capitalism, how we use business to really elevate humanity, is woven throughout everything we do,” said Mayo. “That’s who we are as a company; we always find ways to give back.”

Arrow: A Partner for Success

Launching as an Arrow Certified campaign on Indiegogo, the TouchPoints team knew they were set up for success. Knowing that Arrow’s experts had reviewed and verified their new design added a layer of confidence to the campaign. The team also knew that being Arrow Certified at launch would let potential backers know the product design had been validated.

Arrow also came through when the TouchPoints team was having difficulty sourcing a necessary part that was in short supply, providing much-needed support to find an alternate supplier that would be sufficient for their long-term needs. Additionally, as a certified campaign, the team qualifies for a 10% discount on product parts purchased through Arrow. “Any way we can keep our manufacturing costs down, we can pass that on to our clients, whether that be through discounts or adding a new feature,” explained Mayo.

As the latest Arrow flash funding winner, TouchPoints now has an extra $75,000 to grow their team. According to Mayo, the funding couldn’t have come at a better time. TouchPoints was in need of someone to oversee mobile development, someone with the expertise to make sure both the hardware and firmware components were working and advancing properly. “We had a critical hire we were holding on…we’re using the funding to bring that person onboard,” said Mayo.

Arrow is also helping the team develop a new product, due out next year. “We love the thought that Arrow could come along [during development] and help us look at different sensors,” said Mayo. From sending component samples to offering the latest advice, Touchpoint’s partnership with Arrow has proven itself invaluable.

The Ultimate Vision for Touchpoints

Reflecting on Touchpoints and how it can impact people’s lives, Mayo notes, “Stress is something that we’ve come to accept as part of our daily lives. And we don’t give it the credit it deserves for wreaking havoc on it. People think that if you ask someone, ‘How are you doing?’, the response of ‘I’m stressed’ is normal.”

Mayo strongly disagrees that being stressed is normal, because there are better options out there. “You can put your Touchpoints on and it’s the best stress hack ever. Thirty seconds later, stress is reduced, and you can go on with your day. And you don’t even have to stop working.”