A graduate of Michigan State University, Derek Mehraban is a digital marketing professional and Michigan entrepreneur.
Mehraban is the CEO of Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Ingenex Digital Marketing
Ingenex Digital Marketing. Ingenex specializes in
social networking for business, social community web sites, interactive branding™, custom web design, search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC), online PR, podcasting, and blogging.
Mehraban’s company launched
Social Harbor in 2008 to build business social networking profiles for companies and their employees. Social Harbor also builds online profiles for people in career transition.
Mehraban teaches the
New Media Drivers License at Michigan State University,
blogs, and can be found on
Twitter.
Posted By: Derek Mehraban
Posted: 4/6/2009
Eminem did a nice intro before Michigan State squared off with UConn for a battle royale Final Four game on Saturday. A resident of Detroit, and one of our most successful musical talents, Eminem paid tribute to Detroit City. In one line he said "Detroit will not be defeated, because we never been defeated." He ended with "Look Up Detroit!" And though I thought he could have used:
A. Some of his music as a background track to the montage and
B. Some more positive footage of Detroit
I still enjoyed the sentiment and the video feature: Detroit will not be defeated!
How great is this city? Detroit is amazing. As I watched the Final Four happen in Detroit and heard the Michigan State Spartan fans rock the house and cheer their team on to victory, I couldn't help but smile at our great city. Think about all the amazing people, products, and ideas that have come out of Detroit City.
A list of Detroit greats - in no particular order:
1. Motown Music
2. Ford Motor Company
3. General Motors
4. Eminem
5. Kid Rock
6. Stevie Wonder
7. Michigan State University
8. Wayne State
9. Chrysler
10. Joe Louis
11. Detroit Red Wings
12. Detroit Tigers
13. Barry Sanders
14. Final Four 2009
15. Super Bowl XXL
16. Ryder Cup
17. Alice Cooper
18. Tim Allen
19 Madonna
20. Sam Raimi
21. Little Caesars
22. ePrize
23. Stevie Wonder
24. Tom Izzo
25. Compuware
26. Seldom Blues
27. Detroit Auto Show
28. Iggy Pop
29. Marvin Gaye
30. Ted Nugent
31. Diana Ross
32. Smokey Robinson
33. Bob Seger
34. The White Stripes
35. Joe Dumars
36. Kirk Gibson
37. Al Kaline
38. Mitch Albom
39. John U. Bacon
40. University of Michigan
41. Startup Weekend Detroit
42. Sanders Fudge
43: MSU New Media Drivers License
More....
Add your list of great things coming out of Detroit in the comments. And please remember, if you're looking for a digital agency to grow your business, contact me or sign up for our newsletter at our business social networking site.
Posted By: Derek Mehraban
Posted: 4/3/2009
Detroit is a big, big city. Detroit is Motown surrounded by suburbs. The 'burbs I grew up in. With so many people scattered across Detroit, how do you connect with them? Online and In Person. Let me show you.
My good friends Terry Bean and Charlie Wolborg have a little group with over 3,000 members called Motor City Connect. Motor City Connect allows you to build an online profile, interact on message boards - including an active job posting board - and attend events around the Detroit area to network with other professionals. Join Motor City Connect and you will have an instant network of local connections from around the entire Detroit area (including Ann Arbor.)
Notice I mention connecting both online and in person. They go hand in hand. You can attend networking events. You're welcome to attend a group I started in Ann Arbor called LA2M - Lunch Ann Arbor Marketing, but you also need a strong online presence on sites like Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter, to get your name out and allow your connections to refer you to someone who needs your help.
To get you started with promoting your personal brand online, my digital agency created a service and web site called Social Harbor. Social Harbor builds your online profiles at Linkedin, Naymz, About Us, and Social Harbor. We also build company profiles that include a map, link to all employees, and work to drive traffic to your business.
Social Harbor has been working for companies like Dickinson Wright, Plante & Moran, and Bank of Ann Arbor - to drive traffic to their businesses and gain recognition for their staff. It works.
To see if your online presence is up to snuff, Google yourself. Are you found on page one of Google and Yahoo! search results? If you are nowhere to be found, or if the information is not what you want people to see - contact Ingenex Digital Marketing at 734.272.4698. We can help you be found, and give you an online presence you will be proud of.
GO STATE!
Posted By: Derek Mehraban
Posted: 4/2/2009
This is the time of year when Wolverine and Spartan fans can all get along -- sort of like that commercial we keep seeing with the people from different schools all getting along because the hotel provides such good service. That hotel is now going to be the Marriott at the Ren Cen. Or the Courtyard by Marriott, or the Ponchartrain Hotel, because the NCAA Final Four is here in Detroit - right now.
On the weekend of April 4, 2009, over 100,000 people will pour into downtown Detroit and millions will watch our city on TV. The game is expected to draw the largest crowd ever for a Final Four, with 70,000 on hand at Ford Field. Those who don't get into the game will fill the bars and restaurants to watch this game and celebrate the Greatest Sports City in the World - Detroit!
In case you don't know me, I'm a Spartan grad, and I teach the New Media Drivers License at MSU. I also grew up in Farmington Hills, and my dad worked at Ford Motor Company for 30+ years. I am rooting for Michigan State and the state of Michigan to win! And we will.
Michigan State basketball sets an example for what hard work, great coaching, a smart game plan, and pure heart can do for any team. Here's how your company can learn from the Michigan State Spartans:
1. Recruit - There is some incredible talent available in southeast Michigan right now. Frankly, I have never seen so much talent available. I want you to go out and recruit some of these wonderful people. Build your team strategically, and believe it will work. We all need to have some faith to make this turnaround. Start hiring!
2. Create a winning game plan - Look at everything you have to work with, and create a plan to win. Detroit and southeast Michigan companies have always been leaders in Innovation. Now is the time to dig in and create a plan to grow your company, outlast this recession, and build for the future. Organizations like Ann Arbor Spark, Wayne State's Tech Town, and Automation Alley are good resources to help you.
3. Be the future - It's time to embrace the new way to do business. Ford Motor Company plucked a CEO from Boeing --an aviation company-- and he has been an inspiring leader with a fresh perspective on how to run a car company.
Ford also hired a social media guru in Scott Monty. He is helping to shape popular opinion about Ford by interacting with everyone on the web. Your company needs to embrace the future and use Digital Tools to expand your reach, and to join the conversation around your brand.
I hope you enjoy the games this weekend. I know I will. Whether watching at home with my family, or attending in person, it's going to be a blast. BTW, anyone have two extra tickets to the Final Four? GO STATE!