The Digital Bus

As an internet marketing and search engine optimization firm, Ingenex will often write optimized press releases for our clients that incorporate social media into them. When you incorporate video, pictures and links you create more interest for your release and in turn you will drive more traffic to your client web sites.

As part of our work for SplitMed Incorporated, which includes digital public relations, social media marketing, and internet marketing, we have written and launched a social media release that is sure to draw attention to our clients wonderful product.

SplitMed helps people find low cost alternatives to expensive prescription medication. And with drug prices so high, finding cheap prescription drugs can make a huge difference.

The social media release was submitted via PR Web press release distribution service. It incorporates a video from the client’s YouTube channel, an image, and ShareThis bar  for people to share the release on social networks.

The release is written with search engine optimization in mind. We have used keywords in the title of the release, and throughout the body copy to tell the story, and help people find the release in Google and Yahoo search engines. We also use keyword links in the release to link back to our client site. Here is an image of the social media release:

The release was distributed to health and news publications across the United States. The release will gain exposure, build inbound links and help  SplitMed, Inc. win more clients.

The goal of every social media press release is that people will blog it, share it with friends, and even become fans of the clients product or service. So if you like this release, or you know anyone who could use SplitMed to save money on prescription drugs, please pass it along.

Tags:   Digital PR · ingenex · public relations · social media · Split MedNo Comments.

Ingenex, a Digital Agency with offices in Ann Arbor, Michigan launches their new web site today. You can view the site at http://ingenexdigital.com. The new Ingenex site is built on a Drupal CMS and features the entire internet marketing team of Ingenex Digital.

The site has case studies and showcases some new sites that Ingenex Digital has built and provided internet marketing services for. Ingenex specializes in web site design, search engine optimization, social media marketing, Google Adwords and Pay Per Click advertising, and more.

If you are looking for an internet marketing company to help develop your digital marketing strategy and set up and manage your online marketing campaigns, contact Ingenex Digital Marketing. Our team will respond and we can discuss how Ingenex can build and manage your online presence and get you the internet marketing results you want.

Tags:   ann arbor · digital agency · Google · ingenex · internet marketing · Michigan · Web DesignNo Comments.

If you had five minutes and 20 slides to change the world, what would you say?

At Ignite Ann Arbor, Ingenex Digital Marketing CEO Derek Mehraban told the world about A2 Fiber, Ann Arbor’s bid for Google’s ultra-broadband network.  The event, part of the Global Ignite Week, drew an enthusiastic crowd of more than 400 to Blau Auditorium at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

A2 Fiber is a collaboration between the University of Michigan and the city of Ann Arbor to be selected for Google’s test network of ultra high-speed broadband, which will have data stream rates of 1 gigabit per second.  Derek’s presentation highlighted the advantages Ann Arbor has in competing for the bid, including U-M’s academic prestige, alumni connections like Google founder Larry Page and the high-tech entrepreneurial community in the city of Ann Arbor.

Visit http://www.a2fiber.com to get involved.  There you’ll find resources for submitting Google’s resident nomination forms, social networking resources and information on how Google ultra-broadband will make a difference here in Ann Arbor.

Tags:   a2Fiber · derek mehraban · Google Fiber · Ignite Ann Arbor · ingenexNo Comments.

A2 Fiber is Ann Arbor’s bid to win Google High Speed fiber optic internet in Ann Arbor, Michigan.We need your help to win. Why? Because community participation is a big part of the RFI. Please take a moment to tell Google why Ann Arbor is the perfect fit for its program.

• Visit www.a2fiber.com to read all the details about this effort
• Fill out the community group and resident nomination form http://www.google.com/appserve/fiberrfi/public/options
• Create your own video on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/a2fiber
• Become an A2 Fiber Facebook fan www.facebook.com/a2fiber
• Follow A2 Fiber on Twitter www.twitter.com/a2fiber
• Sign up to receive A2 Fiber e-mail notifications http://www.a2gov.org/services/Pages/E-mailAlertSubscription.aspx
• Tell a friend about A2 Fiber.

The City of Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan have proven technology track records and many assets that could positively benefit a Google broadband project, including an existing fiber network that connects every school, college and major government building in the city.

And according to a 2009 Citizen Survey of Ann Arbor residents’ high-tech capacity, 95 percent of respondents use the Internet; 88 percent use the Internet to make purchases; and 59 percent use the Internet to conduct business with the city.

If you want faster Internet in Ann Arbor, lend a hand for A2 Fiber. You can also attend Ignite Ann Arbor and hear a talk about A2 Fiber given by Derek Mehraban. Ignite Ann Arbor is Thursday, March 4 at 7 PM at Blau Auditorium at UM Ross School of Business.

Tags:   a2Fiber · A2Gov · ann arbor · Google · Ignite · IgniteA2 · LA2M · WifiNo Comments.

Ingenex CEO Derek Mehraban was the featured speaker at TechTown Detroit this morning for a select group of Detroit business owners at the TechTown Entrepreneurs’ Breakfast. The topic for today’s discussion was digital marketing for the entrepreneur and start-up business.

Derek’s talk covered all the bases of digital marketing including social media marketing, integration of traditional and digital advertising, best practices for Linkedin and Facebook, search engine optimization, analytics and much more.

The entire discussion was presented from the perspective of entrepreneurs and start-up companies who may have more time than money and can use digital marketing as a powerful, cost-efficient way to connect with customers and drive brand awareness.

A diverse group of entrepreneurs was on hand for today’s digital marketing discussion. In case you missed it, the event was covered on the Ingenex live Twitter feed. Look for Ingenex at upcoming Tech Town Detroit events.

Tags:   digital marketing · entrepreneurs · Ingenex Digital Marketing · TechTown Detroit2 Comments

It’s the Monday after the Super Bowl, and any marketing blog worth its pixels is going to contribute its commentary about the advertisements. While I was watching this year’s festivities, I noticed that many companies are taking a much more subtle approach to their digital marketing strategies than before.

Gone are the days when every dot bomb out there spends more time on their advertising than on their business model. These days, companies are working to integrate their traditional marketing efforts with their digital marketing campaigns, resulting in less intrusive, more interactive points of contact with consumers via social media channels.

A nice example of this is the Volkswagen Punch Dub game. The premise of the commercial is the timeless game wherein the first person to see a Volkswagen driving down the street promptly punches their friend in the arm. While the commercial itself is nothing out of the ordinary for humorous Super Bowl spots, what is unique is the integration of the Punch Dub website and Facebook fan page. These sites allow Volkswagen enthusiasts to customize their attack, play with their friends and (hopefully!) win a shiny new VW of their very own.

Another compelling advertisement touts the personal side of Google’s search engine, walking the viewer through the inevitable circle of taking a study abroad, falling for that beautiful French girl and eventually searching for instructions to that crib from Ikea. This ad strikes me because while Yahoo and Bing are fairly active advertisers, I can’t recall seeing a Google search spot before. Many Silicon Valley companies are taking this soft sell approach in an effort to make technology less technical and more tangible to the people actually doing the clicking.

And if all this is too cerebral for you, there’s always the Dorito’s samurai.

Tags:   Advertising · digital marketing · Ingenex Digital Marketing · integration · super bowlNo Comments.

Have you set up a second Twitter account for the sole purpose of interacting with brands, following them, redeeming coupons, making service requests, and voicing complaints via Twitter? Maybe it’s a good idea.

Sometimes You Just Gotta Complain.

Flickr photo: kaibara87

It makes sense. Personally I hate to bog down my personal Twitter account with complaints or questions to companies about how their product doesn’t work, or to let them know there was a fly in my soup. But the fact is Twitter is a great way to communicate these items.

A Twitter complaint or request holds the brand accountable, and allows for a somewhat public solving of the problem. So if it’s such a good way to communicate with brands, what’s my problem? In my personal Twitter I don’t want to be a complainer.

Positive Tweets for Personal Twitter

I want my personal Twitter to be a bright, shiny Twitter account all about sharing information, helping others, and making the world a better place.

So what is my darker side Twitter? The Twitter account I use purely for following brands. The Twitter I only bust out when I need to make a transaction or launch a complaint. I certainly won’t tell.

Tags:   Brands · Customer Complaints · Engagement · TwitterNo Comments.

Ingenex Digital Marketing attended this year’s Annual Collaboration for Entrepreneurship at Skyline High School in Ann Arbor to learn more about what’s happening within Michigan’s entrepreneur economy. What an impressive event!

A scooter from Current Motor Company #ace2010 #cumoco

More than 900 attendees turned out to network with entrepreneurs from across the state and interact with compelling new businesses that are driving innovation and job creation here in Michigan. The state-of-the-art facilities at Skyline High School provided an appropriate venue for the diverse, innovative crowd on-hand. Notable companies in attendance included:

• Franklin-based CircleBuilder, winner of the elevator pitch competition and developers of faith-based private social networks,

• Ypsilanti-based WhereToFindCare, winner of the Twitter business idea competition and creators of a free online healthcare research platform for consumers, and

• Ann Arbor-based Current Motor Company, designer and manufacturer of electric motorscooters.

To close out the evening, Michigan Economic Development Corporation Vice President Ned Staebler announced the launch of a new $100,000 SmartZone award as part of the Great Lakes Entrepreneur’s Quest Business Plan Competition. Companies that wish to apply for the competition and vie for the award need to submit a business plan and apply for sponsorship with a local SmartZone by April 23. Click here to learn more.

The ACE 2010 event was an outstanding demonstration of the start-up community and entrepreneurial spirit that is helping Michigan to move its economic recovery forward one small business at a time, and we were inspired by all the amazing people we encountered. Best of luck to all of you entrepreneurs out there!

Tags:   ace2010 · digital marketing · entrepreneur · ingenex · innovation · Michigan · start-upComments Off

Michigan is prioritizing healthcare as a growth industry, and these healthcare events in Ann Arbor and Detroit will set the tone for a successful year in 2010 and give you the inside story on the Michigan healthcare industry.

Ingenex Digital Marketing has three upcoming industry events on its radar where thought leaders and influencers will collaborate, communicate and create actionable strategies in the spirit of fostering economic growth in Michigan via the healthcare industry. If you are interested in learning about the local healthcare economy and how sound digital marketing strategies can help push economic momentum in Michigan’s healthcare industry, we encourage you to attend!

Checking the Vitals on Social Media in Healthcare, sponsored by PRSA Detroit.
January 28 at Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, 8am
Speakers: Bill Ferris, manager, web services, Henry Ford Health System
Barbara Palazzolo, APR, director, marketing and communications, In-House Hospice
Cande Tschetter, Ph. D., APR, CEO, Tschetter and Associates
Jessica Soulliere, senior public relations representative/social media communications coordinator, University of Michigan Health System

The Future of Our Healthcare System, sponsored by Inforum Michigan
February 1 at the Ritz-Carlton in Dearborn, 11:30am
Speakers: Nancy Schlichting, President and Chief Executive Officer, Henry Ford Health System
Dr. Patricia Maryland, President and Chief Executive Officer, St. John Health
Jeff Goldsmith, President, HealthFutures

The Business of Healthcare: The Economic Driver of Washtenaw County, sponsored by United Bank & Trust, Hylant Group and LeadersConnect
February 4 at the Four Points Sheraton in Ann Arbor, 7am
Speakers: Doug Strong, Director and Chief Executive Officer, University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers
Doug Schneider and Jean Chenoweth, Thomson Reuters
Roger Newton, Esperion Therapeutics
Dick Sarns, founder of Sarns Medical and CEO of NuStep
Mark Sutter, CEO, Terumo CVS

Tags:   digital marketing · healthcare · ingenex · MichiganComments Off

Ingenex works closely with Lunch Ann Arbor Marketing (LA2M) to help the marketing community in Ann Arbor share ideas and drive networking.  Today’s LA2M event featured Dee Davey, owner of Creative Ideas Marketing and the Voice of LA2M, as she presented her perspectives on strategic market planning.

By Dee’s count, there are more than 200 different tools and tactics that companies can use to market their businesses, ranging from old school advertising methods to new media technologies.  Which ‘silver bullet’ is right for your business?  According to Dee, the answer is…that depends.

In order to get a clear picture of which tools are the best fit for your business, you must conduct strategic market planning, a process that takes a deep look at what your business is, who your customers are and how you can best meet their needs.  While the final tactics will differ between companies and industries, the overall process applies regardless of whether you’re an established company, an entrepreneur or a worker in transition.

At it’s heart, strategic market planning addresses the tough questions that will help to provide focus to your business.  What is your business?  What are you great at?  Who are your customers?  What do they demand?  How can we bring it all together?  Strategic market planning serves to align your company’s marketing efforts with your business objectives in order to minimize wasteful spending and maximize return on your marketing investment.  This in-depth analysis of your company’s market also helps to uncover new opportunities and address unmet client needs before your competitors do.

Strategic market planning incorporates several key elements of your company’s business.  This includes your integrated brand identity, core competencies, customer needs, trends in your market, changes in the business environment, competitive pressures and the overall marketing mix.

The process for conducting strategic market planning is twofold; an internal discovery program will help you to build a persona around your customers’ behavior and customize your products or services so you can deliver something customers truly value.  An external view uses primary and secondary research to help your company gather and analyze market intelligence in order to understand the environment and learn from both customers and industry experts.  Oftentimes, the most valuable intelligence comes from unexpected sources such as employees who interact with customers on a direct level or experts in unrelated industries!

In summary, Dee’s presentation helped today’s LA2M attendees to learn about how to use strategic market planning to understand customer needs, refine your business model to match those needs and deliver your offerings at the perfect time.

LA2M is a lunch group that meets every Wednesday at 11:45 am to discuss the latest digital and new marketing trends, strategies and techniques.  Join us in person at Conor O’Neill’s or view the presentation online at the LA2M Live Stream.

Tags:   ann arbor · digital marketing · LA2M · Strategic Market Planning1 Comment