Headquartered in Ann Arbor, Mich., Ingenex Digital Marketing is a leading digital agency that offers a broad range of services for companies looking to engage their customers through digital media.  SEM, social media marketing, and web analytics are among its many solutions available to facilitate dialogue, generate traffic, and measure results.  Dedicated to helping businesses harness the power of the internet, Ingenex services clients in the state Michigan and throughout the country.

DMB’s Contel Bradford recently spoke with Derek Mehraban, Ingenex CEO, to learn more about this busy agency and get his outlook on the digital marketing industry.

What is the background story on Ingenex? Give us a brief look at the company’s journey in the digital marketing business.
Ingenex was founded in May 2006 by Derek Mehraban in Ann Arbor, Mich. The original focus of Ingenex was to help companies communicate across generations using new media and technology. The focus of Ingenex tightened in 2007 after Mehraban met Joseph Jaffe and Seth Godin and really began to build clients in the internet marketing space.

Ingenex has now become a successful digital marketing firm that is helping clients develop strategy and grow their business using digital technology. Ingenex believes that a client web site is the core of any digital strategy and specializes in building open source web sites that are usable, credible, and findable. A client site is the main point of customer interaction and content dissemination. Ingenex builds corporate web sites (especially in the business to business space) then optimizes them and measures their traffic and conversions through advanced Google analytics. Ingenex also specializes in pay per click advertising on Google and Yahoo search engines. Digital public relations, and social media marketing including blogger outreach and podcasting round out Ingenex services.

Can you provide some examples of how Ingenex has used digital technology to benefit local community projects?
Ingenex Digital Marketing has been involved in helping the United Way of Washtenaw County, Ann Arbor Hands on Museum, and A2 Fiber (Ann Arbor’s bid to win Google high speed internet). As the social media marketing lead on the Ann Arbor Hands on Museum - Hands on Local Tech event last year, Ingenex built a social media presence for the event and promoted the web site through search engine optimization and social media marketing. During the event our team took photos and video and published them on the event Facebook and Vimeo pages thus creating awareness and documenting the event for future viewing.

As part of the A2 Fiber initiative Ingenex customized the Twitter and Facebook pages for A2Fiber, then organized and ran a YouTube Video Contest to promote interest in Ann Arbor’s bid for Google High Speed Interent.

How are you helping your customers leverage the reach and power of social media?
Ingenex works with all our clients to establish measurable goals for using social media. We define the audience for each client, and develop a social media marketing strategy to reach that audience. We track the conversation, and help our clients participate and often lead the conversation in order to position Ingenex clients as leaders and experts in their respective industries. Ingenex also uses tools like Radian6 and Trackur to monitor the buzz around a clients brand, and measure the success or our client efforts.

For example our client OSRAM Opto Semiconductors is a global manufacturer of LED Lights. OSRAM has engaged Ingenex to build and manage a website that is a powerful tool for customer interaction and information dissemination. The site uses YouTube, Facebook and Flickr to reach out and connect with LED manufacturers, engineers and architects. Ingenex is leading the efforts to produce a virtual trade show on the LED Light Site that will shine a positive light on our client and help them grow their audience and engagement with customers.

What are some of the challenges and successes you’ve had with mobile application development?
Ingenex is working on a text messaging marketing service called Nudge Them. This product will allow businesses to send updates and appointment reminders to customers via text message, email or automated voice message. This is not just a mobile application, but it addresses the rise in mobile phones, and text messaging as a vehicle that is used by all generations, and is becoming an essential way to gain attention, and quickly reach and engage your customers.

Is mobile advertising making an impact at this point?  In your opinion, how long before this trend really takes off?
Mobile advertising is taking off. The mobile phone is the main way people communicate, and it will continue to become how people surf the web and make buying decisions on the fly. As the mobile interface improves, and more people use smart phones, mobile advertising will skyrocket.

When we optimize sites for clients we always take into account how they are viewed on mobile devices. It’s essential to optimize every web site for mobile search as well as traditional search. The number of people searching for your business on their phone is increasing day by day, and business to business companies need to be ready. One way they can prepare is to have a mobile friendly web site.

I expect in two years mobile search will overtake traditional search, and you will see a whole new ballgame for companies and how they market their products. We hope to be at the forefront of this technology and trend when it happens.