“We feel that we are going to see extremely positive results from our products in 2012.”

Ryan is the President, founder and CEO of Mention Mobile. He has served as producer and creator of various social apps and games. With a vast background in management and social media he has used his extensive skill set and creative vision to form Mention Mobile.

Founded in 2010, Mention Mobile is an innovative development company that specializes in integrated social gaming apps for use on mobile devices. Mention Mobile’s creative vision combines interest in social networks with casual gaming to create interactive and entertaining apps. Apps range from trivia to arcade-style games, word games and more.

MO: There are an increasing number of app and development companies out there. What influenced you to start your own business rather than joining an already established design firm?

Ryan: We felt that our game and app concepts were more unique than what was already out there. We wanted to incorporate public data from social networks (such as Facebook) into our games so that the games became personalized to the user and his/her social data.

MO: What’s been the biggest challenge in starting your own company? If you had to start again, is there anything that you’d do differently?

Ryan: The biggest challenge has been generating exposure for us as a start up in very a crowded market. It has been a trial and error process that we feel we have a good handle on for 2012. There is nothing we would have done differently and we feel that we are going to see extremely positive results from our products in 2012.

MO: How big of a deal was it for Mark Cuban (billionaire, entrepreneur and Dallas Mavericks owner) invest in your company? How did you manage to attract his attention and how has his investment influenced the direction of Mention Mobile?

Ryan: Having someone like Mark on board was huge for us. Mark is a true visionary and knows good opportunities when he sees them so it is great to have him on our side. Mark has been very influential in helping us take the company in the right direction. His overall guidance has helped take Mention Mobile to the next level and will continue to do so in 2012.

MO: What’s your favorite aspect of the design process?

Ryan: Concept creation is my forte. I love looking at the big picture, doing research and getting an idea on paper. Building the initial information architectures for a game or application is definitely my favorite part of the design process. Seeing an idea come to life and watching hundreds of thousands of users enjoy the end result is a pretty rewarding feeling.

MO: You have a pretty impressive team. How did you manage to attract such a great line up of talent to a new company?

Ryan: Attracting great talent is not easy. However, when you have a vision that is appealing to others and the drive to execute on great products combined with a team oriented environment, the talent will come. At Mention Mobile, we make sure that every employee has a say in the products we are creating. Every game we make is a collaborative effort in which multiple team members have maximized their specific talents to create an end product. Whether it be concept creation, programming, graphic design, or marketing, there is nothing more rewarding than to launch a product in which your talents had a say in the end result.

MO: Are there any products that you’re working on that you’re excited to tell our readers about?

Ryan: We have multiple products launching in early 2012 that we are very excited about. We are in the later development stages of a word game with a special social tie in that we feel will be able to compete with the likes of Words With Friends and Scrabble. Further, we will be launching an extremely fun social face distortion application and a cute social trivia game.