UC Merced Grads Harvesting opportunity on local 'silicon farm' (as published in the merced county times

Daniel & Christopher with the Marketing Club at an event.

​If you listen to most media, it seems that most Americans perceive Silicon Valley as the home of California’s most technological residents, with Silicon Beach in Santa Monica following closely. What most people, including Californians, haven’t heard of yet is Silicon Farm. That’s largely because a company in Merced called MARCOM just recently coined the phrase.

Silicon Farm, while just a budding Silicon “empire”, is the output of what UC Merced promises to bring to the community. The hope of the new UC was that with the campus and an influx of young people, that they would have a place to stay, work, and spend their dollars in the community. The idea of Silicon Farm and desire to house equally as brilliant residents as Silicon Valley came to be when MARCOM was created.

MARCOM is a digital agency and an investment firm that builds up and trains a new generation of entrepreneurs. The aim is that those who work with MARCOM will become community leaders and positively transform cities, organizations, and other individuals through the power of social tools. They seek to modernize the toolset of an organization to “overcome the challenges of technological disruption and a rapidly changing future.” In short, they want to equip our community with talented workers who are used to rapidly changing technology and who know how to drive change in any industry.

MARCOM was born out of the Blum Center for Developing Economies at UC Merced where Daniel Sabzehzar, Central Valley native, CEO and Founding Partner of MARCOM Group, was the former Director of Marketing. Along with Daniel, MARCOM was founded by Christopher Bernal, a fellow UC Merced graduate, and Sara Sabzehzar, who is also their Senior Brand Strategist. Daniel and Christopher initially came together to build the first Men’s Volleyball team at UC Merced and they both studied Public Health while at school. The majority of their leadership skills were built and finessed on the court. Now they’re leading a group of Junior Partners and roughly one hundred student interns, fellows, and part-time staff, most of whom also graduated from UC Merced. This powerhouse team works to support their clients throughout the Merced area and beyond. Their most notable clients are Bowles Farming and Livingston Health Group.

CFO of MARCOM, Christopher Bernal, is inspired by the students and members of the community who want to do good together. Independently, he sees students and residents doing great things, but knows that magic happens in a community when they come together. It’s why he started the Marketing Club at UC Merced as a student because he wanted to see “more of my fellow students become connected to local businesses, to help the students be more prepared for the workforce when they graduate, and to see them have opportunities to stay in Merced. When you know what’s going on in your community, you feel like you’re a part of it and take ownership. Most students don't know what they’re going to do when they walk across the [graduation] stage. The goal of the club was to set up a plan for them to stay in Merced and to have some sort of job or mentorship.”

The connection point between MARCOM and the Marketing Club is powerful. The two organizations work together to help local businesses and nonprofits to build up an impactful online presence to drive their missions forward. In a world where this is now essential to be successful in the long-run, it’s incredible that UC Merced students and alumni come together to make a stronger Merced. With clients like Little Oven Pizza, United Way, Chamber of Commerce, Farmers Market, and Eastwind Dojo (just to name a few), these students are integrated into influential organizations that are doing great work in the community.

What’s most exciting about these two young leaders is their commitment to and belief in Merced. Chris says, “No matter what you want to do in life, Merced provides the opportunity to learn and to figure out what your next step will be. People coming to Merced or that are already here can be a part of building a city; It’s a place where we all have the ability to make an impact and the opportunity to do it fast.” Daniel believes that “Merced has access to the world's greatest resources coupled with people that are relatable. The growth this area will see will be transformative and globally competitive. The game is who sees it first.” The value they see in this area is inspiring and should be motivating to those considering this area to live, work, go to school, or build a company.

MARCOM not only benefits the organizations it supports but also the community by providing students with an opportunity to stay in Merced upon graduation. Equally as important, the company gives students and alumni the platform to building impactful relationships with the members of the community outside of the UC. We can all agree the best college towns are the ones where students and alumni are actively involved in community work and are frequently visiting local restaurants, bars, and shops. Those are the towns and colleges that young kids seek to spend the college years. I have a feeling that with MARCOM’s influence and the very involved community that we have, we’ll see Merced continue to rise as an “it” college destination in California.

With young, passionate people like Daniel and Christopher leading the charge to bring technology and opportunities to our community, it’s easy to get excited about the future. It’s a good reminder to everyone that individuals are ones that make the difference, especially at a local level. As a challenge to our readers, I want to leave you with a question: We can wait for change to come or we can make it happen ourselves. How will you make a positive impact in our community this year? Merced is a fertile environment for new businesses (with its relatively low cost of living and quality graduate population) and is a greenfield for innovative ideas. Let’s make a commitment to help tend to this new Silicon Farm’s growth and encourage this new breed of Merced County leaders.   

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If you listen to most media, it seems that most Americans perceive Silicon Valley as the home of California’s most technological residents, with Silicon Beach in Santa Monica following closely. What most people, including Californians, haven’t heard of yet is Silicon Farm. That’s largely because a company in Merced called MARCOM just recently coined the phrase. 

Silicon Farm, while just a budding Silicon “empire”, is the output of what UC Merced promises to bring to the community. The hope of the new UC was that with the campus and an influx of young people, that they would have a place to stay, work, and spend their dollars in the community. The idea of Silicon Farm and desire to house equally as brilliant residents as Silicon Valley came to be when MARCOM was created. 

MARCOM is a digital agency and an investment firm that builds up and trains a new generation of entrepreneurs. The aim is that those who work with MARCOM will become community leaders and positively transform cities, organizations, and other individuals through the power of social tools. They seek to modernize the toolset of an organization to “overcome the challenges of technological disruption and a rapidly changing future.” In short, they want to equip our community with talented workers who are used to rapidly changing technology and who know how to drive change in any industry. 

MARCOM was born out of the Blum Center for Developing Economies at UC Merced where Daniel Sabzehzar, Central Valley native, CEO and Founding Partner of MARCOM Group, was the former Director of Marketing. Along with Daniel, MARCOM was founded by Christopher Bernal, a fellow UC Merced graduate, and Sara Sabzehzar, who is also their Senior Brand Strategist. Daniel and Christopher initially came together to build the first Men’s Volleyball team at UC Merced and they both studied Public Health while at school. The majority of their leadership skills were built and finessed on the court. Now they’re leading a group of Junior Partners and roughly one hundred student interns, fellows, and part-time staff, most of whom also graduated from UC Merced. This powerhouse team works to support their clients throughout the Merced area and beyond. Their most notable clients are Bowles Farming and Livingston Health Group.

CFO of MARCOM, Christopher Bernal, is inspired by the students and members of the community who want to do good together. Independently, he sees students and residents doing great things, but knows that magic happens in a community when they come together. It’s why he started the Marketing Club at UC Merced as a student because he wanted to see “more of my fellow students become connected to local businesses, to help the students be more prepared for the workforce when they graduate, and to see them have opportunities to stay in Merced. When you know what’s going on in your community, you feel like you’re a part of it and take ownership. Most students don't know what they’re going to do when they walk across the [graduation] stage. The goal of the club was to set up a plan for them to stay in Merced and to have some sort of job or mentorship.”

The connection point between MARCOM and the Marketing Club is powerful. The two organizations work together to help local businesses and nonprofits to build up an impactful online presence to drive their missions forward. In a world where this is now essential to be successful in the long-run, it’s incredible that UC Merced students and alumni come together to make a stronger Merced. With clients like Little Oven Pizza, United Way, Chamber of Commerce, Farmers Market, and Eastwind Dojo (just to name a few), these students are integrated into influential organizations that are doing great work in the community. 

What’s most exciting about these two young leaders is their commitment to and belief in Merced. Chris says, “No matter what you want to do in life, Merced provides the opportunity to learn and to figure out what your next step will be. People coming to Merced or that are already here can be a part of building a city; It’s a place where we all have the ability to make an impact and the opportunity to do it fast.” Daniel believes that “Merced has access to the world's greatest resources coupled with people that are relatable. The growth this area will see will be transformative and globally competitive. The game is who sees it first.” The value they see in this area is inspiring and should be motivating to those considering this area to live, work, go to school, or build a company.

MARCOM not only benefits the organizations it supports but also the community by providing students with an opportunity to stay in Merced upon graduation. Equally as important, the company gives students and alumni the platform to building impactful relationships with the members of the community outside of the UC. We can all agree the best college towns are the ones where students and alumni are actively involved in community work and are frequently visiting local restaurants, bars, and shops. Those are the towns and colleges that young kids seek to spend the college years. I have a feeling that with MARCOM’s influence and the very involved community that we have, we’ll see Merced continue to rise as an “it” college destination in California. 

With young, passionate people like Daniel and Christopher leading the charge to bring technology and opportunities to our community, it’s easy to get excited about the future. It’s a good reminder to everyone that individuals are ones that make the difference, especially at a local level. As a challenge to our readers, I want to leave you with a question: We can wait for change to come or we can make it happen ourselves. How will you make a positive impact in our community this year? Merced is a fertile environment for new businesses (with its relatively low cost of living and quality graduate population) and is a greenfield for innovative ideas. Let’s make a commitment to help tend to this new Silicon Farm’s growth and encourage this new breed of Merced County leaders.   ​