MAGNET elects Dan Nelson, Jr. as Board President

Pittsburgh, PA – (December 3, 2012) – Daniel H. Nelson, Jr., president of full-service marketing communications agency Nelson Schmidt Inc., of Milwaukee and Madison, Wis., has been elected president of the board of directors of MAGNET – the Marketing & Advertising Global Network of leading independent advertising agencies. He begins a two-year term, succeeding Gary Leopold from ISM Boston. MAGNET’s 42 members collectively serve more than 800 clients worldwide and bill more than $2.7 billion dollars annually from offices in all major U.S. markets and around the world, including Barcelona, Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Melbourne, Moscow, Munich, Paris, Seoul, Tokyo and Vancouver.

Nelson, Jr. has been a member of the MAGNET board for more than seven years, serving in a number of roles. His agency has been a member of MAGNET since 1978 and has been named one of the top marketing firms in the country for six consecutive years by BtoB Magazine. It serves U.S. and international clients within select considered purchase industries, including Alliance Laundry Systems, ADP, Honeywell, McKesson, Polaris and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC).

“MAGNET enables members to provide global marketers with immediately accessible local knowledge and ‘feet on the street’ to seamlessly deliver campaigns across the world,” said Nelson. “Our agency and clients have seen first-hand how these global connections become exponentially more important each year, so I’m extremely honored to work with my MAGNET colleagues to expand and further leverage the value MAGNET brings to our agencies’ and our clients’ businesses.”

Nelson”s career includes independent business ventures, marketing, technology, commercial real estate and executive leadership experience. Prior to succeeding his father as president of Nelson Schmidt, he worked in account management with national and international consumer and business-to-business clients. Prior to joining the agency, he owned a commercial photography and graphic design business in San Francisco, where he worked with Levi Strauss & Co., Dockers, the Ansel Adams Center for Photography and San Francisco Symphony. Nelson earned a Bachelor of Arts & Sciences degree in Biological Sciences and Psychology and a Master of Science degree in Biological Sciences, both from Stanford University.

Other board members elected during the fall 2012 meeting in Portland, Ore., were:

Director – Seminars
Joanne Kim, Partner and Chief Idea Officer
Marcus Thomas
Cleveland, Ohio

Director – Membership
Scott Morgan, President
Brunner
Pittsburgh, Pa.

Director – Planning
Mark Lethbridge, CEO
AGA/Gravity Global
London, England

Director – Marketing
David Campbell, President/COO

Chernoff Newman

Columbia, S.C.

Director – Programs
Kevin Flynn, Partner
Martino Flynn, LLC
Pittsford, N.Y.

Director – Sites
Bruce Lev, Chief Creative Officer/Partner
Levlane
Philadelphia, Pa.

About MAGNET Global Network

Providing global experts and local expertise, MAGNET agencies work with more than 800 consumer, retail, business-to-business and industrial clients worldwide. Members share experience, knowledge and ideas with partner agencies domestically and internationally, collaborating on business opportunities and enhancing their ability to compete, serve clients, grow and raise the standard of work in the advertising agency industry. Members must maintain a level of commitment to the Network, and new agencies are carefully screened before membership is granted. Currently comprised of more than 40 agencies and affiliations, MAGNET is always seeking to add leading independent agencies throughout the world. Visit www.MAGNETGlobal.org or follow us on Twitter @MAGNETnetwork.