He’s been one of the most familiar and outspoken of media agency executives for much of his 32 years in the advertising and media business. Now, Jon Mandel is taking on a new challenge, as CEO of NielsenConnect, where he’ll control and pedal data from the world’s #1 market research firm to those who need it most. He spoke with Brand Connections CEO, Brian F Martin, about the challenges marketers face in measuring new media and explained the importance of creative, media and client interaction in a two-part podcast.

Having spent nearly his entire career at WPP Group’s Grey and MediaCom, Mandel says he’s worked with nearly every type of client. He names among his biggest recent successes a Reebok product placement deal on CBS’s original Survivor reality show in 2000 – when widespread product placement was still in its infancy. “It was working with the creatives [at then Reebok agency Berlin Cameron] that really made it sing. It wasn’t just a media buy, it was an overall program.” The show’s characters actually went shoeless much of the time, as socks were accidentally left out of the shipment, but Mandel says the campaign still drastically boosted the client’s sales. He believes the team’s overarching and collaborative communications design process made it possible to overcome the significant pitfall.

With the increasing role of emerging media, it is more important then ever for media agencies, creative agencies and clients to forge strong ties, he stresses. “Bad media can kill good creative, and good media can save mediocre creative,” Mandel says. If neither one is good, “you may as well just give the money to charity.”

Despite his entertaining style and eminent quotability, Mandel doesn’t think of himself as the rebel he’s sometimes painted. He claims he has simply tried to move the industry forward and help clients consider the ramifications of their actions. “I don’t see myself as outspoken as much as I see everybody else being too quiet. I think people are afraid to say what they think, and then when they do say what they think it’s not exactly what they think, it’s what they believe is the right thing to say given their job or what their company beliefs are… My attitude was if they don’t like it – if the company or client doesn’t like it – well, I can always flip burgers.” Running companies with a mindset of “‘don’t screw up’ as opposed to ‘do something that’s right,’” the prominent media man says, is limiting and shortsighted.

Still, today’s ever-widening swath of media options may pose the greatest danger to contemporary marketers. “You can’t fall in love with the latest painted rock, the latest bauble,” Mandel warns. “There is a place for it, but it doesn’t mean you put all your money into painted rocks.” Another major challenge is modeling the creative with the media, he says. As the sector becomes more efficient and exact at breaking down media consumption segments, Mandel believes marketers must be more vigilant in diversifying messages to stave off the wear-out factor incumbent with media fragmentation and repeated exposure to recurring ads.

Mandel points to auto advertisers as early Internet spenders that miscalculated the impact of their car information web site purchases. It is ineffective to wade into a new medium without understanding “how the consumer uses the medium and what they’re looking for in a given medium, and changing your creative to that usage pattern,” he says. Thus his argument for marketers and others in the field playing video games. “That way you can tailor your media spend and you can tailor your creative message within that medium to be appropriate for how it’s used.”

His new role at NielsenConnect is to promote the brain power and data processing capabilities of the enormous Netherlands-based parent company. “We’re going to clients and saying ‘What would make your life easier? What would make your business easier? What would make you more money?’” With access to data vaults at Claritas, Spectra Marketing Systems, NetRatings, Prism, Scarborough Research, Analytic Services Group and The Modeling Group, Mandel’s team holds many pieces of the puzzle. He also says their approach as that of end users is particularly valuable. “We can help the organization be what the client wants it to be, rather than what the organization thinks it can do, or what the organization thinks is wanted.”

Combing the vast resources at Nielsen’s fingertips can help marketers find their targets, find more of them, or optimize their outreach, he says. “We can give you end to end, from when it’s buzzed about on the Internet through to the cash register.” Mandel and Nielsen hope that will be an offer too good to refuse.

Connie Garrido has helped make Kinetic North America the country’s leading non-traditional media group, moving some of the world’s biggest brands. Her work on innovative marketing projects for American Express, Sprint, Unilever and Snickers generated some waves along the way. In a recent interview with Brand Connections CEO, Brian F Martin, the Chief Strategy Officer explores the emerging medium’s strengths and weaknesses.

Non-traditional marketing is a discipline perhaps best described by what it isn’t: a legacy media holdover. Trailing only online marketing growth, it’s sometimes a challenge narrowing non-traditional’s scope. Beyond print, radio and TV lays a world of marketing opportunity – a concept Garrido is getting her clients to buy into, literally. “We built an agency,” she says, “that is charged with communicating with people on the move.” Kinetic’s goal is to impact consumers during the increasing hours spent away from home, in any way possible. “It’s at-home media; it’s experiential, place-based media. It’s anything that can potentially engage a consumer.”

That seemingly limitless universe of consumer communication opportunities is securing a foothold for non-traditional marketing amongst forward thinkers. Still, such tactics don’t fit neatly into the marketing mix model. Despite significant lifestyle changes in the U.S. over the past 40 years, most marketers (or their bosses, perhaps) cling to a traditional media mix that may now sprinkle in a web campaign. It’s not entirely their fault. “A lack of measurement and direct accountability many times deters advertisers from feeling confident and putting lots of dollars [into non-traditional],” Garrido says. “Non-traditional is more of a conceptual sell and buy, so clients that are very numbers oriented are going to have more discomfort going there.” Executives and stockholders are unlikely to approve large-scale non-traditional investment until there is a “shift in the thinking paradigm,” she says. “Where we can’t provide all the numbers we have to provide the rationale, the justification and the management of expectations to know exactly what role this media is going to play.”

Some senior marketing officers and brand managers are already dipping their toes into non-traditional waters. That’s great news for Kinetic, but educating clients and managing their expectations is still a chore. Explaining risks and helping clients define reasonable expectations must not be overlooked, according to Garrido. With proper guidance clients more readily grasp the positive impact of press, word-of-mouth, and sponsorship associations that move their brand.

“The stunt can be great publicity and such,” Garrido says, “but it isn’t a media vehicle that’s going to help you overall. There’s a right balance and sometimes it’s going in and educating the client to the fact that if you just want a stunt then we can do that. If you want non-traditional to be part of the media mix then we need to really consider the different variety of non-traditional that is available to make sure they meet certain expectations.” One of those varieties is proximity marketing in out-of-home, which Garrido says is Kinetic’s next focus. The way she describes it, blue-casting technology could take mobile marketing to the next level. Two recent campaign with Lenny Kravitz and Land Rover show the technology and application are both ready. Ratcheting up the engagement level and delivery scale is all that remains.

On a more personal note, Garrido says being a strategic thinker, seeing the big picture, and seeking a mentor were all keys to her professional success. Listening closely to clients and co-workers, guarding your integrity, thinking creatively, and respecting others’ opinions are other traits she praises. Finally, “trust your gut” and hold fast to your beliefs when confronted with adversity, Garrido advises. Traditional advice, maybe, but good reminders from a woman who also knows a thing or two about non-traditional.

Two new offerings from Verizon Wireless are sure to please any travelers who’ve dragged laptops and carry-ons through the airport hunting for better Internet connections. The PC5750 PC Card and USB720 modem, now available from Verizon Wireless, push the information superhighway’s speed limit and promise even greater coverage. Coupled with enhancements to the company’s EV-DO network, either one of the wireless broadband connectors will make life easier for travelers who need to stay connected while on the road.

Whether traveling by car, rail or air, the PC5750 – Verizon Wireless’s latest addition to its PC Card line – did the trick for me. Its typical download speeds of 450-800 kbps and uploads speeds of 300–400 kbps allow me to operate seamlessly whether I’m in South Beach or North Jersey.

Pairing the PC5750 with VZAccess Manager made instant messaging, e-mail and web browsing a snap. The fact that it’s Microsoft and Mac compatible meant I could begrudgingly share it with my wife for 15-minutes at a time. I also found the card’s flip-out antenna often improved signal strength and network connectivity in spots I’d previously struggled to find high-speed coverage. Verizon also offers an optional external antenna that promises a further boost, but I haven’t felt the need to try it yet. Finally, the PC5750’s 32–bit CardBus’ 3.3V interface didn’t drain my PC battery, and its $59.99 price tag didn’t break the bank.

The tiny (3.52 x 1.49 x .69 inches) USB720 is Verizon’s first USB wireless modem. I love it because it’s compatible with all the latest notebooks and desktops, and it plugs directly into my handheld thanks to the nearly-universal Type A USB port that accommodates it. After remembering which suitcase pocket I packed it in, the USB720 operates at the same blazing speed as the PC5750. I used to dread working from the road because it meant waking up earlier to accommodate for slower Internet speeds that often cramped my afternoon deadlines, but the USB720 has me jumping at opportunities to visit clients.

Verizon Wireless says its BroadbandAccess is currently available in 242 major metropolitan areas and 180 domestic airports, which I find particularly useful. If you’re looking to improve your productivity outside the office, Verizon’s PC5750 PC Card and USB720 are worth checking out before your next flight.