A 2×4, a kitchen blender and a video camera was all it took to help Blendtec build up its brand awareness among consumers.

Blendtec, a small company that produces high-power, professional-grade blenders, was an unknown name six years ago. With products priced at $400, it was uncommon to find a Blendtec blender in most household kitchens. But in 2007, when the marketing director surveyed the factory and saw the owner blending a 2×4, a brilliant idea was formed—film the company’s everyday tests and post the videos online.

Every company has manufacturing standards. Brand standards are just as important.

A furniture manufacturer I know insists on using a certain type of screw and a certain type of wood when producing his furniture. I remember asking him once if cheaper screws and different wood would increase his margins. His response — “Sure, but it would catch up with me.”

“People trust our brand because of our reputation for quality,” he said. “As soon as I start compromising the quality, my customers will start looking for a furniture maker who doesn’t.”

From my point of view, blog posts are something of a challenge to a person who has spent his career working to communicate focused ideas through the power of a simple shape, a swash of color, an implied line or a single sentence. Attached are a few of my favorite picks of modern communication that say a lot without using too many words (or any words at all). You’ll notice they are all from countries outside of the United States—maybe we are a little preoccupied covering all our talking points on social media these days than actually focusing on a message that pulls people in and connects with them on an emotional level.

Headline: Catchy Stories, Lápisraro Comunicação, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

An agency’s dedication to accuracy should be just as important as its dedication to stunning design.

At least, that’s a firm belief here at HP, and I am strong advocate for it, especially since I come from a newspaper background.

Here’s a story to illustrate my point. A fellow photo journalist once told me that you could have a Pulitzer Prize winning photo. It could be the most beautiful photo in the world, BUT if the subject’s name was misspelled in the caption or some other piece of information was wrong, it would no longer be a Pulitzer Prize winning photo.

The web as we know it is a continually changing beast.

Nearly 10 years ago, it started out as static web pages, textbook-like design and noisy modems that beeped and crackled to tell us our Internet connection was starting up like an old car. Then, Web 2.0 arrived with broadband video and growing online conversations.

And now, to the present day, the online world is evolving to recognize individual users. You. Think of it as your own personal assistant that understands what you like, recognizes whose opinions you trust and values the resources you use to make decisions.

As is tradition, we’ve designed and produced an ideabook to say thanks to our clients, vendors and friends. This year’s 2012 ideabook is the fourth installment, and we’ve brought back one of our most popular formats, a 6” x 9” spiral bound book with a “notes” section, “doodles” area and “next steps” rail.

Here at HuebnerPetersen, we understand creativity doesn’t just come in the form of fancy ads, compelling copy and interactive campaigns. We value really ugly Christmas sweaters to help us gauge which individuals are our most creative. This year, we held our first-ever ugly sweater contest, competing against our sister company.