When you work in the marketing industry, it’s important to keep up with the latest visual trends, track the most cutting-edge internet technology, and be aware of what people are creating in the global design community. Listed below are five sites that have become part of my weekly web routine and are great communicative design resources.

CLICK ON THE MONITOR TO VISIT EACH SITE

Brand New

Brand New is a division of UnderConsideration, and it happens to be our most popular division of all the divisions. Its sole purpose is to chronicle and provide opinions on corporate and brand identity work, focusing mostly on identity design and a modest amount of packaging. We cover redesigns and new designs. Nothing more, nothing less, what you see is what you get. – from Brand New

Brand New has become the premier internet spot to see and discuss what’s happening in the world of corporate branding. The home page focuses mainly on large and global businesses, but make sure to check out the b-sides for some smaller company rebrands.

Smashing Magazine

Founded in September 2006, Smashing Magazine delivers useful and innovative information to Web designers and developers. Our aim is to inform our readers about the latest trends and techniques in Web development. We try to persuade you not with the quantity but with the quality of the information we present. Smashing Magazine is and always has been independent. – from Smashing Magazine

The best Smashing Magazine articles are not “How-to’s” or tutorials, but conversations about new developments in web design and how it will impact the future of the net.

Design Bump

The “Digg” of the design world, Design Bump is constantly being updated with new content by aggregating submitted links. These articles can be hit or miss, but the best usually rises to the top because of their user ranking system.

Identity Designed

Identity Designed features projects from around the world of brand identity design. – from Identity Designed

Identity Designed is a great resource for keeping up with the latest company branding on a global scale. It focuses not just on the logo, but on all the collateral and usage that goes into making an entire brand.

Logo of the Day

Logo Of The Day is a high-profile logo design award scheme that rewards the best professional logos and trademarks designed throughout the world. – from Logo of the Day

A really creative logo is always inspiring. As a designer, it gives you creative energy to work harder to create something even better.

Our “self-education” is never ending. At SPRING,  we are always reading and learning about the latest in print, web design, marketing and social media so that we can better serve our clients in this ever-evolving business landscape.

Spring Media recently created business-card-sized USB drives as a promotional item. They turned out very slick, here are a few pictures I took of the final product.

I am always looking for ways to make a client’s product unique and custom, so I thought it would be a lot of fun for Counter Culture to have a one-of-a-kind Twitter illustration.

The circle is the main aesthetic element of all the work we have created for them, so that was the starting point for the creation of the Counter Culture tweeter.  He may be a flightless bird, I’m not sure his spherical form is very aerodynamic.  I think he’s a cute little dude, though. See if you can spot him on something the next time you stop in Counter Culture for a Humphrey.

The Health Hut’s administrative office graphics were installed the other day by Rapid Signs, so I stopped by to take a few pictures. The main window is a printed, perforated vinyl that let’s light in and can be seen through from the inside but not the outside. It’s a great way to wrap a business window, but not completely cut yourself off from your surroundings.

The official unveiling of the The Health Hut was last Thursday evening, and it was an amazing experience. The turnout was great, and Dr. Lacayo’s enthusiasm and commitment were inspiring. Thanks to the entire Linking the Parish organization for allowing us to be a part of this historic event!

Here are some images I captured during the ribbon cutting: