Is HTC the next Nokia, Samsung or LG? The 12-year-old Taiwanese company that used to go by the name High Tech Computer Corp. had only three employees four years ago, and has grown to more than 9,000 employees worldwide, including 3,000 engineers and 125 employees in North America. In the U.S., HTC is headquartered out of Bellevue, Wash. and has a small design office in Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square neighborhood, where they cook up their own user interface called Sense that brings a nearly identical user interface to all of HTC’s phones.

In the company’s early days, it quickly partnered with Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) to build the very first Microsoft-powered smartphone in 2002. As of February, HTC was responsible for selling 80 percent of all Windows Mobile smartphones. In fact, if you ever had a Windows Mobile phone you likely had an HTC device and never knew it. Over the years, HTC has rolled out a number of hit devices, including flip phones and full qwerty devices with names, like the Dash, the Touch series and the Cingular 8525. In the past year, it has branched out beyond Windows Mobile and added Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Android devices to its portfolio, making the very first T-Mobile G1, the myTouch 3G and now the HTC Hero, among others.

The timing: Advertising for the first time ever makes more sense than ever beofre. Over the past year, HTC has switched its strategy by applying its brand to the device, and HTC is about to enter its strongest holiday season ever with a line-up ranging from consumer-friendly Android devices to the enterprise-focused Touch Pro 2 and entertainment-rich Imagio. “A year ago, they [consumers] wouldn’t have found us,” said Seto, who had a T-Mobile Dash before he was hired and had no idea it came from HTC. That’s changing. This year, HTC has already sold four million handsets with its logo.

The challenge: Coming up with an ad campaign was not easy. What do you highlight when HTC builds so many different phones in the U.S. and internationally? Seto says they wanted to do something much different than Apple (NSDQ: AAPL), which is famous for its device-and-app-focused commercials. “It’s only a matter of time before people get sick of the swirling phones on the TV screen,” he said. So, they choose to focus on the one factor that all phones have in common – YOU. All of the ads on TV, online or on the side of a bus will feature the word YOU in big handwritten black-and-white letters. “Our promise is that they will work the way you work, live and play,” Seto said. The tagline is “Quietly Brilliant,” which will explain why so far HTC’s brand has not been in the picture, and most of the ads will include this catchy message: You don’t need to get a phone. You need a phone that gets you. “We want to demonstrate a new kind of wireless handset leadership. It’s all about the consumer. ‘Quietly brilliant’ places the customer at the center.”

The first commercial: As an advertising veteran of Starbucks and Barnes and Noble, Seto is entering his biggest campaign push of his career ever. To describe it, he uses words like “understated,” “quiet” and “very aspirational.” He gets teary-eyed just talking about the commercials. The main one, which will launch today, is called “Anthem” and flashes between people on the subway, or in a restaurant, or walking down the street. The voice over says: “You are trying to forget about work,” “You miss your kids,” “You need to laugh,” “You need to cry,” and “You need to know if he’s OK.” As the one thing that people don’t want to leave the house without, the advertisements are exceptionally good at hitting an emotional chord with consumers. In this case, HTC wants you to know it’s not about the apps—it is about you.

Seto says the campaign is very honest. It embodies the company and its president and CEO Peter Chou, who is humble and soft-spoken, but also extremely aggressive. “This is the embodiment of him,” he said. “After the first 10 times someone sees an ad, it will make an impact. This campaign will break through. You don’t think, you feel.”

The evolution: Seto said HTC is moving fast and took only four months between hiring an agency and launching the campaign. In August, they hired the LA offices of Deutsche, the agency once led by ad guru and TV personality Donny Deutsch, which creates pitches for Eastman Kodak and Dr. Pepper Snapple and most recently Volkswagen. The first ads first started appearing in the top 10 markets on Oct. 15, but they were secretive billboards and just said YOU (not mentioning HTC). Those ads are being re-launched with a furry today and the letter ‘O’ will be replaced with one of HTC’s phones. No two creatives will look alike. By week three of the campaign, Seto said they’ll start showing features of the phones, like the ability to turn an email into a conference call, or watch TV on the Imagio or demonstrate how you can flip over the HTC Hero to silence an incoming phone call when you aren’t available.

The reach: The scope of this project is undeniably large. To reach almost all cellphone consumers in the U.S. within a couple of months is epic. Seto says its necessary given the competition. The TV commercials will not only be played during major TV shows, like “30 Rock” and the World Series, but HTC will also be everywhere online, including buying out a 24-hour period on Yahoo’s homepage, and a significant presence on other sites, like YouTube, Hulu and NBC. The campaign also includes a strong mobile advertising component, which will be handled by Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO). The target audience is current smartphone owners or people who might buy one in the next six months. The campaign will slow down after the holidays but will ramp up or down, according to particular device launches. Since HTC doesn’t sell many phones themselves, all the ad campaigns will redirect customers to their carrier partner web sites, where purchases can be made.

By the end of the year, the big question will be if the HTC is still the most successful company you’ve never heard of? Seto is optimistic: “That headline won’t be relevant in six months.”