Brands often talk about what they bring to the market. The smart ones also think about how they want their audiences to respond. In brand building, this is the Desired Consumer Experience (DCE).

Branding only from the inside out opens the door to confirmation biases. It's just too easy to convince yourself that your brand is smart, innovative and darned good looking. But your brilliant product without an audience isn’t worth much in the market.

I like to consider three vectors for DCE:

1. What do you want your audience to THINK about the brand as a result of an interaction?

2. How do you want them to FEEL about the brand?

3. What do you want them to DO?

A few DCE examples:

• (The brand) helps me feel like I can own my future

• (The brand) is always working on my behalf

• (The brand) helps me take care of what's important

• (The brand) makes me feel like a rock star!

I tend to lean towards emotion in the DCE partly because emotional connections are longer lasting than simply having consumers think "I always get a good deal."

Ultimately it's your call. Just be purposeful in your choice.