Your brand's purpose has three parts

It's no longer enough to divide a consumer's motivations into practical and emotional.


We know from neuroscience that our reptilian brands trigger our initial response to any stimulus, and it's thought that our neocortex and our mammalian brain justify and rationalize our decisions.


Therefore, in order to appeal to the whole brain (including the brain in the consumer's gut), your brand's purpose needs to be a braid of practical, emotional and sensory elements.


We know sensory experience triggers emotions.

• Imagine nestling into a soft, down comforter.  What do you feel?
• Imagine smelling bacon frying?  What emotion is triggered?
• Now imagine hearing a woman screaming.  You have an emotional response to that, too, I'll bet.

Sensory experience is what EVOKES emotion in consumers, which is much stronger than describing emotion to consumers.


And, the sensory experience of using the product is what gives consumers "face validity" that the practical element is true.