"Inside-out" and "Outside-in"

"Inside-out" and "Outside-in" is perhaps the biggest difference of perspective when conceiving brands.
They say positioning is not about what the sender of the message transmits, but is about what the receiver of the message receives. And more than that, what unique slot it occupies in the receivers mind.
Imagine a man sitting on a sofa looking out of a window, staring at a beautiful alpine scenery. What does he see inside-out? The scenery. But if look into the window, what do you see? The man on the sofa.
But organisations struggle with this simple perspective difference. And this can cause quite a serious problem.
Imagine The Ministry of Defence naming itself "The Ministry of Vanquishing the Enemy!"
Sometimes organisations create a department to cater to a business objective or business line and the department name gets transmitted to the customer as well! This can happen, but it must be changed when it happens.
Sometimes these changes become difficult, because the consumer gets used to a vocabulary. A bank 'branch' is whose branch? The bank's. That's an inside-out name. But the consumer is used to it, so it can still be used.
When you look outside-in, this is how it stacks up:
The consumer is seeking a shop or sorts. Now a shop is a one off small entity belonging to a local businessman. The consumer is therefore seeking the comfort of a big brand. That leads to the need of a superstore – a latent need till it was conceived. Because a consumer is also seeking something of the past but adapted to the present - something modern, with a ambiance that is inviting. If you really think, a mall is nothing but a modern mela. The guriye ka bal is the corn cup. The chaat stalls are the food court. Serious shopping is replaced with a browsers paradise. But this is a whole subject, so on this later!