Meet your brand reviewer

I’m a recognized branding and customer experience expert. After many good—and some not-so-good—social-media-inspired shopping experiences, I created a place where marketing promises meet real life. That’s how What I Expected was born.

Who am I? I’m not trying to be mysterious—that’s the last word anyone would use to describe me—but because of my job, I can’t have my face plastered all over social media. I am a professional and a mom in my early 50s who doesn’t have the time or money to make buying mistakes.

I believe strongly that expectation and experience are deeply connected. Let me explain—you might be fine with McDonald's fries on a road trip, but if you are served those fries at Capital Grille, you won’t be happy. The fries didn’t change; the context did. What changed is what you expected. You know what to expect from your favorite brands, and it’s disappointing when they don’t deliver. I’m not talking about one-off mistakes; I’m talking about brand promises written by a marketing team that hasn’t taken the time to learn about you or the customer experience they are marketing.

My opinion is for sale, but my integrity is not. With every brand review, you’ll get details about my personal experience. I use AI professionally (and for grammar), but I don’t use it to write my reviews. You’ll have to overlook my sometimes less-than-perfect writing. At least you’ll know it’s a human talking: someone who actually tried the product, brand, or service. I want my posts to feel like a conversation with a friend. I don’t use ChatGPT to talk with my friends—and I won’t use it for you either. My rating system is simple: each review compares expectations against experience. Every brand, product, or service either MISSES, MEETS, or EXCEEDS my expectations—and I’ll tell you if I actually like it. Sometimes, I’ll share what my friends think too, so you can get perspectives from different age groups, skin types, and lifestyles.