In 2018, Harley Finkelstein – president of Shopify – told a room of founders, “People don’t buy products. They buy stories.” The room went still. People’s eyes flicked up from their laptops. And Harley smiled – because he knew half of them wouldn’t act on it.
Most Shopify brands nod when they hear that – and then go right back to selling product features. In a market flooded with lookalike products, features aren’t the hook anymore. It’s your brand promise – the emotional contract you make with customers – that creates loyalty.
The problem? Most established Shopify brands treat their brand promise like a tagline, not a commitment. They copy what competitors are saying instead of finding their own truth. They forget that buyers make decisions with their hearts first, then their heads. They fail to make that promise visible in every touchpoint – from product pages to post-purchase emails. And they never test whether their promise still matches what their best customers believe.
In this article, I’ll break down five reasons your brand promise isn’t sticking – and the simple fixes. And I’ll also share one bonus reason that’s one of the fastest loyalty killers I’ve ever seen.
1. If Your Brand Promise Could Fit on a Coffee Mug, It’s Not a Brand Promise
A slogan is not a promise. Most slogans are catchy phrases designed to be remembered. A real promise is a measurable commitment you make to customers. Marketing legend Seth Godin calls it “a pledge to your market that you’re willing to be held accountable for.”
If your so-called promise is just clever wording, it will fail to build trust. Customers want proof, not poetry. That proof must be visible in every interaction they have with your brand. Otherwise, your brand promise is just marketing copy. The difference between a slogan and a promise is the difference between being liked and being believed.
Turn your brand promise into something you could defend in court – and then deliver it daily.
2. You Built It Once, Never Revisited It – and Now It’s Expired
A brand promise is a living thing. The market evolves every few months. Customer needs shift, competitors adjust, and cultural trends change the conversation. Gretta van Riel constantly tweaks her brand messaging based on real customer feedback – sometimes monthly.
One Shopify brand I worked with hadn’t touched their brand promise in five years. They were still speaking to “free-spirited millennial travelers” when their best customers had shifted to mid-30s parents buying premium gear for family vacations. They were speaking to ghosts.
Refreshing your promise keeps it aligned with what your customers actually care about now. The most successful Shopify brands treat their promise as a product in itself – always iterating, always improving.
If your promise isn’t growing with your customers, it’s shrinking.
3. You Hide Your Promise in an ‘About’ Page No One Reads
A hidden promise is a broken promise. Too many Shopify brands tuck their brand promise into a forgotten “About” page. Harley Finkelstein believes a brand story should be experienced, not just read. That means your promise should shape your homepage, product pages, and post-purchase experience.
One DTC brand did this brilliantly: they put their brand promise right on every product page in bold, customer-first language – and made sure unboxing delivered on it. Customers repeated it in reviews without even realizing it.
Your product photography, your unboxing experience, your email tone – all of it should reinforce the same idea. When that happens, your brand story spreads without paid ads. Visibility is what turns a static statement into a living story.
Your brand promise should be everywhere – because if it’s not, it’s nowhere.
4. You Promise the Moon – and Deliver a Flashlight
Big promises are tempting – but dangerous. Overpromising might attract attention at first. But every time you underdeliver, you erode trust. Repeat buyers disappear faster than they arrived.
I’ve seen Shopify brands launch with bold claims like “We ship in 24 hours” – only to quietly switch to 72 hours when they couldn’t keep up. Customers remember the slip, and they tell others.
It’s better to promise something smaller and deliver it perfectly. Small, consistent wins compound over time, just like great investments. When customers know you’ll meet expectations every time, they stop considering competitors. In the long game of loyalty, consistency beats intensity.
Promise less, deliver more – and watch retention climb.
5. Your Promise Is About You, Not Your Customer
Customers don’t want to hear your story unless they’re in it. Founders love telling how they started. But unless your journey connects to your customer’s needs, it’s background noise. Seth Godin says, “People don’t buy goods and services. They buy relations, stories, and magic.”
One brand I know sold premium coffee and built their entire story around their founder’s trip to Ethiopia. It was interesting, but when they shifted the promise to: “We help you make the best cup of coffee of your life every morning,” sales jumped.
Your brand promise should make the customer the hero. It should show them the transformation they get by choosing you. When your promise starts with “you” instead of “we,” the connection becomes instant. They’ll remember your brand because it’s about their life, not yours. That shift in focus is the quickest path to loyalty.
Make them the hero – and they’ll make you their go-to brand.
Bonus: You’ve Never Asked Customers What They Think Your Promise Is
Your customers’ perception is the real scoreboard. Most brands assume customers know their promise. But when you ask them to describe it in one sentence, the answers are often wildly different. This gap is where loyalty leaks out.
One Shopify brand I know thought their promise was “affordable, high-quality basics for everyday wear.” When they surveyed their customers, the most common response was: “Trendy clothing that arrives in cool packaging.” Same store. Completely different promise in the customer’s mind.
You can only fix this by actively listening to them. Surveys, post-purchase emails, and interviews can reveal the disconnect. Then, you refine your promise until their words match yours. That’s when your promise becomes something they repeat to others – without you prompting them.
A promise isn’t real until your customers can say it for you.
If Your Brand Promise Doesn’t Live in Your Customer’s Mind, It Doesn’t Exist
A strong Shopify brand promise is not a line of copy. It’s a living agreement between you and your customers – one that’s proven in every click, package, and conversation. When you treat it as static, hidden, or self-serving, it fades into the noise.
The brands that thrive in 2025 will be the ones that revisit their promise often. They’ll make it visible in every touchpoint. They’ll underpromise and overdeliver. They’ll make customers the hero and constantly check that the story matches reality.
Because in a market where products are interchangeable, a clear, believable brand promise is the only real moat you have left.
In the end, your customers don’t remember your features. They remember how you made them feel – and that’s the only promise that matters.
If this resonated, here’s what to do next:
→ If you’re tired of content that fills space instead of driving sales, let’s talk. Schedule a quick demo.
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