Specialist customer agency Havas helia has unveiled a provocative new brand proposition entitled ‘No Broken Promises, based on the insight that customers are tired of brands overpromising and underdelivering.

Developed with the input of AAR Group’s lead CRM/CX consultant Vonnie Alexander, the new proposition will shape visual identity, tone of voice and will impact Havas’ approach to new businesses and client experience.

New products and services will include a new diagnostic tool and approach to consumer journey planning, allowing the agency to decode its clients’ brand promise.

It comes after new research by the agency revealed that 80% customers expect the brands they choose to do their best to keep the promises they make. However, 63% agree that there is still a gap between what most brands say they do and what they actually do.

Subscribe to Marketing Beat for free

Sign up here to get the latest marketing campaigns sent straight to your inbox each morning

Crucially, the Havas helia research also revealed that over half (55%) are tired of broken promises made by brands with clever advertising, and have stopped buying from a brand based on poor experience in the past 12 months.

“We know keeping promises builds trust and confidence in a brand, and if we get everything right maybe even love. Yet the gap between brand promise and the lived customer experience has never been greater,” said Havas helia CEO David MacMillan.

“Through this new proposition, we’re determined to drive improvements in the customer experience, ensuring relevance and resonance in what the brand does – not just what it says it does”.

He added that through ‘No Broken Promises’ Havas helia is: “Unashamedly making the case for investing less in customer acquisition and more in retention – by honouring the promises you’ve made to individual customers”.