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eCommerce

How to Write Product Descriptions That Sell Like Crazy

Ever wondered about the power of product descriptions? If you think this short summary barely influences your buyer’s decision, you may not have the full picture. A compelling product description in the form of a story can lead to higher conversion rates. 

Describing your product in detail makes it easier for the customers landing at your website or product page to understand your product. It gives you the chance to solidify a sale, as the customer needs to make the least effort to understand what they’re buying. 

A survey reveals that 85% of shoppers say product descriptions and images are important to them when deciding the retailer or brand to buy from. This is why product descriptions deserve equal focus as your website’s layout or product images. 

They enhance the credibility of your eCommerce store and the customers’ buying experience.

Let’s dive into the details of how product descriptions work to make your brand stand out.

Product Description: What is it?

A product description is nothing but a summary of the features and benefits of a product sold on an online platform. This piece of writing sheds light on the basic details and narrates the story a brand creates around the product. 

For instance, if you’re selling women’s apparel, then your product description can include the material used to make the garment, a size chart conveying measurements for different sizes and fits, the price of the product, and any other relevant details. Weaving a story around where you source the product from or how it will enhance the look of a customer is a great addition to the product summary. For instance, H&M, a famous fashion brand, always promotes its eco-friendly approach to sourcing materials in its product descriptions.

Why are Product Descriptions Important?

If you are still asking this question, well it is time to amp up your game. Yes! Product descriptions are one of the most critical aspects of your product listing.

When you’re selling your product in a brick and mortar store, how do you approach your customers? YOU TALK. That’s right. You talk, use your words to tell them about the product, demonstrate the use if required and then emphasize on why they need to buy it.

You explain why it will be beneficial to them and how they can derive the most out of it.

So now, when you’re not selling your products physically, your product description(which is also words) needs to do the job of the salesman. It definitely can’t be as personalized as a one-on-one sale but you can always play with the words and positioning to make it attractive.

An e-commerce study by the NN group found that 20% of the failed purchases are due to missing or unclear product information.

Therefore, write all you can about your product, but place it smartly. Try putting yourself in the buyer’s shoes and write your product’s description accordingly.

Details Included in a Product Description

A product description depends on the kind of items you’re selling. You may offer electronics, furniture, home decor products, apparel, food items, etc. Each of these categories has different specifications. For instance, gadgets have specific technical details, and food items need to have ingredients fully listed, and so on. Here’s a general idea of what product descriptions usually include:

The contents of a product description are listed below:

  • Physical features of a product
  • Weight and dimensions of the item
  • Product Images 
  • Price of the product
  • Style information
  • Colours available for the product
  • Technical details and specifications 
  • Materials used for making the product
  • Benefits of using the product
  • Stories about the product to relate to the ideal prospect
  • Method of production (handmade or manufactured) 
  • Information about where the product is sourced from
  • Highlighting eco-friendly or sustainability details
  • Delivery time-frame 

Ideal Length of a Product Description

The length of your production description varies depending on how expensive, complex, and frequently purchased a product is. For instance, a customer needs more details when buying a bigger or more expensive item like a laptop than purchasing a set of crockery. 

However, the ideal length of a product description is as follows:

  • Short form: 50 words or less
  • Standard: 100 words
  • Long-form: 250+ words

Purposes Served by a Good Product Description

A good product description serves as a great sales pitch that you make to a client. A detailed product description informs the customer and helps build a connection. It increases the potential of an actual sale on your website. Reading the product description is one of the final and crucial steps that a buyer takes before adding it to the cart and checking out.

But that’s not all! Well-written product descriptions reflect and enhance your brand’s image while targeting the right audience for you. They unite your brand’s identity and your ideal customers together by bridging the gap between the two. It also  communicates the product’s value to your customers by answering questions like, “What problem does your product solve?” and “How is it different from competitors?”

Moreover, a thoughtful product description can make your eCommerce store rank higher on search engines. You can inculcate Search Engine Optimisation (EO) practices while drafting your product descriptions. This optimisation features your brand on top whenever a customer tries to find your product on Google or any other search engine. As a result, you get more visitors to your website and potential customers, leading to more sales.

Google rewards a higher conversion rate with an even higher ranking for your website. This is because the frequent online sales indicate to Google that your website has potential and is a good one. 

How Can Businesses Benefit From Product Description?

There are many advantages of having a well-drafted product description. Let’s look at the potential benefits of using good product descriptions.

Higher Conversion Rates: About 87% of online consumers use product descriptions to finalise a purchase. Product descriptions may seem inconsequential, but they have a great impact on a customer’s buying decision. Drafting compelling and clear product descriptions helps brands paint a clear picture of the benefits and features of their products. It significantly increases the likelihood of a customer making a purchase from your ecommerce store. Effective communication puts across what your product can offer and how it can solve a problem or fulfill a need, directly influencing your customers’ buying decisions.

Differentiation of the Product: Customers can easily compare your product’s features and benefits with others in the market using product descriptions. Brands that fail to write detailed information or compelling descriptions are likely eliminated by prospective buyers while making a purchasing decision. The more you make your product description detailed, the better the chances of attracting customers and conversions. It helps you stand out in the competition.

Building and Boosting Trustworthiness: An in-depth product description poses your brand as responsible and authentic. They can get a fair idea of what they’re about to purchase. This clarity and honesty on your part builds trust with the customer. This trust even takes a further leap and turns into a solid connection with the story you tell in your product description. It emotionally charges buyers and motivates them to make the purchase.

Improves SEO rankings: According to Brightedge 2022 research, online shoppers are using search engines about 20% more year after year. When you incorporate relevant keywords in your product description, it enhances your website’s search engine optimisation (SEO) ranking. It increases the visibility of your products or website, which allows more customers to find you easily. It generates more traffic on your website, thereby giving you higher sales. Also, using unique and engaging product descriptions sets you apart from the brands that use manufacturer-provided descriptions.

Diminished Return Rates: A study reveals that 50% of online buyers have returned products stating that the goods did not match the product descriptions. Writing clear and accurate product descriptions tends to set very realistic expectations among customers. They know exactly what they’re getting when you list the features, benefits, and potential uses of a product. It reduces the chances of them returning the item. 

How to Create a Great Product Description for Your Ecommerce Products? 

Now that you know about the purpose and benefits of product descriptions, it might help you understand what makes product descriptions irresistible.

Focus on Your Ideal Buyer

Craft your product description as if you’re speaking directly to your target customer. For instance, Fabindia would be a good product description example. FabIndia is a brand known for its traditional Indian craftsmanship and contemporary style. They target consumers who appreciate high-quality, sustainable, and culturally rich clothing and home goods. Fabindia’s product descriptions appeal to an audience that appreciates both tradition and modernity, focusing on the artisanal origins and sustainable practices behind their products.

Highlight the Benefits

Instead of merely listing features, Bath & Body Works makes a mark by focusing on the benefits of its products. They illustrate the sensory benefits of their products in their product descriptions. For instance, their hand soaps don’t just clean; they “nourish the skin” with “an irresistible concoction of cocoa and shea butter, and coconut oil”. The Bath & Body Works product descriptions highlight how mentioning benefits is more important than just informing about the basic features of a product. This strategy helps you enhance your customers’ buying experience with just a flowery-worded product description. 

Avoid Yeah, Yeah Phrases

Brands tend to overuse generic phrases like “excellent product quality or high-quality product”, which the customers mostly ignore. Such phrases are not catchy enough to grab or hold the attention of prospective buyers. Instead of doing this, try to be specific about what makes your product unique. For example, Titan Watches, an Indian brand known globally, avoids using generic phrases by focusing on the craftsmanship and heritage of its watches. They specify the materials they use to make their watches and the inspiration behind their designs. It makes each piece feel unique and valuable to the customer viewing the product.

Use Sensory Words

Make your customer’s buying experience more real, and engage their senses by using sensory words. Consider the product description adopted by The Body Shop, a brand that describes its products with sensory terms like “luxuriously rich moisture” and “deliciously scented”. It can almost make customers feel and smell the products through their screens, which enhances their experience and probability of purchasing.

Make It Easy to Scan

Using bullet points and short paragraphs to describe your products helps customers gather information easily. Apple, the world-famous brand, is a master at using this strategy. It presents tech specifications, features, and benefits of its products in an easily digestible format, making it simple for customers to understand the value proposition.

Use Social Proof

A research report from Brightlocal says that 98% of consumers read online reviews before making a purchase. It is ideal for a brand to incorporate customer reviews and ratings in product descriptions. It can massively influence your customers’ purchasing behaviour since they trust testimonials and feedback from real people. It builds their trust in a brand and gives them the confidence to buy the product. A product description example from the eCommerce giant Amazon highlights the importance of doing this. The brand showcases customer reviews prominently and provides real-life testimonials that often detail personal experiences with the product, adding more credibility to the product.

Tell a Story

People love listening to and reading stories. It is more interesting and fun to get information that way. Storytelling also builds a connection in the mind of a customer, impacting their emotions. Share stories about your product to make it memorable. Amul, a dairy cooperative in India, is a great product description example that infuses storytelling. The brand often narrates a story with its products, especially through its iconic ad campaigns. Their product descriptions zero in on their commitment to quality and the cooperative model that supports local farmers. This kind of description connects the customers to the broader impact of their purchase.

Consider SEO Practices

The visibility of your website and product page on search engines increases with the use of relevant keywords in your product description. These keywords help rank your brand higher on Google and other engines. For instance, the brand Yeti coolers effectively incorporate words like “durable,” and “portable,” and attaches specific activities like camping to their identity to make their products more likely to show up in relevant searches. 

Make It Mobile-Friendly

A 2023 report from Semrush reveals that more than 70% of online shoppers use their smartphones to purchase online. So, it is important to focus on giving your customers a good mobile shopping experience. Ensure that your product descriptions look good on mobile devices as well. Enhance the readability of your product descriptions on small screens. The fashion brand ASOS, for example, provides its customers with an excellent mobile viewing experience. It ensures that the descriptions, images, and reviews of its products are easily navigable on any device.

Examples of Various Product Descriptions

1) Fab India

The Fab India metal Champa hanging light description is short and crisp. They give the product details first, followed by a brief description. This way, the consumer does not have to consume the whole information at once.

2) Nykaa

The product description for Nykaa’s conceal and correct palette is a detailed description of the product features, it’s formulation, which is followed by a procedure to use the product and each of its components.

The description speaks vividly about the benefits of the product: A method you can surely adopt for writing your description.

3) Reebok 

Reebok’s product description for Women’s Reebok Dance Guresu is a classic example of highlighting the product features in bullet points. While they have also given a short brief of the product,  the main focus is the bullet points.

4) Pepperfry

Pepperfry follows a smart strategy of breaking up the description into various parts. It gives an overview and other details.

This way the buyer can access whatever information he likes and navigate through the columns easily.

5) H&M

H&M has placed it’s product information distinctly. There is brief information followed by a detailed description of the sizes, style, colors and other features.

The product features aren’t on the same page. As a result, it doesn’t look cluttered.

Conclusion

Crafting product descriptions for your eCommerce store goes beyond just enumerating features; it is an opportunity to connect with your desired audience and showcase how your product can make their daily life better. Putting in efforts to highlight the backstory of your product, its design journey, and attention to detail helps you demonstrate your passion for the items in your store. It increases the value of your products and brand in the customers’ eyes. This enthusiasm multiplies the probability of customers stopping by and leaving with a purchase.  

Create high-converting descriptions with our Gemini-powered product description generator.

How do I write a good product description?

Start with a catchy product title, followed by a short paragraph narrating a story about your product’s value. Then, make a bulleted list to illustrate the product features and other details for convenient scanning. Add some customer reviews for credibility and an appealing call to action.

How can I measure the success of my product descriptions?

You need goals and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to evaluate the success rate of the product descriptions you are creating. Use the results to improve your writing and draft better descriptions.

Sahil Bajaj

Sahil Bajaj: With 5+ years of digital marketing expertise, I'm dedicated to fusing technology and creativity for business success. Known for innovative strategies that drive growth and a passion for continuous improvement.

View Comments

  • while describing the product description in your blog you have came across several factors and show some examples which i think is the best way to describe any product. Thanks for sharing

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