Are you running affiliate campaigns or an e-shop and have products to sell? Then you’re going to need amazing product descriptions. In this article, we’ll show you why product descriptions matter and how to make them sell.
If a customer has found your online store, then the chances are they got there through paid ads on Facebook, Google or Instagram. That means you’ve already produced copy that has convinced them to go out of their way to visit you. However, it shouldn’t end there. Once they are on your site, you need to convince them to part with their hard-earned cash. This is where product descriptions come into play.
What are product descriptions?
In their simplest form, product descriptions describe your product. Pretty obvious, but it’s something you’ll need to keep in mind when writing them as it’s possible to accidentally neglect this if you’re not careful. For example, if you only include benefits in your description, then you will not actually be describing your product but it’s potential, which is pretty unhelpful if people need to know specifics. For example:
That’s all good information, but no-one would ever buy it because there is no information about the size, making it impossible for people to know whether or not it will fit.
Product descriptions need to provide potential customers with all of the details they need to make an informed choice and all the reasons why they should buy from you. Your descriptions need to capture the benefits of the products you’re selling and be interesting enough to keep your audience engaged. In other words, they need to really sell your products.
Product descriptions come in all shapes and sizes and can use any tone of language that you think will engage your target audience. Here’s an example of a killer product description for chocolate dinosaur eggs:
Humour is easier with some products than others, but it’s really about your target audience. If you think they will appreciate it, then slipping a couple of jokes in there can help to make your company seem more human and can help you build up brand trust and loyalty.
How to Write Killer Product Descriptions
Here are our top tips on writing killer product descriptions for your site:
Keep it short and sweet
Product descriptions should include all of the information customers need in as few words as possible. Ideally they should be no longer than one or two paragraphs. If you want to add more information then create a link with more information for those who really want in-depth details. However, for the majority of people, the shorter the better.
One of the main reasons for keeping your product descriptions short is that it enables customers to pinpoint the information they need more quickly, so they don’t get bored while searching for it and leave.
Make each Description Unique
If you have a lot of products which are similar, don’t simply copy and paste your texts across. Customers will notice this when looking for differences between products. Instead, each product description should be unique and bring something new to the table. For example, you might have a plain white t-shirt for men and one for women. While both are identical in everything but shape, you are still targeting two unique audiences. This will mean writing to two different audiences.
Here’s an example of two different descriptions for almost identical products from Zara:
For the men’s t-shirt, the emphasis is placed on being quick drying, while on the women’s t-shirt, it’s on being unique. It’s worth experimenting with angles in your product descriptions to see which is the most effective and why. The more you know about your target audience/s the better.
Another reason why you should put some effort into making each product description unique is that it will help you when it comes to SEO and organic traffic. Google does not like duplicated content and it will affect your search rankings.
The best way to write unique content when you have to please your audience and Google is to write each product description so that it focuses on the desires and needs of your customers. Find out what keywords they are searching for and this will give you further insight into what they want. Once you have those, write texts which offer answers and solutions to the customers’ questions and use some of the keywords strategically. Don’t use keywords for the sake of using them.
It’s Not All About You
One major mistake people make in product descriptions is to describe their company. When it comes to product descriptions, stay focused on the task at hand and don’t use it as an opportunity to promote your brand.
There are two distinct forms of marketing campaigns. Short-term and long-term. Product descriptions are short-term. This is where you appeal directly to the customers needs in the hopes that they will buy your product. Brand awareness is long-term and doesn’t require you to ‘sell’ anything to the customer. Instead, it’s about building up a vision of your company in people’s minds, so that when they do come across your short-term campaigns, they will look more favourably at your company and therefore be more likely to buy your products.
Use High-Quality Images that Sell your Products’ Benefits
Using images to showcase your products is really important, however, there are a few pitfalls which you should be aware of. The first is that lots of high-quality images on a page will lead to slower load times, which will lose you a lot of customers. Don’t worry, this can be avoided if you implement a couple of tricks.
The first thing you should do to improve load times is use lower-resolution thumbnails on your product catalog. These thumbnails should link to individual product pages.
Once on a single product page, you should still use lower-resolution images but link them to new pop up windows where a much higher-quality image can be seen in detail. This is how all major online retailers build their catalogs and it makes it easy to showcase your products without slowing down your site.
The types of images you use are also important. It’s a good idea to have several pictures of the product, including some of it being used. This will help show the customer exactly how the product can benefit them and will help them to visualise how they would use it themselves.
Proofread your Descriptions
A lot of people get put off by spelling mistakes as they make product descriptions and companies look unprofessional. If English isn’t your first language or you don’t feel confident in your abilities as a writer, then online services such as Grammarly can be really helpful. Alternatively, have someone check your spelling and grammar. It’s worth investing a little money into to get right so that you don’t lose customers and people trust your brand more.
Include User Reviews
If you get a lot of positive feedback then that will definitely be something which you should highlight to your customers. In fact, more than 60% of people will be more likely to purchase from you if they see that your product has positive reviews.
Another thing to consider is the number of reviews you get. Research carried out by Trustpilot showed that ‘the quantity of online reviews can have a significant impact on conversions and consumer behavior. Retailers benefiting from consumer feedback could see even better results by increasing their review volume.’
In fact, the volume of reviews can be even more effective than the quality of the reviews. However, the age of reviews also has an impact. If your product has 1000 reviews, but none from the past 4 months, then people will think that the product is no longer popular and be less likely to buy it. Therefore, if you do include reviews, don’t necessarily put the most favourable at the top of your page. Instead, choose some of the most recent, even if they are average.
If you have lots of people talking about your product, whether it’s positively or negatively, then it will give people the chance to make their own minds up. This is a good thing as it allows them to build their own idea of your product and their own relationship to it. The result will be that you gain a much more targeted customer base. It will also show that you are open to criticism and that your product may not be for everyone, which it isn’t, and that’s fine.
The Bottom Line
When it comes to writing product descriptions, always keep your customers in mind. What do they want and what do they need? If you can answer these questions and then present your products to them in ways that showcase the solutions to their problems, then you’ll have killer product descriptions.