Selling products online has become a challenge given how many eCommerce brands are out there. That’s why writing good product descriptions can make your website stand out and convert more leads. But how do we know which product descriptions are good or not good? Through existing examples of said descriptions, of course!
Let’s take a look at several representative product descriptions that sell. These websites are the leaders in their fields and with their product description writing methodologies, you will be able to sell better as well.
You’ve invested resources into SEO, PPC, as well as social media, and email marketing. You’ve successfully attracted potential customers to your online store – now what? Customers who are interested in your products will proceed to browse through different categories and product snippets. You must present them with attractive, actionable product titles in each category on your website.
Etsy is a website dedicated to selling arts and crafts items, accessories, and digital goods such as graphics and artwork. Their eCommerce site is designed to emphasize product titles, which are in turn full of relevant keywords for said categories. The idea behind this methodology is to make browsing through items faster and more meaningful. Etsy is very successful in its niche and product description writing professionals can learn a lot from its approach to content formatting.
Once a person clicks on an item they’re interested in, they’ll want to learn more about the product and do it fast. Amazon has a history of being at the top of the eCommerce industry for many years and for a good reason. Its product descriptions are formatted to allow for quick and easy reading, both on desktop and mobile devices.
To mimic Amazon, you should format your product descriptions with bullet points or numbered lists. Break down your products’ benefits and features into multiple paragraphs to facilitate easier reading and information skimming. Make it simple for potential customers to read your descriptions and they will be more likely to make purchases.
Whether you sell your goods or work as a drop shipping online store, some items will have longer product descriptions than others. Likewise, Google’s SEO looks toward longer product descriptions favorably because they offer additional value to readers.
In Microsoft’s example, we can see that the company has adopted a systematic approach to product description writing. Their products feature entire paragraphs separated by subheadings, which are also paired with complementary images. The subheadings present in their product descriptions serve to enable skimming, but also to highlight important and valuable product components. Using subheadings in your product descriptions can make them more legible and appealing to people who consider buying said products.
After the customers look over your product description and are ready to purchase, they should be able to read more about pricing. How do you charge your products and how does shipping work? What about VAT and taxes for shipping to specific countries? These are crucial questions that you need to answer if you want to close sales.
Book Depository is an eCommerce platform dedicated to physical literary publications. Their product descriptions very visibly outline how much a book might cost based on the person’s location. Similarly, they offer rudimentary information on the book’s delivery length, as well as any discount applied to the original price. Doing something similar with your products would increase your sales significantly thanks to no hidden costs and pricing transparency.
Now that we’ve taken a closer look at several representative product description examples, what did we learn? What exactly constitutes a “successful” product description? Product descriptions that close sales are the ones that are considered good, as opposed to those that don’t sell any products. Here are a few tips and guidelines which you can use as a reference once you start writing product descriptions going forward:
Writing product descriptions isn’t easy – but it doesn’t have to be impossible. These examples will allow you to craft more appealing and captivating product descriptions for your website much more quickly. In turn, customers will be more likely to purchase your products and refer your storefront to their social circles.
Experiment with your descriptions until you hit a good balance of SEO keywords, formatting, and writing style suited to your target audience. Once you settle into a rhythm, it will be a matter of writing the same type of content for each product on your website.