How to Write a Good Product Description

Product descriptions are crucial for search engine optimization on ecommerce sites.

Their role is both to provide an accurate and engaging description of the product for customers and to improve SEO for each product page.

A good product description can really make all the difference to the success of an online store and the sales it generates.

Writing product descriptions requires creativity, knowledge of the product, and SEO skills.

It can be time-consuming and difficult, especially if you have many product descriptions to write.

However, with the right tools and techniques, you can write persuasive product descriptions that create the engagement and optimization that you’re looking for on your ecommerce site.

What Is a Product Description?

A product description offers a brief overview of the product, highlighting the major product features and why it would make a good purchase decision.

It’s also an opportunity to convey the brand voice and engage the customer using language that captures their attention.

A good product description should include a number of elements to ensure it’s optimized for SEO and customer engagement.

Your product descriptions need to contain key information, in addition to using sales language and SEO keywords.

Some of the things you need to ask when you want to create effective product descriptions include:

• What problems does your product solve?
• What are the key features of your product?
• How does your product stand out from others in the same category?
• Which essential keywords do you need to include in your description?
• How can you make your product descriptions engaging?

The Importance of Writing Product Descriptions That Work

Why are optimized product descriptions so important?

If you’re building or maintaining an ecommerce website, product descriptions will be a key part of the content on your site.

They help to ensure there’s written content on each product page for search engine optimization, as well as to provide information to your customers.

Of course, you could just put any hastily-written text on each product page.

If you’re reselling a product, it might even come with a written description that you can use.

However, writing unique product descriptions is crucial if you want more sales.

Give Customers Key Information

At a basic level, your product descriptions give your buyers relevant information about your products.

It’s your chance to tell them about the most important features and how your product will benefit them, as well as how you measure up to competitors.

Summarizing key information into short descriptions can take time, but it’s worth it.

Optimize Your Products for Search Engines

SEO is another major reason to write great product descriptions.

As well as appealing to humans, your product descriptions need to meet some SEO criteria.

They should include keywords that help to boost your website’s SEO and make your products easier to find.

Optimized product descriptions can also be helpful if you’re using Google Merchant Center or PPC ads to promote your products, in addition to helping with standard organic search rankings.

Move Buyers Through the Conversion Funnel

Your Product descriptions also help to move buyers through the conversion sale, leading them toward a sale.

Making your descriptions creative, engaging, and persuasive can capture the attention of your target market and ultimately lead to more sales.

How to Write Product Descriptions with Flair

Product descriptions are often not very long, so it can feel like you’re asking them to do a lot with few words.

Approaching product description writing to target customer needs and search engine optimization can seem tough, but there are multiple strategies you can use to succeed.

Keep Your Buyer in Mind

Your potential buyer needs to be at the forefront of your mind when writing product descriptions.

The description needs to appeal to them and their wants and needs if you want them to consider and ultimately complete a purchase.

If you have buyer personas, it’s useful to refer to these so that you can target the right people.

What are they looking for in your product? What problem do they have that you can solve?

Don’t Forget About Search Engines

Of course, it’s just as important to appeal to search rankings as it is to make sure your product descriptions have a human touch.

Fortunately, search engines want to know that you’re providing content for humans.

But it’s still smart to research which keywords you should be using to improve SEO for your product pages.

Which terms are your customers likely to be using when searching for products like yours?

If you want them to land on your product page, they will likely be using more specific keywords that describe your product.

List Your Features and Product Benefits

Highlighting the features and key benefits of your products makes your descriptions clear and persuasive.

Many product descriptions will include a bullet-pointed list of the top features, making it easy for customers to scan the best things that they will get from their purchase.

Before you start writing your product description, list the top benefits of your product and how they shape up to your competition’s offering.

You can then incorporate them into your description as bullet points or woven into a paragraph.

Make Use of AI for Optimized Descriptions

AI can help to make writing any marketing materials a lot easier, including product descriptions.

As well as helping to save time when defining your SEO needs, it can also assist with generating the product description itself.

You could choose to use the product description given to you by an AI generator, or you can take that description and use it as inspiration.

It can help by giving you an outline or suggesting certain words and phrases that you can use in your description.

When you need to write product descriptions, you can often have a lot of them.

AI tools like Optimo can save you a lot of time, preventing the need to write each description individually and from scratch.

All you need to do is describe your product and its key features to generate a product description that you can use as it comes or to help you perfect your description.

For many people, AI is best used to help optimize their product descriptions and other content.

Using it purely for content generation may not deliver the results you want, especially if you’re looking for that personality and human touch that’s difficult to get from AI.

When you’re writing product descriptions, it’s useful for overcoming writer’s block and helping you outline what you want to write.

Brand Your Product Descriptions

Product descriptions can offer a great opportunity to convey your brand and its message.

A fashion brand is likely to use a different tone of voice compared to a brand selling car parts, for example.

When you imbue your product descriptions with your brand’s voice and personality, it helps them to stand out and speak directly to your customers.

Your buyers see what they get from your brand and what you stand for.

You can make your products sound exciting and really connect with your customers.

Oatly is an example of a brand that gets their distinct voice into everything, from their online product descriptions to their packaging.

Contextualize Your Products

Your product description could just list the top benefits of your product, but that’s not particularly interesting.

If you really want to capture the attention of your ideal customer, use your description to contextualize your product and how they can use it.

By capturing their imagination, you can also show them how you’re solving a problem or meeting a want or need that they have.

A little creativity can go a long way when you want to write engaging product descriptions that convince your customers it’s time to buy.

Storytelling techniques can be incorporated into your product descriptions too, even if they’re short.

Telling mini stories about your products, the brands behind them or even your customers can appeal to buyers by providing further contextualization.

You can include success stories or tell your product’s story to tap into your buyer’s imagination.

Fashion brands can be excellent about contextualizing products, making suggestions of when and where to wear their products.

For example, Modcloth describes a dress by talking about how it can be worn through the seasons, while seamlessly weaving in key features.

Make Your Description Easy to Read

You can guarantee that most of your customers aren’t going to be carefully reading your product descriptions word-for-word.

They will be quickly scanning what you have to say and looking for key points.

Making your descriptions easy to read ensures they get the most important information to take away.

Bullet points and even tables can make your descriptions easier to read so that the information contained within them can be digested quickly.

Using power words can also help to make your product descriptions both easier to scan and more engaging for your customers.

One good example of a brand that makes their descriptions scannable is Naked Wines.

They use three key bullet points to highlight the best features of each wine, using evocative language to draw in the reader.

Additional Tips for Reaching Your Goals

There’s even more that you can do to ensure your product descriptions are optimized and you can reach your sales goals.

Here are some of the ways you can enhance your product descriptions and product pages to fulfill your objectives.

Find or Develop a Product Description Template

Using a template for your product descriptions can help you to produce consistent descriptions.

When you follow a template, it can make it easier to include key product details, as well as create consistent descriptions.

You can find a product description template online, or you could create your own to follow when you write your descriptions.

Set Goals and Measurements

You can’t know how successful your product descriptions are if you don’t measure the impact they have.

You need to set goals and decide how you’re going to measure the effect of your product descriptions on your sales.

You might measure metrics such as your conversion rate, social media shares, bounce rate, and other important factors that could indicate how well your product page is performing.

Consider split-testing your page with different descriptions to see which ones perform best.

Enhance Descriptions with Images and Video

Well-written product descriptions are one part of optimized product pages, but you need other elements too.

Different types of content such as product images and videos can help to enhance your product pages, providing more context and more information.

Your buyers will be able to see what your product looks like and even see it in action.

A product image can be just as valuable as your description, if not more so.

Video content could include how-to guides or your product being used so that potential customers can see how it would really benefit them.

Including social proof from reviews and ratings is also an excellent way to highlight to potential buyers that previous customers appreciate the product quality.

A product description FAQ could be included too, answering common questions or even allowing customers to post their own questions.

Use a Range of Tools and Methods

Combine different tools and techniques to create product descriptions that really perform.

AI can help you to save time on SEO and give you inspiration for your descriptions.

Meanwhile, you can make sure you are using your own knowledge of your brand to guarantee that your product descriptions will represent you.

Transform Your Marketing with Quality Product Descriptions

Quality product descriptions help you to sell your products online.

When you know your target audience and your products, you have the knowledge that you need to create engaging product descriptions that sell.

Keep in mind what your target customers want and the problem that you’re solving for them when you write your descriptions.

Remember that AI can be a useful tool for helping you to craft your descriptions, saving you a lot of time.

Optimo has a product description tool that will take your instructions and suggest a product description that encourages your buyers.

AI can help you to master product description writing by understanding the key elements you need to include for success.