Crafting compelling product descriptions is critical for driving sales on your Shopify store. To optimize your product pages effectively, you must understand the needs and preferences of your target audience.
In this guide, we will provide a comprehensive, step-by-step tutorial on how to write engaging Shopify product descriptions. We will explore best practices and common pitfalls, as well as strategies for optimizing product descriptions for mobile users and streamlining the writing process with automation tools.
Are you ready to start creating product descriptions that sell? Let's get started!
It is widely recognized that product descriptions play a critical role in the success of online stores. But why exactly are they so important?
Firstly, well-crafted product descriptions can significantly improve the customer experience and boost conversion rates. Potential buyers need to understand the unique features and benefits of a product before making a purchase, and a compelling product description can provide this essential information.
Secondly, effective product descriptions can also enhance your store's search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. By including relevant keywords and creating informative descriptions, you can increase your chances of appearing at the top of search engine results pages, thereby driving valuable traffic to your product pages.
To achieve these benefits and create impactful product descriptions for your Shopify store, we'll take you through a step-by-step guide in the following sections.
It is very essential to know how to write product descriptions for a Shopify shop owner to boost his business.
The term buyer persona is commonly used, but it's important to understand that it's not just about identifying your ideal customer or purchase scenario. It's also crucial to consider how these individuals will engage with various stages and features of their buying journey.
To lay a strong foundation for writing effective product descriptions, start by asking yourself these three key questions:
When it comes to product pages, customers interested in the latest iPhone are likely already convinced of their purchase decision. They simply need to confirm whether the product meets their expectations.
However, for unique items such as home decor accents or innovative inventions (like the selfie stick), a longer product description can be more effective in persuading customers to make a purchase. These descriptions should help customers envision how the product can improve their lives and provide a sense of uniqueness.
A tissue box cover is a great example of a product that can benefit from a compelling product description. Although the wording of some descriptions may be questionable, the seller does an excellent job of highlighting the product's authenticity, uniqueness and suggesting potential placement ideas to appeal to potential buyers.
The intention to make a purchase varies greatly across different eCommerce niches, as people are motivated by a diverse range of factors. Some individuals buy products to experience comfort, while others seek to express their unique style. Some purchase out of necessity, while others are driven by curiosity. The reasons behind purchasing decisions are numerous and varied.
To effectively structure your product page, we recommend using the approach of comparing benefits versus features.
Benefits: If you are selling commodity goods or products with intricate specifications, it is essential to emphasize the benefits of your product and showcase them prominently on your store's website. Examples of such product categories may include home decor, cosmetics, and fashion accessories with intricate style details.
An excellent example of emphasizing product benefits over technical features can be seen in the product description of a lipstick from Jeffree Star Cosmetics. Instead of delving into the chemical composition or manufacturing processes, the focus is on the emotional benefits the product can provide, such as helping customers envision themselves wearing the lipstick.
By prioritizing the most relevant benefits to the customer, the product description is more likely to resonate with the target audience and drive sales.
Features: When selling necessity goods or products where functionality is typically more important than design, it is crucial to prioritize the features of the product over its benefits. Examples of such products include mobile phones, personal computers and laptops, sportswear, furniture, and organic food.
By highlighting the technical specifications, durability, and other practical considerations, the product page can better cater to customers who are looking for a specific set of features and functionalities.
Made In Cookware provides an excellent example of focusing on product features and technical specifications in their frying pan description. The description includes precise numbers and ample detail, highlighting the functionality and durability of the product rather than relying on emotional appeals or vague claims.
This approach is particularly effective for customers who prioritize practical considerations over aesthetic or emotional factors when making a purchase.
When shopping for gadgets, customers often prefer concise and straightforward information that emphasizes product functionality. For example, providing specifications in bullet points or a table format can help customers quickly and easily find the information they need. Quad Lock, a brand that specializes in phone mounts, provides an excellent example of this approach, with their product's technical specifications presented clearly and concisely.
This approach can help build trust with customers who are looking for specific technical features and make it easier for them to make a purchasing decision.
Customers who are looking to purchase a cozy onesie for movie nights typically expect a product description that appeals to their emotions, with language that evokes a sense of comfort and relaxation. A paragraph or two that paints a vivid picture of what it feels like to wear the onesie can be particularly effective in connecting with the customer and driving sales.
By keeping this in mind and answering the relevant questions, you can create a product description that effectively communicates the benefits and features of your product in a way that resonates with your target audience.
To create an effective product description, start by compiling a comprehensive list of product specifications, benefits, and features. While not all of these will make it into the final version of the description, having a complete list can help ensure that you don't overlook anything important. Once you have all of the essential specifications included, narrow down your list to 4-6 key points that you want to emphasize in the final product description.
By focusing on a select few features or benefits, you can create a clear and concise product description that effectively communicates the value of your product to potential customers.
When choosing the 4-6 points to emphasize in your product description, it's essential to focus on the features or benefits that set your product apart from the competition. These key points should highlight the unique value that your product provides and explain what makes it superior to similar offerings in the market.
By prioritizing these distinguishing factors, you can create a compelling product description that effectively communicates the value of your product to potential customers and sets it apart from the competition.
When it comes to presenting your product description, there are a variety of approaches you can take depending on your audience and the nature of your product. While a bullet list of product selling points and a paragraph or two of benefits can be effective for some products, other approaches may be more appropriate.
For example, clothing stores often prioritize visuals by placing images alongside size and color variations at the top of the page, followed by an accordion with additional details such as product description, shipping information, and specifications. This approach can help customers visualize how the product will look and fit, which is often a key consideration when purchasing clothing.
By tailoring your product description to the preferences and needs of your target audience, you can create a user-friendly and effective product page that drives conversions.
For stores that sell electronic device accessories, the product description often begins with a paragraph or bullet list highlighting the benefits and specifications of the product. This approach is designed to give the product a competitive edge and demonstrate how it can solve a specific problem or meet a particular need.
By leading with a clear and concise overview of the product's features and benefits, these stores can capture the attention of potential customers and encourage them to explore the product further.
Cosmetics and accessory stores often use descriptive paragraphs filled with sensory language and vivid imagery to introduce their products. This approach is designed to create an emotional connection with the customer and help them envision the experience of using the product.
By painting a detailed picture of the product's benefits and the sensations it can evoke, these stores can tap into the customer's desires and emotions and encourage them to make a purchase.
When crafting your product description, it's important to remember that your first attempt is just a draft. Don't worry about making it perfect right away. Instead, start by gathering your selling points and insights about your target audience, and use them to start writing a rough draft.
Focus on getting your ideas down on paper, and don't be afraid to experiment with different approaches and styles. Once you have a rough draft, you can refine and improve it over time, using feedback from customers and testing to find the most effective language and messaging.
If you're struggling to get started on your product description because you're fixated on finding the perfect version, try writing a few different variations instead. By permitting yourself to experiment with different approaches and styles, you can break through the mental block and generate new ideas.
Once you have a few different versions to work with, you can compare them, refine them, and choose the one that best resonates with your target audience and showcases the unique value of your product. Remember, the key is to keep iterating and refining until you find the most effective way to present your product.
The key to writing effective product descriptions is to focus on action instead of overthinking. Instead of getting caught up in trying to find the perfect words or phrasing, simply start writing.
By getting your ideas down on paper, you'll be able to explore different options and find something that you like in the end. Remember, the first draft doesn't have to be perfect - the important thing is to keep moving forward and refining your message until you find the most effective way to showcase your product's unique value and benefits.
It's important to consider that many potential customers may be shopping on their mobile devices, depending on the product you're selling. However, some sellers tend to neglect the appearance of their Shopify product descriptions on mobile screens because they create them on their larger PC monitors.
In general, there's no need for major adjustments. Just keep in mind that mobile screens condense everything, so avoid using bold font for the entire product description or choosing a heavy font that may negatively impact mobile readability.
When it comes to the length of mobile product descriptions, David Shreni, an experienced designer of mobile shopping experiences for Walmart, offers a unique and noteworthy framework to consider. He recommends 150 words per 50$ of product value up to 450 words.
To create an effective Shopify product description, it's important to follow the 4 Cs of copywriting.
Your product page's text must possess clarity, conciseness, compelling language, and credibility.
It's important to keep in mind that the specific interpretation and application of these principles can vary depending on the products you sell. Therefore, it's essential to consider your target audience and the unique selling points of your products when creating product descriptions.
Concise: Give your product description a fresh look and remove any unnecessary rambling to make it more concise and effective.
Clear and Credible: Ensure that all information in your product description is both factually accurate and easy to comprehend.
Compelling: Make sure that your product description addresses the pain points of potential customers and highlights the value of your product to them.
It's time to improve your Shopify product description!
Effective product pages include power words that evoke emotions, build trust, and encourage imagination in potential customers.
Check the sections on trust, motivation, and greed in this list of power words to see if you can incorporate a few of them into your product description to add a persuasive boost.
Before finalizing your product description, carefully review it once again to identify and eliminate vague adjectives that don't create a clear mental image or emotional response (such as "beautiful," "nice," "different," etc.). Either replace these weak adjectives with stronger ones or remove them altogether.
Finally, ensure that the emphasis in your product description is placed where it belongs. Review your finished description with a fresh perspective to determine what stands out and make necessary adjustments.
Potential buyers should be able to quickly identify key specifications, selling points, availability, and variations of your product. If the important information is not immediately visible, consider using bold text or bullet points to make it stand out.
Do you have a product that can be used in various ways or offers incredible combinations?
For products that aren't self-explanatory, it may be helpful to include a section on how to maximize the benefits of the product in your description. It's possible that your product description may inspire potential customers to make a purchase by presenting them with ideas or benefits they hadn't previously considered.
While we've discussed the process of crafting a Shopify product description that drives conversions, it's possible that mistakes may still occur.
To help you craft effective descriptions for your eCommerce products, here are some things to avoid:
Vague phrases and adjectives: If a sentence or phrase in your product description doesn't evoke emotion or create a clear mental image for the shopper, it's not necessary to include it.
Very long descriptions: Avoid lengthy descriptions, as most people prefer brevity. Keep your product description under 500 words and focus on conveying how your product can benefit the customer, its features, and how to use it.
Copied descriptions from the wholesaler’s website: Many resellers mistakenly believe that copying product descriptions from their wholesaler's website will be a time-saving and effortless solution. In reality, using duplicate content can harm your product page's SEO as Google recognizes it as unoriginal content. Even if you're not able to write a description that matches the quality of the wholesaler's, it's still beneficial to create your own product description for your store.
Exaggeration: We've all come across product descriptions that promise to transform our lives in no time, guaranteeing improved health, wealth, and success. Even if the product is as simple as a mug coaster, it's still important to craft a product description that speaks to the customer's pain points and showcases the product's value. When crafting product descriptions, it's better to set realistic expectations and focus on how the product solves customers' problems rather than creating unrealistic, life-changing scenarios that may not resonate with them.
Mistakes: In the world of eCommerce, few things can damage a store's reputation as much as grammar and spelling errors on their product pages. Even the best of us can make mistakes, so it's important to proofread your product description multiple times.
Lack of consistency in multiple product descriptions: The majority of visitors begin their shopping journey on the homepage and navigate to other areas of the store from there. Since potential customers will likely view numerous product pages, it's crucial to include the same key elements in your descriptions to enable easy comparison and facilitate decision-making.
While creating effective product descriptions can seem like a manageable task when you have a small number of products, it can become more challenging as your inventory grows.
It's not feasible for every product description to take hours, especially if your product inventory changes frequently.
To enhance efficiency in writing Shopify product descriptions, consider these tips:
Once you have created one or two perfect product pages, creating the rest becomes significantly easier.
Determine the repeating components that you plan to include in your product description, such as bullet point categories and headings, and save them in a separate file for future use. Moving forward, all that is required is to fill in the necessary details in your product description.
However, implementing the aforementioned suggestions may require a significant amount of time and effort. If you're seeking a fully automated solution, here's another suggestion.
If you have a large number of products on Shopify, automated product description creation could be a valuable tool.
You have two main options:
Shopify Product Description App: Advanced AI tools, such as RightCopy Product Descriptions, can automatically generate product descriptions for you. After proofreading your product description for accuracy, you're ready to publish it!
External Generator Tool: If you only need assistance on a one-time basis, you may prefer to seek external help rather than installing any apps. Platforms such as frase.io can automatically generate product descriptions, which typically only include the product name and main details. While you can enhance the creativity of your writing tools to introduce more variation, it's important to exercise caution and proofread carefully.
Hiring a Shopify product description writer can help ensure that your online store stands out from the competition and entices potential customers to make a purchase.
A skilled product description writer will have experience crafting compelling and informative descriptions that highlight the unique features and benefits of your products.
Shopify Product Description Writing Services by experts ultimately lead to higher conversion rates and increased sales for your Shopify store.
Prioritizing the SEO optimization of the entire product page is more crucial than solely focusing on descriptions to achieve optimal rankings for your products.
There are limited actions that you can take, but one possible step is to make small adjustments to optimize keywords. Modify the description by identifying transactional keywords that potential customers might use to search for your products. Include these keywords once or twice, preferably in headings, to improve the visibility of your products in search results. Avoid using too many keywords in your description as it can make it appear as if it was written by a machine. It's preferable to have a description that is under-optimized than one that appears spammy.
Here is your comprehensive guide on crafting compelling Shopify product descriptions that are effective in driving sales.
The appearance of the end outcome largely relies on the specific niche of your Shopify store. However, by adhering to the aforementioned steps, you should be able to produce a product description that is compelling, motivational, and yields successful conversions.
