You’re passionate about your products and know them inside and out. But do your customers? The truth is, most people only spend a few seconds scanning a product description before deciding to click away or buy. Those few seconds are your chance to grab their attention and convince them your product is exactly what they need. The secret to selling more? Optimizing your product descriptions.
When you optimize your product descriptions, you help customers quickly understand why your product is the best choice. You highlight the key features and benefits in an engaging, conversational way. You make an emotional connection that resonates with your target audience. You give them a reason to click “Add to Cart” instead of clicking away.
The good news is optimizing your product descriptions is easier than you might think. With a few simple tips you’ll be writing descriptions that sell in no time. Ready to turn browsers into buyers? Let’s dive in.
Know Your Target Audience
To sell more of your products, you need to know exactly who you’re selling to. Do some research to determine your target audience – their age, location, income, interests, and shopping habits.
Once you know your audience, optimize your product descriptions to speak directly to them. Use words and phrases they relate to, focusing on the benefits and solutions your product provides. For example, if your target is busy parents, emphasize how your product saves time or makes life easier.
Keep descriptions concise yet compelling
Aim for 2 or 3 short paragraphs. Use an active, engaging writing style with varied sentence structure. Share specific details and examples to help your audience visualize the product.
Use persuasive wording
Include power words like “best”, “leading”, “top-rated” or “expert-approved”. Mention awards or media coverage. Use phrases like “you’ll love…” or “you can’t go wrong with…”.
Focus on solutions and benefits
Explain how your product improves your customer’s life. List 3 to 5 main benefits or solutions, with details for each. For example, a kid’s lunchbox could offer convenience, balanced nutrition, and peace of mind.
Include high-quality images
Images are key for giving customers a sense of your product. Include 3 to 5 large, eye-catching photos showing different angles and usage contexts. Images should take up about 50-70% of the total description space.
Call the customer to action
End each product description with a strong call to action, like “Buy now and enjoy free shipping!” or “Click here to get this amazing deal today!”. Make it quick and easy for customers to make a purchase right away.
Following these tips will help you craft product descriptions that motivate your target audience to buy. Optimized listings can increase click-through rates, decrease return rates, and boost your overall sales.
Highlight the Product Benefits
When writing product descriptions, focus on the benefits to your customers. Help them understand how your product can improve their lives or make tasks easier.
Highlight the Key Features
Describe the key features and specifications in an exciting yet honest way. Mention innovative or interesting attributes that make your product stand out. For example, if it’s a new kitchen gadget, highlight how it can save time or produce better results. Back up claims with facts or examples.
Focus on Solutions
Explain how your product provides solutions to common problems or frustrations. For instance, if it’s a beauty product, discuss how it targets age spots, reduces wrinkles, or conceals under eye circles. Tap into the aspirations and motivations of your target audience.
Use Visual Language
Use visual language and specific details to help the reader imagine what it’s like to experience your product. Refer to the sights, sounds, textures, scents, and even tastes. Vivid product descriptions are more persuasive and memorable.
Include Customer Reviews and Testimonials
Share genuine customer reviews and testimonials about your product. Quotes from real people who have used the product can build trust and credibility. Mention any awards or media coverage you have received as well.
Finish with a Call-to-Action
End your product description with a call-to-action like “Buy now and experience the difference!” or “Add to cart for 20% off today only!” A sense of urgency or scarcity can motivate the reader to make a purchase decision sooner rather than later.
Writing compelling product descriptions takes time and practice. But by highlighting the benefits, focusing on solutions, using visual language, adding customer reviews, and finishing with a call-to-action, you’ll be crafting descriptions that sell in no time!
Use Descriptive Adjectives and Avoid Jargon
Using descriptive yet accessible language is key to writing product descriptions that sell. Avoid industry jargon and technical terms whenever possible. Think about your audience and how to best communicate with them in a casual, helpful tone.
Keep sentences concise and scannable. Use lists (-) to break up chunks of text. For example:
- Vibrant royal blue color
- Durable yet lightweight aluminum frame
- Padded seat for maximum comfort
- Assembly required (wrench included)
Use adjectives to help the reader visualize
Describe your product with sensory adjectives that bring the item to life. Is it soft, shiny, thick, smooth? Help the reader see, hear, smell or feel the product. For example:
The buttery soft leather seats contour to your body for a customized fit. The pungent aroma of rich mahogany from the handcrafted wood accents fills the room.
Compare to familiar items
Compare less familiar products to everyday items your audience knows well. This gives them a frame of reference to understand the product better. For example:
The lumens are as bright as a 100-watt incandescent bulb, without the heat. As quiet as a library, our fans produce a gentle white noise perfect for light sleepers.
By using simple yet compelling language and avoiding insider terms in your product descriptions, you’ll connect with more potential customers and keep them engaged. Short, impactful sentences with sensory details help bring your products to life and move the reader to action. Keep it concise yet conversational, and your product descriptions will sell.
Tell a Story and Create Emotional Connections
To make a real connection with your customers, tell a story with your product descriptions. Share the origin or inspiration behind the product. Describe how it can enhance someone’s life. Create an emotional experience that makes them fall in love with the product.
Share the Backstory
Tell the story of how the product came to be. Did the idea come to you in a dream? Were you trying to solve a problem? Share a glimpse into the creative process. This helps to humanize the brand and build a personal connection with customers. For example, “This recipe was inspired by my grandmother’s famous chocolate chip cookies. I wanted to recreate the experience of baking with her in my own kitchen.”
Focus on Benefits and Lifestyle
Rather than just listing product features and specs, show how it can benefit customers and enhance their lives. Help them visualize how they will use and experience the product. For example, “This lightweight hammock is perfect for relaxing in your backyard on a summer evening. Curl up with your favorite book as a gentle breeze rocks you to sleep under a canopy of rustling leaves.”
Create an Emotional Experience
Focus on feelings and emotions to help customers connect with the product description on a deeper level. Use evocative language and vivid imagery to help them experience those feelings. For example, “Our handcrafted journals are made for capturing life’s fleeting moments and turning them into cherished memories. Buttery soft leather covers, thick crème-colored pages, and the subtle scent of lavender invite you to slow down, unwind, and rediscover the simple pleasure of putting pen to paper.”
Using these techniques in your product descriptions will help you make authentic connections with customers, build trust in your brand, and inspire them to make a purchase. So tap into your creativity, be genuine, and speak to their hearts as well as their minds.
Optimize for SEO With Relevant Keywords
To rank higher in search engines like Google, you need to optimize your product descriptions for search engine optimization or SEO. This means including relevant keywords and phrases that people are likely to search for when looking for your type of product.
Relevant Keywords
Focus on the primary search terms people would use to find your product. For example, if selling a new brand of organic dog food, you’d want to include phrases like “organic dog food,” “natural dog food,” or “holistic dog food.” Mention these terms in your page title, headings, and 2-3 times in the body content.
Also, include secondary keywords and related terms. For the organic dog food, you could add “grain-free,” “meat-first,” “raw diet,” and “vet approved.” Use these additional terms once or twice in your content.
Don’t overstuff your content with keywords, though. Only include terms that sound natural in the description and provide value to the reader. Aim for a keyword density of 3 to 5% of total words. Too many keywords will make the content sound spammy and can hurt your rankings.
LSI Keywords
Relevant keywords are important, but so are latent semantic indexing or LSI keywords. These are words and phrases that are semantically similar or related to your primary keywords. Things like “all-natural ingredients”, “digestive health”, or “prebiotics”. Pepper 2-3 LSI terms throughout your content for the best results.
Synonyms
Using synonyms of your main keywords is also helpful for SEO. For example, swap out “dog food” for “kibble” or “pet food” in some places. You can also substitute “natural” for “organic” or “holistic” at times. Synonyms make the content sound more natural and help search engines better understand the topic and keywords.
Optimizing your product descriptions with relevant keywords, synonyms, and semantic variations will make it easier for search engines and customers to find your products. And that is the secret to selling more!
Keyword Density
Aim for a keyword density of 3 to 5% for the best results. That means using your target keyword and related terms a combined total of 3 to 5 times for every 100 words. Much more than 5% and your content may seem spammy to search engines.
Placement
Place keywords prominently in your content, especially in the first 100 words. Mention the product name, specific features, colors, sizes, styles, and other attributes. For example:
This stylish ladies’ red wool coat is the perfect overcoat for winter. With a timeless double-breasted design, collar, storm flap, and cuffed sleeves, the Classic Collection overcoat offers fashion and function. Made of a warm wool blend, this hip-length coat will keep you cozy from the office to out on the town. Available in sizes XS-XL in bright red, navy, and black.
Following these tips will optimize your product descriptions for search and help more customers find your products. Keep your content helpful, honest, and reader-focused above all else. SEO should never compromise the user experience.
Conclusion
So there you have it. The tricks and techniques to turn your product descriptions into sales machines. Take the time to understand your target audience and what resonates with them. Focus on benefits and solutions, not just features. Use vivid and emotive language to help the reader visualize what it’s like to own and experience your product. Keep things concise yet compelling. Ask questions to engage the reader. Share interesting backstories or origin stories when relevant. Optimize for search to increase visibility. Follow these tips and watch as your product descriptions turn into your best salespeople, working 24/7 to drive more customers and boost your bottom line. Now get to work rewriting those product descriptions – your sales numbers will thank you!