If you run an e-commerce website, your product listings are a crucial aspect of your business. This is especially true if 100% of your activity is conducted online. 

With so much competition available and the ability of visitors to click off to a new site at a moment’s notice, you need to work hard to turn prospects into sales.

One way to do this is to write high-quality product descriptions targeted to your audience.-

This blog post outlines why e-commerce product descriptions matter and highlights key aspects to consider when running an e-commerce website.

Highlight key product or service benefits

It is important to not only focus on product features, but also on the direct benefits to the customer. Most visitors to your website will want to know how your product or service will improve their life, save them money, or give them some other advantage.

Photographs and images play an important part in this. Poor quality imagery, outdated photographs, or a lack of photos can negatively impact sales. So it can be very worthwhile investing in the services of a professional photographer, alongside the services of a pro copywriter.

Drawing attention to your product’s key benefits is useful whether you are a B2C or B2B company. Always target your listings to the requirements of your audience. Standing out from competitors with writing and images will have a positive impact.

Search engine optimisation

You should avoid falling into the trap of simply copying the manufacturer’s product description. Using the same text as competing websites will severely hamper your SEO efforts. Instead, use a unique and eye-catching description.

Another aspect to consider is description length. A few sentences cannot truly explain the benefits of your product or service. Write a number of small paragraphs summing up the advantages, using headings and bullet points where necessary.

The more information you provide, the more detailed and thorough your content will be seen in the eyes of major search engines. Better descriptions will help your products appear for more search terms and enjoy more favourable rankings.

Browsing vs ready to buy

Studies have shown that people browse multiple websites before making a purchase. They compare prices, read descriptions and reviews, perform company research, and tend not to buy on the first visit.

But when a customer is ready to purchase, they will typically head to the most informative site, or the business that fully explains the benefits. Trust is key to winning sales. Often the price is a secondary consideration.

Online advertising

If like many businesses you engage in online advertising, product description copywriting helps to increase your return on investment — especially when using paid and organic search. This is partly due to better engagement metrics.

Search engines can track ‘bounce rates’, ‘dwell time’ on pages, and various other factors that aim to demonstrate the quality of a page. Having top-notch product descriptions improves your pages and increases the value your site provides. 

Summary

Well-written product descriptions are essential for e-commerce websites. They increase the likelihood a visitor will complete a purchase and they also provide benefits for search engine optimisation and online advertising.

Do you require copywriting for e-commerce product descriptions? Get in touch for a quote today!