The characterization of goods has become quite crucial when shopping on various websites, since this process is continuously made harder by the lack of possibility to touch, try on, or, if need be, taste what one intends to buy.
Therefore, the role of descriptions is to additionally help the customer understand why he should buy this item, and to also guarantee that it will suit him. The more persuasive and complete the text, the less second mistrust and questions the customer will have.
Thus, a poor description or its complete absence really diminishes the amount of probable income. Disregarding these details is not good at all, it requires a competent approach. Let’s try to understand what are the features of a good description for an online store, and how exactly it increases sales.
What Items Require A Description
Before discussing the principles of writing a correct description, it is necessary to clarify that not all products need it. Products such as simple tools or electronic components can be sold without a long description. The designation of technical specifications and some pictures are enough.
In the case of selling, for instance, books, a qualitative description is necessary. Before purchasing a book, the reader always gets acquainted with its description in detail, especially if he is new to the author’s work.
In addition to books, the following most common categories of goods need a good description:
- household appliances and electronics;
- TVs, smartphones, audio systems;
- unique goods;
- luxury items, antiques (such as high end bedroom furniture);
- expensive food;
- complex tools.
As you can imagine, the list is far from complete. An item in your store requires a description if at least one of the following is present:
- The cost is estimated above the average market.
- Small assortment.
- Appearance is incomprehensible from pictures.
- The item is unique.
Having a good text for the cases above helps to justify the price and demonstrate the benefits of the item.
The Universal Principle Of Writing A Description For A Product
When writing a description, firstly, one should think about the issue of giving useful and broad information for a potential client.
Whether it’s a cake, a smartphone, a car or any other product, its description should always:
- give an explanation – why would one need this item and how could they use it;
- identify pros of this product on its specific market;
- have all its main features listed;
- try to reach the potential customer via the used language;
- have content such as testimonials, certificates, etc.
It’s compulsory to also remember about certain technical features of a text, such as:
- Keep track of the text volume. Usually, a description of 500 to 1000 characters is enough for a product card.
- Make use of the structure: title, description, features, feedback.
- Do not copy the description from another website.
How To Write A Description That Is Original And Interesting
For those who have never done product description writing before, this may seem like a fairly straightforward undertaking. We talked about the benefits, noted the characteristics, a little creative imagination and, voila, everything is ready! But that’s just how it seems.
In fact, even experienced copywriters are not always able to immediately produce a suitable text. As for people without experience, sometimes it may take more than one hour for the document to finally begin to fill with some lines. However, don’t be intimidated, we’ve put together some life hacks to help you get your thoughts in the right direction when writing descriptions.
Features to Benefits
Usually sellers are well aware of the advantages of their product, but if you still find it difficult to identify the positive differences, take a look at the technical specifications and try to translate them into human language.
Then, remember who is your potential customer and the scenario for using the item, and think a little about what influences the purchase decision.
More feelings
Exciting texts resonate better than dry characterizations. Think about how a potential customer feels when trying the product and imagine where it happens, what the product smells like, tastes like, and so on.
Compare, for example, these dry and emotional descriptions of coffee machines:
- 3 programs for preparing coffee, the ability to select the type of the drink, and an auto cappuccino in the kit.
- Enjoy a freshly brewed cappuccino, latte or espresso – the automatic coffee machine will prepare your favorite coffee in seconds.
Which of these two texts sounds more interesting? The first is not much different from a banal enumeration of features, while the second draws a fragrant cup of coffee before your eyes.
Highlight the main information
Most customers do not want to seek out the information they need, they want to get everything at once. Don’t delay with the core of the offer. The benefits of green tea or the history of coffee beans, of course, can be interesting, but in such situations, you need to be extremely lapidary.
No need to complicate and list many advantages, everything should be clear in a few sentences. For those who are looking for dry and specific information, it is better to make a separate tab or block with characteristics, rather than adding everything to the descriptions.
An exception here may be, perhaps, complex technical goods. But their description should also be approached lightly, using only those terms that are clear to your customers. If you need to say something complicated, be sure to give an explanation.
Tips in reviews
If you absolutely do not know what to write about, then go to the reviews. If there are none on your site, find similar products from competitors and see what people write about them. This way, you can identify and meet the needs of customers at the description level.
Try to quickly respond to feedback, especially when it expresses something negative. Try to resolve client issues ASAP. Keep in mind: a client left alone with his issue is a threat to your reputation.
Storytelling
The marketing trend associated with the presentation of goods through storytelling is also relevant in the case of product descriptions for online stores. This approach is especially organic when selling unique or expensive goods.
How are stories created? For example, with the help of a certain legend.
Speak client language
Imagine a portrait of your consumer. What is this person? What is he interested in, how and with whom does he talk? Suppose you sell children’s toys, which, as you know, are usually bought by parents, that is, adults. Parents can be completely different in life, but the way most of them communicate with children has similar features. And when they buy toys, they, consciously or not, associate them with their children’s perceptions. Therefore, in the descriptions of toys, diminutive epithets are always appropriate.
Every potential customer group needs to be spoken to in their own language. If selling products for parties, humor is appropriate in the description. If you have expensive jewelry to be sold, you need some seriousness, grace and elegance.
Note the usefulness of epithets and metaphors, which are a fairly universal means of linguistic expressiveness for different audiences. However, the play with words must be approached very carefully. Hanging clusters of metaphors, devoid of justification, can turn the description into nothing more than an empty farce.
Self-test
Here’s a checklist to make you better estimate how successful your text is:
- complete description of the product;
- the structure of the text is thought out and respected;
- all key advantages are described quite clearly, in a language well known to a potential client;
- seo-optimization was carried out, relevant keywords are contained in the title, description, headings and in the text;
- the text has been edited and proofread.
Conclusion
A well-presented product is an important part of great online commerce. The client will make the buying decision only if there are no doubts left. A good text is a text that wins the trust of the consumer.
We hope that the details presented in this article will help you create better descriptions. If you are still not confident in your abilities or the promotion work does not bring the desired result, take a look at this awesome article on the effects of abbreviations in your texts.