Irrespective of the type of products you sell and the size of your online store, having a compelling product description will always clearly dictate how your business performs. The value of your product descriptions also directly affects your conversion rate.

Are you aware that approximately  87%  of shoppers read product descriptions before making a choice of whether they will purchase a product or not? 

An e-commerce study conducted by Nielsen Norman Group  indicates that up to 20% of unsuccessful purchases are a result of a lack of admissible information in the product descriptions.

Both e-commerce business  owners and marketers are vulnerable to a common copywriting mistake (even professional copywriters are susceptible to it sometimes): writing product descriptions that only concentrate on describing your products. 

Why is it wrong? Because outstanding product descriptions should augment your product pages by making your product sell to real people, not just behaving as back-of-the-box distributors of information for search engines (even though SEO shouldn't be an afterthought, of course).

Convenient product descriptions can greatly entice customers and influence their decision to complete a purchase. Consequently, they boost your visibility and lead to enhanced sales.

This is the main reason mastering the art of writing persuasive product descriptions is crucial to succeeding with eCommerce.

In this guide, you will learn absolutely everything you need to know in reference to writing compelling product descriptions. We will also be sharing some examples of excellent product descriptions you can draw inspiration.

It is now time for us to jump right in!

What do we mean by product description? 

A product description is a marketing copy that gives details about what a product is and why it deserves to be purchased. The aim of a product description is to supply customers with crucial information about the features and critical merits of the product so they’re influenced to buy it.

An elaborately-crafted product description drives buyers through your conversion funnel. If you become more creative in your description, your product pages momentarily become more compelling, leading to enhanced conversions from casual shoppers. 

To provide an outstanding product description, you need to elaborately answer questions customers have about your products:

• What are the problems capable of being solved by your products? 
• What do customers expect to acquire from your product?
• What makes your products stand out among the competition? 

A product description should respond to these questions in a fun and engaging way. 

Tips to write product descriptions that sell

Most e-commerce Shopify stores often make the mistake of listing product features when writing product descriptions. This probably leads to lower conversions because people hardly understand how the product is of use to them. 

Let’s now focus on a few ways you can create perfect product descriptions that sell for you:

1. Put the full focus on your ideal buyer

Getting to know how to write product descriptions needs putting yourself in the shoes of your audience. When for instance you write a product description with a mammoth crowd of buyers in mind, your descriptions become wishy-washy and you may end up having no one to pay attention to your address at all.

The best product descriptions should therefore focus on addressing your target audience directly and personally. Ask and ask questions as if you’re having a moment of direct conversation with them. You can do this by selecting the words your ideal buyer uses. You use the term“you.”

This is exactly how retailer The Oodie highlights the product description for its "I Love Plants Oodie." It marks our first product description examples as shown below: 

🎯 "Can’t resist buying plants? Unbeleafable. Don’t worry—us too! Immaculately Cover yourself in your cherished obsession in our NEW I Love Plants Oodie! For every I Love Plants Oodie sold, one tree is planted across Australia."

When the moment to write a product description for your own Shopify eCommerce business knocks at your door, start by imagining your ideal buyer. What kind of comedy do they appreciate (if any)? What trending words do they use? Are there specific words that they dislike? Are they good to go with words like “sucky” and “crappy”? What kind of questions do they ask that you need to answer?

 Carefully consider how you would communicate to your ideal buyer if you were physically selling your product in-store, face to face. You can then try and engage that language into your e-commerce site so you can have the same conversation online that resonates more deeply.

2. Entice your customers with benefits

At times, when we engage in selling our very own products, we get thrilled about individual product features and specifications. At such times, we live as we exhale and inhale our company, our website as well as our products.

The great challenge is that our potential buyers are not as interested in mundane features and specs as one would expect... Their main aim is to know what’s in it for them—how it will solve their biggest pain points. Properly executing how to write a product description needs you to clearly state the benefits of each feature and be able to do away with cognitive bias.

We will have a look at a great product description example from Dr. Squatch. 

🎯 "Made with real pine extract, this all-star bar is as tough as a freshly cut bat. A true MVP of the shower, this heavy-hitter knocks out grime with its gritty composition and ultra-manly, woodsy scent. Toss in the exfoliating oatmeal and the super-soothing shea butter, and you’ve got a bullpen of natural ingredients that will strike out any stink."

Dr. Squatch insinuates that the merits of its soap are not just that it’ll make you clean in the shower, but that the soap has real power enough to knock out any odor no matter how stressful your day was. It additionally sneaks in some product significance including “natural ingredients” as well as “exfoliating oatmeal” to impress its ideal buyer persona.

Put into consideration the advantage of each of your features. How does your product make your customers feel happier, more satisfied, healthier, or more productive? What problems, glitches, and hassles do your product assist in solving?

You should not just sell a product, sell an experience.

3. Avoid overly using “yeah, yeah” phrases

When we aren't settled on the right words and don’t know what else to add to our product description, we often end up adding something bland like “excellent product quality.”

That’s an example of a “yeah, yeah” phrase. Immediately a potential buyer reads “excellent product quality” she thinks, “Yeah, yeah, of course. That’s exactly what everyone says.``After all, have you ever heard someone describe their product quality as average, not so good, or even bad?

You should note that you grow less persuasive when potential buyers go through your product description and start saying, “Yeah, yeah” to themselves. To avoid this reaction, hit directly to the point and remain as specific as possible. 

    One shopper in a recent study was unable to locate the information he needed in the product description, so he left the site to search Google for more product information. While conducting his search, he found another site with a similar product, but with a more detailed description, and at a lower price. He automatically settled for the product. This is an indication that if you don't clearly describe your product, you will more often than not lose customers.

Beardbrand, for example, doesn’t describe the value of its styling balm as excellent. Rather, they explicitly describe each detail plus its benefit.

🎯"In whatever style you may want, Beardbrand Styling Balm is skillful enough to handle it. Designed to work with absolutely all hair types, it provides enough strength to keep thick, curly hair under control, restrain thinner hair from falling flat, and maintain the most unruly beards inline—all while at the same time keeping your hair flexible and touchable (smooth,  not stiff, and not crunchy). This product proudly pulls its weight as far as keeping your look locked in throughout the day is concerned. Whatever your style is, bravely grace it on with Beardbrand Styling Balm."

Product details add accountability and credibility. The product details also sell your product. Try not to include too many technical details in your product descriptions. Simply just be specific.

4. Make justifications for using superlatives

Superlatives always sound untruthful in a product description unless you vividly justify why your product is the most ideal, the simplest, the most affordable, or the most advanced.

Amazon for instance clearly explains why the Kindle Paperwhite is the world’s thinnest and lightest e-reader

The word signature brings to the reader's attention the fact that it is something special. Additionally, Amazon quotes the pixel density (300 PPI) and the means by which the reader has a glare-free display and two times the amount of storage as previous generations.

If your product is indeed the best in its category, provide clear and specific justification as to why this is the case. Otherwise, tone your product down or go as far as quoting a customer who states that your product is the most wonderful they’ve ever used.

5. Try as much as possible to appeal to your readers’ imagination

Scientific research  provided clear proof that if people hold a product in their hands, their preference to own it increases.

You’re selling things online, and as such your web visitors can’t hold your products. Long, crystal-clear pictures or videos can help, but there’s a need for a copywriting trick to increase desire: let your reader not stop craving to actually own your product.

Below is how Firebox activates your imagination with an elegant description of its Fizzics Draftpour. It clearly showcases how the product solves the problems common to visit the pub for a pint. 

🎯 "Nothing beats a freshly pulled pint in your favorite pub—except perhaps a freshly pulled pint in your very own home.

Never wrestle with crowds, struggle for a seat, or have to hang about outside on the pavement simply to enjoy your favorite beer again! The Fizzics DraftPour provides you with nitro-style draft beer from ANY can or bottle. Even the cheapest and largest economy can be instantly transformed into a luxurious draft pint with just a single pull of the lever. 

The DraftPour may be a sleek piece of kit, but it’s undeniably high-tech under the hood, applying sound waves to transform your beer’s natural carbonation into a smooth micro-foam. These dirty little bubbles generate the optimal density for boosted aroma, flavor, and a silky smooth mouth-feel. 

Get a fruit machine and a few boxes of pork scratchings in and you’ve essentially completely replicated your local pub. Sticky bar-top and ancient, dubiously-stained carpet exceptional.

To carefully practice this copywriting technique, start a sentence with the word “imagine,” and end your sentence (or paragraph) by elaborately explaining how your reader will feel when owning and using your product.

6. Cut through rational barriers with mini-stories

Involving mini-stories in your product descriptions reduces rational obstacles against persuasion techniques. In other words, we forget we’re being sold to.

Such wine sellers as UK-based  Laithwaites, often include short stories about wine makers.

🎯 The Dauré family possesses one of Roussillon’s top properties, the Château de Jau. Around the dinner table one Christmas they unanimously agreed it was time to spread their wings and look to new wine horizons. The womenfolk (Las Niñas) suggested Chile and won out in the end, achieving their dream when they built an estate in the Apalta Valley of Colchagua. The terroir is an excellent and close neighbor of the Chilean star Montes winery.

As far as your product description to tell a story about your products is concerned, ask yourself the following:

• Who is in charge of making the product?
• What inspired you to create the product?
• What huddle did you need to overcome to develop the product?
• How was the product tested?

7. You should seduce with sensory words

Restaurants have a long time of knowledge about it: sensory words enhance sales since they engage more brain processing power. Here's a stunning product description example from chocolate maker Green and Blacks.

Green & Black’s sensory adjectives don’t just describe the taste, but also sound and touch: “crunchy” and “soft.”

Adjectives are very tricky words. In most cases, they don’t add meaning to your sentences, and you’re better off erasing them. Nevertheless, sensory adjectives are powerful words since they make your reader experience your product copy while reading.

Dazzle your readers with clear product descriptions. Think about such words as “velvety,” “smooth,” “crisp,” and “bright” if you’re selling food products. 

8. It will be great if you tempt with social proof

When your web visitors are not sure about which product to buy, they look for suggestions about what to buy. They’re often enticed to purchase a product with the highest number of positive reviews and testimonials. 

Let's take the instance of one gym apparel seller, Gymshark who includes customer reviews on every product page. Moreover, it provides a rating system so shoppers can acquire product information quickly and easily. 

As a recommendation, try to include an image of the customer to add credibility to a quote. It additionally makes your online business more approachable and relatable. You can even go ahead and integrate a social media feed filled with user-generated content that showcases real people sharing success stories about using your products.

The above quote holds more impact because it describes the product as popular. The popularity claim is further upheld with a cutting from the press and the phrase “press favorite.”

The majority of buyers are lured to buy something that’s popular. When it comes to your e-commerce website, clearly display the products that are customer favorites.

9. Try to make your description scannable

Is your web design motivating web visitors to read your product descriptions?

Let's take a look at this powerful example of a product description from Kettle and Fire. The brand makes use of bullet points to enhance quick, scannable product benefits. Moreover, it replaces the standard “benefits” headline with “Why You’ll Love It,” personalizing the experience for shoppers on the product page.

Gift wrapping your product descriptions with a clear, scannable design makes them straightforward to read and more appealing to potential customers.

"Leaving shoppers’ questions with no response can derail a sale or even in the worst case scenario, make shoppers abandon not just the purchase, but the site as well." NN/g.

Below is a list of some areas to focus on when designing yours:

• Create a stunning headline to entice your web visitors.
• Use simple-to-scan bullet points.
• Include a sufficient number of white spaces.
• Enhance your font size to promote readability.
• Make use of high-quality product images.

10. Set clear goals and KPIs

The purpose of a product description is to drive a shopper closer to purchase. However, how do you determine if your descriptions are working or not? 

You’ll want to make a choice on a set of metrics to track on your product pages. Giving a definition to these metrics will increase your understanding of what product descriptions are working best and improve on the underperforming ones. 

Common KPIs to monitor include:

• Conversion rate
• Cart abandonment
• Return rate
• Support inquiries
• Organic search rankings

You can thereafter run a variety of A/B tests using a tool such as Trident AB, resulting in higher conversions and more sales for your e-commerce website.

An enticing product description will always pay you back

As you are making preparations to write persuasive product descriptions for your online store, do not forget to:

• Share your knowledge about your product.
• Narrate stories and give details to even the tiniest details.
• Try as much as possible not to be boring and instead thrill your web visitors with compelling descriptions.
• Above all, write with enthusiasm since your passion for your products should be contagious.

The correct response to the below questions will make your product description outstanding among the crowd

You should always remember that every product and audience is distinctive and has a wide range of buying triggers. And that’s OK since you want your product descriptions to be one-of-a-kind to your brand. 

If by any chance you're unable to write a product description, here are a few clearly presented prompts that can help you design a product description template that works pretty fine for both your products and business. 

Begin by painstakingly responding to the following questions:

Who’s the ideal customer?

 Having a clear knowledge about who your product is for is fundamental to writing a good description.

What are your products’ basic features?

Clearly spell out any dimensions, materials, functions, and care instructions as well as details about the fit (if of course, you’re selling clothing).

When should the product be best used? 

Does your cozy blanket for instance, perfect for cold winter nights with a cup of hot cocoa by the fireplace? Or is it more for a brisk autumn evening as the sun goes down? Clearly highlight the appropriate scenarios for when a customer should use your product.

What makes your product special? 

Meditate about the unique significance of your product and why it’s better than that of your competitors. 

Once you have full information in a document, make use of the following template to write out your product description.

Write a specific and clear headline that grabs your target customers’ attention. Keep your ideas easy while at the same time showcasing an instant product benefit. For instance, in case you’re selling a yoga t-shirt with a pattern, call it Fleck Studio Shirt.

Create a precise paragraph depending on the basic features and best-used information above. Look to the examples above to obtain inspiration for writing an entertaining description.

Involve a bullet list of product characters and benefits. Add to the list any technical details needed.

Make use of social proof. You can add a customer reviews app to capture product reviews on your website and incorporate others from third-party sites like search engines or Facebook. 

There we go. You are now all set to add a product (or an already existing one) to your online store!

Final Thoughts

Summing up the given above, there are many factors that need to be taken into consideration as you put together your ultimate descriptions. You have to keep in mind your target audience, think the wording and text length through, organize it properly, and not forget about the SEO side of the deal. Hopefully, you’ve found these examples of persuasive product descriptions to be helpful for creating your own.

If you need more information about our online services and product offerings, then please feel free to get in touch with us today. We will be more than willing to arrange a meeting to establish how best we can achieve the results your business desires in order to succeed online. Our team of Webinopoly experts is equal to effectively merging exquisite design with intuitive functionality for small to medium-sized businesses across all sectors. We are dedicated to making sure that your every experience with us, from initial consultation, all the way to ultimate delivery, is positive, professional, and productive.