eCommerce is the way to go because everyone prefers the convenience of buying online and getting their products delivered right at their doorsteps. For this reason, online stores are springing out from all corners of the internet every other day. It can be a nightmare getting noticed and ultimately converting your products to sales. To get noticed you have to rank higher on search engines and to sell, you need the right product description. There’s no way around it, this is how you position yourself in a sea of sellers. This is the comprehensive 5-point eCommerce guide to writing SEO-friendly product descriptions. Use it to attract and retain your customers.
1. Understand And Define Your Target Audience
The group of people that is likely to show interest in and purchase of your products is your target audience. You need to identify your target audience to craft your product descriptions according to their needs. For instance, if you sell toys, your target audience is obviously going to be kids. Your target audience would also be parents or guardians, as you would have guessed, they have the money and so they have the power to choose the toys their kids own.
Create a buyer persona for these two groups that will entail specific details such as age, gender, location, level of education, and income status. For the kids, high-quality images in the product description would be enough to excite them but for the parents, the safety of the products, affordability, and durability would be a priority.
2. Use The Right Product Keywords Naturally
Potential customers usually type short precise words on search boxes to get a display of what they are looking for. These words often used by clients for search purposes are categorized as keywords. The right use of them would give your products a higher rank and make your online store discoverable. The wrong use of them, such as stuffing them in your product description SEO will get you penalized.
To find the right keywords, use keyword tools such as KWFinder Moz Keyword Explorer and SEMrush to find out how many people are typing a given keyword and how easy or hard it will be for a keyword to rank. The tools can even suggest to you related terms to avoid keyword overuse. You should place keywords strategically in:
- Your title tags.
- Headings and subheadings.
- In your image descriptions and tags.
- At the beginning and end of your product descriptions.
3. Create Original And Engaging Content
Most sellers make the grave mistake of copying product features straight from competitor sites. Duplicate content ranks very low on search results. The best way to create original content is to use unique descriptions for your products. You should also aim at using loyalty-free images and videos preferably your own. This will create a sense of professionalism and will earn you the trust of your customers.
Keep your readers engaged with persuasive words that tell stories such as all-weather outfits, state-of-the-art design, an all-inclusive set. These words should however not portray a dishonest description because that may lead to negative reviews from disappointed buyers.
4. Highlight Features And Their Benefits
A good product description is as informative as possible. People like to know what they are buying and how it will work for them. Vague descriptions will drive customers away. Therefore you should describe the features to give them a good understanding of your products and explain how the features will benefit them to persuade them to buy.
For instance, if you are selling sports shoes you might point out that the outsoles are made of sturdy material that protects against wear and tear. The sturdiness is the feature and the anti-wear and tear are the durability benefit customers who buy sporting shoes are interested in. A great example using image and text is in the diet coke below.
5. Keep It Short, Simple, And Scannable
Most people just scan through texts online. They do not have the time to read everything and so they will pick and read what catches their eyes. To make your product description scannable, you need to keep it short and simple in the following ways:
- Use subheadings to divide your product description into readable chunks.
- Put the major details such as product features and benefits in bullet points.
- Use different font colors to draw attention to important details such as size and price.
- Use images to replace texts. A picture is worth a thousand keywords.
Conclusion
Write SEO product descriptions so that your potential customers can find you. Always update your keywords based on market trends. Make your descriptions informative and engaging so that they can understand the features and benefits of your products enough to want to buy. Once you convert, be consistent with your methods so that you can retain your customers. When writing product descriptions for items you intend to sell online, everything should begin and end with SEO in mind. A proper application of these tips will not only improve your discoverability, but it will also grow your customer base and enable your eCommerce business to thrive.
Guest Post Author’s Bio
Sandra Larson writes articles and essays on improving the quality of online content and maximizing discoverability. She has a wealth of experience in crafting product descriptions. Her informative pieces are a great resource for established online store merchants and those starting out in eCommerce.
