The product page is your sales pitch. Getting these pages right (their Copy, images, and user experience as a whole) is crucial to converting users into customers.

Lackluster product pages that omit key information or don't adequately describe product benefits hamper conversion rates (turning website visitors into customers).

But product descriptions can do more than increase conversion rates. They can drive traffic.

Website engagement and SEO

Despite repeated assertions from Google that engagement metrics (data that demonstrates a positive user experience) don't factor into search results, a number of studies show otherwise. Here's one.

The result? Compelling web copy can do more than convince users to buy — it can get their foot in the door.

How to write product page descriptions

Focus on your product's benefits. Write descriptions that convey those benefits whenever possible.

Use actionable copy. By actionable, we mean verbs prompting users to act — copy that speaks to the benefit of your product or service.

Do a little brainstorming

If you sell basketball shoes, think of the various aspects of your shoes that are advantageous to basketball players. If your shoes are worth their salt, they should be...

• Comfortable
• Durable
• Protective (ankle support)
• Athletic (they might not make you jump higher but there might be ways to talk about the materials that make them sound good for athletes). For example (this is a terrible name — don't steal it! — you could call your shoes "High Flyer.")

Turn benefits into copy

On your "High Flyer" product page, include these important specifications! Strip out unnecessary words and get to the point.

Here are some specs you could include based off our benefits brainstorming sesh above.

• Snug, comfortable fit
• Long lasting support
• Buoyant insoles

Please don't take these seriously. While they aren't terrible, they are about a made-up pair of basketball shoes with a corny name.

The process, however, is important. Use it to help write actionable copy that adequately conveys the benefits of your products or services.

Fitting copy into your design

Product descriptions, specifications, and text should fit the mold of your website.

General tips

• Balance images, videos, or icons with your copy
  • The goal is to keep users engaged by providing both active and passive jobs for them. Passive jobs include looking at an image or watching a video.
  • Reading is an active job. We want to use website copy to be explicit about our intent. Images can only convey a meaning.
• Use headers to convey key benefits (and to break up / organize text)
• Keep descriptions short
  • People don't want to read long paragraphs. They are browsing for products. Do the legwork for them — strip out the key information they need to know.

Use long tail keywords in your copy

Sometimes you can pick up extra traffic by including related keywords in your copy.

Let's say we discovered that people occasionally use the keyword "modern" in tandem with "basketball shoes" searches.

And let's say our shoe design fits the modern basketball shoe style.

Use that keyword in the page's text. Sometimes adding a singular "long tail keyword" (a key phrase that is longer and less searched) will help you rank for those searches that vary from the traditional, more frequently searched keyword ("basketball shoes").

Good luck with your copy and if all else fails, read this.