Product descriptions are great marketing materials that explain what a product is and why it’s worth buying. The purpose of a product description is to provide customers with important information about the product’s features and benefits and to persuade them to buy. However, there are many mistakes that both entrepreneurs and marketers can make when writing product descriptions. Even professional copywriters sometimes make this mistake: writing only a product description.

What’s wrong with this? Because a great product description shouldn’t just serve as a basic information dissemination tool for search engines, it should also reinforce your product page by selling your product to actual users. (Of course, SEO can’t be an afterthought.)

How to write a product description for sale

1. Focus on your ideal customer

When you write a product description with a large number of buyers in mind, it becomes unstable and ends up not being able to speak to anyone. The best product descriptions speak directly and personally to the target audience. They ask and answer questions as if they were having a conversation.

This is how Think Greek begins the product description for their LED flashlight.

"You know what's so bad about regular flashlights? They only come in two colors: white—which reminds you of the teeth of an avid coffee drinker—and white. What's fun about those flashlights? We'll answer: Not fun at all. And you know what's fun? Using a multi-colored LED flashlight to cast a sickly green glow on your face while you tell zombie stories around the campfire. No campfire? Create a fake campfire with orange light!"

When writing your product description, start by imagining your ideal customer. What kind of humor does that customer like? What words do they use and what words do they dislike? Is bad and offensive language okay?

If you sell directly in a store, think about how you would talk to your customers. Now, integrate that language into your ecommerce site to create a conversation that resonates even more deeply online.

2. Inducement through benefits

When we sell our own products, we take great care to appeal to the product's features and specifications.

The problem is that potential buyers don’t care much about everyday features and specifications. They want to know what’s right for them and how it’ll solve their biggest pain points. So you need to highlight the benefits of each feature.

This is how Method Home describes one of their hand wash gels:

"Sometimes the scent of a seasonal hand wash just gets you in the holiday spirit. Available in a variety of scents, our natural gel hand wash will leave your hands soft, clean and ready to slip into your Fair Island Mittens for the most wonderful time of year."

Method Home suggests that the benefits of soap go beyond just leaving your hands soft and clean, but that soap actually makes the holidays more festive and enjoyable.

Considering the benefits of each feature, how can your product make customers happier, healthier, and more productive? How can your product help solve customers' problems?

Don't just sell things, sell experiences.

3. Avoiding “yes” answers

When we're at a loss for what else to add to a product description, we often end up adding something as bland as "excellent product quality."

That brings up the answer, "Yes." When a potential customer reads the superiority of a product's quality, he or she will say, "Yes, of course." Everyone will say that. Have you ever heard someone say that a product's quality is average, not very good, or bad?

If a potential customer starts saying “yes” to themselves after reading a product description, you are not persuasive. To avoid this reaction, you should write as detailed a description as possible. For example, Zappos does not describe the quality of a pair of shoes. Instead, it describes the details and benefits of each technology.

Although none of the above items directly mention the quality of the product, each point gives an impression of quality. Each point also follows a simple pattern that emphasizes features and benefits.

"True hand-sewn structure (function) >> Durable comfort (product advantage)"

4. Justify using superlatives

Unless it is clearly demonstrated that a product is the best, easiest, or most advanced, claims about it are unreliable.

Amazon explains why the Kindle Paperwhite is the world's most advanced e-book reader.

The patented word leaves the reader with an impression of something special. Amazon goes on to explain why the Paperwhite has such a high resolution using a few percentage points. The Paperwhite also provides clear text and images without glare, even in bright sunlight.

If you really believe your product is the best, provide specific evidence as to why. Otherwise, refrain from copying your product or quote customers who say it is the best product they have ever used.

5. Appeal to your customers’ imagination

Scientific studies have shown that when people hold an item in their hands, their desire to own it increases.

However, since we are selling online, our site visitors cannot hold the product in their hands. Large, clear photos or videos can help, but copywriting is also a means of increasing desire. Make your customers imagine what it would be like to own the product.

Here's how Think Geek sparks your imagination with this guide to grilling multi-tools.

"There's one person who is the star of every barbecue or family meal. That person is the grill master. We always look at our mom or dad grilling meat and freshly cut pineapple and look forward to the day when we can take on that role. Now that we're adults, it's our turn, technology is smiling on us, and we have a destiny tool in our hands that surpasses our imagination."

To practice this copywriting technique, start a sentence with the word imagine, and then complete the sentence (or paragraph) by describing how your reader would feel if they owned and used your product.

6. Breaking the barrier of rationality with mini-stories

When you include a mini-story in your product description, you lower the barrier to entry for persuasion techniques. In other words, we forget that we are being sold.

Wine cellars like UK-based Laithwaites often tell short stories about their winemakers.

Dauré owns one of Roussillon's finest properties, Château de Jau. One Christmas night, sitting around the dinner table, they agreed that it was time to spread their wings and see new wine horizons. The women (Las Niñas) were crazy about Chile and eventually won, realizing their dream by establishing an estate in the Apalta Valley of Colchagua. This territory is a close neighbor to the excellent Montes winery in Chile.

When describing a product, ask yourself these questions:

-Who makes it?

- What inspired you to create your products?

- What obstacles did you have to overcome to develop the product?

- How did you test the product?

7. Lead with sensory words

Restaurants have long known that sensory words increase sales because they require more brain processing power. Chocolate manufacturer Green and Black is an example of this.

Green and Black's sensory adjectives refer not only to taste, but also to sound and texture, crunch and smoothness.

Adjectives are tricky words. Sometimes they don’t add any meaning to a sentence and are better left out. However, sensory adjectives are powerful words that draw out the reader’s experience while reading the copy. Vivid product descriptions dazzle readers. Think soft, crisp, and bright.

8. Lead with social proof

There is a recommendation feature for customers who are hesitant to buy. Customers are influenced by products with many positive reviews. But there are other ways to sneak social proof into your product descriptions. Online furniture retailer Made.com gives this hint about the popularity of its products:

Including an image of a person adds credibility to your quote, makes your online business seem more personal and approachable, and encourages customers to call and get their questions answered.

The above quote has additional impact because it portrays the product as popular. The popular claim is further supported by the cutting of the media and the media's preferred phrases.

Most customers are attracted to popular items, and e-commerce websites highlight the products that customers like the most.

9. Design to stand out

Is your web design encouraging customers to read your description?

Here's a great example from the Innocent Drinks product page.

Draw customers' attention to your product description with a clean, eye-catching design.

Here are some things to focus on when designing.

- Attract visitors with headlines.

- Use easy-to-read bullets.

- Include sufficient white space.

- Use a font size that is easy to read.

Attractive product description

Talk about and share your knowledge, experiences, or small details about the product. Try not to be boring, and entertain your customers with an engaging description. Above all, write passionately because passion for the product is contagious.