Internet Business Blog

Part 1 of 3

Selling a physical product over the internet is much more difficult than it is in ‘brick and mortar’ locations because customers are unable touch, hear, smell, or taste the product that they’re browsing. This leaves us with only one sense, and that is sight. Though this is obviously a very powerful sense, consumers tend to use multiple senses when deciding whether or not to make a purchase (whether they know this or not) – and that is a proven fact.

Typically, a traditional retail store such as a Target or Best Buy have a conversion rate as high as 25%, while in ecommerce 3% is considered very good. For this reason alone you can see the importance in writing killer product descriptions if you want to be successful in your online ecommerce venture.

Due to my experience in the field, I’ve concocted a three part mini-series in creating killer product descriptions. This is part #1 – and I will be covering Stock Product Descriptions and why you should never, ever use them when selling online.

Ditch Stock Product Descriptions

Using stock product descriptions is one of the biggest mistakes that an ecommerce professional can make – yet it can still be seen on websites both large and small.

Stock Product Descriptions are basically the straightforward “write-up” that a distributor or manufacturer gives you (and every single one of your competitors) to sell their product online. This copy generally ranges from a short sentence or two to a couple of paragraphs in length. I highly recommend against using such content on your website for a multitude of reasons, which I have listed below.

Why Are Stock Descriptions Bad?

Stock descriptions are bad to use on your ecommerce site for a variety of reasons. Most notably however, is the fact that your product page becomes yet another carbon copy in this tangled web that we weave. Do you want to stand out from your competitors? If so, using stock descriptions won’t help you accomplish this goal.

Top 5 reasons to ditch stock product descriptions:
1. Your competition is using them. Not only are your direct competitors using the exact same or slightly modified product descriptions, you are creating duplicate content and are just begging the search engines to penalize you for it.

2. Stock product descriptions are often dull and full of grammatical errors. Nothing will turn a customer away faster than a product description that is boring and appears to be written by a young kid in his parent’s basement.

3. Stock product descriptions are habitually vague and/or misleading. Many manufacturers and distributors do not do a great job at transferring their sales copy to “internet-friendly” sales copy. Potential customers want details, and I mean details. Likewise, if a customer is mislead due to a poor or misleading description your business will suffer via returns and refunds.

4. Stock product descriptions are often of little SEO keyword value. In ecommerce it’s certainly true that you should write with the customer in mind – but this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be thinking about search engine optimization as well. Do some keyword research and stay ahead of the curve. Rank above of the competition and there won’t be any competition!

5. Stock product descriptions are not influential by nature. If you are selling a specific product, stand up and be the authority on that product. You know the product inside and out, so tell your potential customers all about it. Don’t be afraid to add that special human touch.

In Conclusion

The point that I’m trying to drive home is that you should always write your own product descriptions. It’s fine to use the stock description as a starting point but be sure to heavily add to it and modify it to suit your needs. By giving customers more information, personal experiences, and unique content you will naturally set yourself apart from the competition and reap a number of major benefits such as: higher visitor to customer satisfaction ratings, more opportunities for search engine optimization, and being able to solidify yourself as an authority in your chosen niche.

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