The best thing about ecommerce is anyone can put a product on a website.
The worst thing about ecommerce is anyone can put a product on a website.
Whether your website is already selling like nuts, or you’re just starting out, breaking away from the masses of mediocre online sellers results in more purchases and happier customers.
Optimizing your website with perfect product pages is a great place to start!
Here’s how you can weave these elements together to create a compelling narrative for your product.
1. A Clear Product Headline (and a Compelling Subtitle)
The headline and subtitle are your first impression. The headline should immediately communicate what your product is and why it’s unique.
The subtitle should elaborate on the headline, providing additional context or highlighting a key benefit.
Together, this duo acts as the hook, pulling visitors in to discover more about what you’re offering. Both the headline and subtitle should contain keywords (search terms) that you want your product to show up for in Google.
2. A Short, Concise Description
Following the initial hook in your headline, a succinct product description is essential. This needs to communicate your product’s benefits and features in a “cliff notes” format, enabling visitors to quickly understand the most important elements of the product.
Most ecommerce website themes allow for a short product description as well as a full-length description. The short description is often featured on the product listing page, as well as near the top of the product page layout – often near the price and add to cart button.
A brief overview ensures that visitors are not overwhelmed with information, and are able to quickly spot your product’s benefits and key features.
3. A Robust Product Description
Sometimes it’s a challenge to tell the entire story of your product, but this is the perfect place to do it. Start with the most important factual elements of your product, and choose an interesting angle to present them whenever possible.
Once you have covered the factual elements, talk about things your product is good for, some specific applications for the product, and what makes your product especially good for these applications.
Start specific, and get more broad as you progress. A good product description should be 3-6 paragraphs long, broken into digestible sections that highlight an important element.
4. A Clear, Singular, Call To Action
Your call to action is the beacon on your landing page that guides visitors to buy your product. For it to work, you can only have one call to action message, and it must be compelling, unmistakable, with a clear action.
Make sure your call to action buttons are visually clear. Buttons should be a color that stands out from the rest of your website. The text on your buttons should be large, in a legible font, and in a color that contrasts the button color.
Additionally, the action of your CTA buttons should be clear based on their labels. For example, choose phrases like “BUY NOW” or “ADD TO CART.” Adding an icon that is relevant to the button’s purpose enhances this clarity.
Too often, people create multiple conflicting calls to action visible in the same window. For example, they show a newsletter signup near to a product’s “Buy Now” button. This is especially problematic when the calls to action look pretty much the same.
Too many buttons overwhelms your customer, and they leave your site frustrated. Have a singular focus to prevent visitor indecision, and make it clear what they should do next.
5. Engaging Images and Videos
It is always better to show than to tell. Visual content not only attracts attention but also enhances understanding of your product and retention of your customers. High-quality images and videos that demonstrate your product in action provide context and credibility.
Images and videos that feature real people using your product or talking about it will always outperform boring stock photos. Humans love to see images and videos that are authentic, and your visitors can tell the difference between what is real, and what is pretty, but fake.
Including photos and videos of your product in use by real people allows your customers to see themselves using the product. They’re more likely to buy if they can see themselves using your product.
6. Social Proof
Testimonials, reviews, and user-generated content show evidence of your product’s value and reliability. When a customer sees others have purchased your product and are satisfied, they’re more confident your product does what they want.
Social proof builds trust and comfort. Include reviews and testimonials after your main product description, before the list of what your product guarantees for optimal impact.
You can feature testimonials from anyone who has done business with you – not just product reviews! People want to know about how you are going to take care of them, not just that your product is great.
7. Trust Signals
Establishing trust is foundational to converting visitors into buyers. Trust signals including SSL certificates, privacy policies, and satisfaction guarantees are non-negotiable elements that reassure visitors of their data’s security and the reliability of their purchase.
Guarantees are a critical element for most consumers when buying online. Because buying online is less personal than buying in person, adding satisfaction and quality guarantees is a great way to build credibility with your potential customers.
Online security is also a major concern for consumers. Making sure that your site uses the latest security protocols, firewalls, and more is essential in today’s world of hackers and phishing schemes. Make sure your site has an active SSL certificate (you will see HTTPS instead of HTTP in your address bar).
Having (and linking to) a privacy policy that shows how you use and protect your customers is another important element in building trust with your potential customers.
8. “Why Buy from Us” Section
Your “Why Buy from Us” section is the perfect place to outline the things that you do that make your company a good place to do business with.
This section can include:
- Guarantees – These can include satisfaction guarantees, no-questions-asked guarantees, workmanship guarantees, and more.
- Security – This can include how you handle customer information, firewalls, SSL, and how it’s important to you.
- Shipping Differentiators – These include things like: same-day shipping, free shipping, and upgraded shipping.
- VIP Bonuses – Special things that you get if you are a member of the loyalty program. VIPs get: free 2nd day shipping, double reward points, birthday bonuses, etc.
- Expertise – Showcase your expertise here. If you have certifications or other qualifications, let your potential customers know.
- Personality – Don’t just make this about facts and figures. Make it fun. Throw something in that will get their attention that they wouldn’t expect.
9. Clear Shipping Policy
Having a clear shipping policy isn’t about logistics. It’s about creating trust with your visitors, and creating clear expectations so that your customers have a great buying experience.
You don’t need to give them all of the details on your product page, just the most important pieces. You can link to your shipping policy page for the people who want all of the details.
Visitors want to know what your shipping costs are when they’ll receive your product, and if there are any gotchas. And, if you sell internationally, this is even more important. Managing their expectations upfront decreases the odds that they get a surprise during checkout.
You can also use this shipping policy to communicate elements that set your company apart. This could include fast shipping times or free shipping on orders over a certain amount.
Including the basics of your shipping policy on your product page will decrease your shopping cart abandonment rates by communicating what your customers can expect from the start.
10. Frequently Asked Questions
An FAQ section addresses common questions and concerns, eliminating doubts and barriers to purchase. And, it’s a great place to add some keyword-rich content to enhance your SEO.
FAQs can also be a proactive approach to customer service. Answering your customers’ common concerns in advance demonstrates your commitment to transparency and customer satisfaction, further building trust and confidence in your product.
11. Product Specs and Details
Depending on your product, adding technical specs to your product page can increase your ability to sell that product.
Sometimes the specs people are looking for are as simple as product dimensions. But they could also include the materials that the product is made of, its weight or color, if it requires batteries, or even if it needs to be laundered a certain way.
Detailed specifications help customers compare features, and make sure the product meets their unique needs. This is especially important for tech-savvy buyers and customers purchasing items with precise requirements.
12. SEO-Friendly Title and Compelling Meta Description
The title and meta description are crucial for search visibility and click-through rates. Having a clear title that accurately describes that product and contains the keywords people search for when they are looking for it is a critical starting point for SEO.
Along with a great title, a compelling description serves as an advertisement for your page in search results, drawing in potential customers with a clear, enticing summary of your product’s value.
Often, your title is the same (or very similar) as your H1 (primary headline), but it does not have to be. Remember, this title and description will be read by both Google bots and your site visitors, so make sure it makes sense to humans and contains keywords for robots.
Bonus 1. Schema.org Structured Metadata
This one gets pretty deep in the technical weeds, but the good thing is that implementing Schema markup can be done programmatically, rather than on a page-by-page basis. This optimization might be available in your website theme, or you might be able to hire a programmer to do it for you.
Schema.org metadata enhances the visibility and attractiveness of your product in search results through extra data called rich snippets. This structured information helps search engines better understand what your product is and how to present it. This increases click-through rates and customer engagement from search results.
This structured data can also be prepared for your product reviews, which will tell Google and Google Shopping how many reviews you’ve had on this product, what the average rating has been, and sometimes even a feed of all of the reviews.
If Google understands your product better, it will be able to present it better in its search engine, which can only help you sell more of your product!
Bonus 2. Personalization Options
If you have a product that can be customized, showcasing personalization options can be a game-changer. Who doesn’t want to feel like you are making this product just for them?
Allowing visitors to see customized versions of your product in real time, whether through color choices, engraving options, or configurations, personalizes the shopping experience.
This not only increases engagement but also helps each visitor feel a unique connection to your product, making them more likely to buy your product.
Why Go To All This Work?
When you put in the work to create a beautiful and functional product page, you won’t only be rewarded with higher conversion rates and better customers.
You will also attract more visitors to your page, because Google rewards those who tell a clear story. You will save money on customer service, and attract loyal customers who trust you because your website answers their questions.
By carefully integrating these elements into your product landing page, you create a powerful narrative that resonates with visitors.
A product page like this showcases your product in the best light possible, while systematically addressing visitor needs and concerns, and guiding customers to confident, remorse-free purchases.
If you need help breaking away from the masses of mediocre online sellers, I love working with retailers who have high standards of excellence and are looking to take over the world.
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