Short answer: A good product description answers the questions a shopper asks before buying: what the product is, who it is for, what problem it solves, the technical details, dimensions, care, delivery and returns. Write it in your own words rather than copying the manufacturer’s text, use the words customers actually type, and lay it out so it can be scanned quickly.
Most online shops we audit have the same problem: thousands of products with a description copied from the supplier, or no description at all. Pages like that struggle on Google, because the same text exists on dozens of other sites. More importantly, they do not answer the shopper’s questions, so the shopper goes elsewhere to find the answer and buys there.
Why a copied description is a problem
- Duplicate content: Google picks one version of the text to show, usually the manufacturer’s site or the strongest retailer. Everyone else gets few impressions or none.
- No reason to buy from you: same text, same photo, the only difference is the price.
- Poor language: machine translations often read awkwardly and put buyers off.
The structure of a good description
- An opening paragraph of two or three sentences: what the product is, who it is for and the main benefit. This is the part Google and AI tools use most often.
- Key benefits as a list: three to six points, each with a concrete benefit rather than just a feature. Instead of “2000 W power”, write “2000 W, enough to clean a patio and a car”.
- Technical details in a table: dimensions, weight, material, power, capacity, certifications. A table is easy to scan for shoppers and search engines alike.
- Who it is for, and who it is not for: honest advice cuts returns and builds trust.
- Use and care: short instructions and practical tips.
- FAQs: two to four questions customers really ask by phone or message.
- Delivery, warranty and returns: briefly, with a link to the full terms.
How to find the right words
- Search Console: for existing products, see which queries the page already appears for.
- Google suggestions: start typing the product name and see what Google completes.
- Customer questions: emails, messages, reviews and social media comments are a goldmine.
- Different names: customers call the same product different things, for example pressure washer, jet washer or power washer. Use the main variants naturally.
Do not stuff keywords. Text written for a person, answering their questions, naturally contains the right words.
Product titles and meta data
The product title should include brand, type, model and a key attribute, exactly as in your Google Shopping feed. The meta title can be the same or slightly longer, and the meta description briefly explains the main benefit and, where possible, why to buy from you, such as fast delivery or expert support.
Doing it across a large catalogue
Writing thousands of descriptions by hand in one go is not realistic. A practical order:
- Best sellers and most profitable products first: the top 50 to 100 items by revenue or margin.
- Then products with impressions but no clicks in Search Console: they are already close and just need better content.
- Category templates for the rest: the same structure, but with each product’s real details, not the same text with the name swapped.
- AI as an assistant, not the author: AI tools can speed up a first draft, but every description needs a fact check and your own experience added. One wrong technical detail costs more than slower writing.
Do not forget your categories
For most online shops, category pages bring in more organic traffic than individual products, because they cover broader searches. A short, useful text on the category page, with buying advice and links to subcategories, is often the most cost-effective SEO work in the whole shop.
The most common mistakes
- A description copied from the supplier, or a translation nobody proofread.
- Text hidden in tabs that are hard to open on a phone.
- Technical details as an image instead of text.
- The same sentence on hundreds of products.
- Inaccurate details that lead to returns and bad reviews.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a product description be?
As long as it takes to answer the shopper’s questions. For a simple product a few paragraphs and a table are enough; a more expensive or complex product needs more.
Do product variations need separate descriptions?
Usually not. Colour and size variations normally share one page and one description, with a clear variant selector.
Do customer reviews help product SEO?
They help shoppers decide and add genuine content to the page. With correct structured data they can also earn star ratings in search results.
Conclusion
A product description is a salesperson who works around the clock. When it answers the right questions, in your own words and in a clear layout, it brings both Google rankings and shoppers who do not give up halfway. We handle SEO for online shops through our SEO services, and we build new shops with this structure from day one through online shop development.
Related: Google Merchant Center: why products get disapproved · Black Friday for online shops
