When we build an online shop with you, we start by getting to know you, your brand and the products you are going to be selling. That way we can work out exactly what you need, how it will all look, and which integrations are worth considering to get you up and running as smoothly as possible.
Product pages are one of the most important parts of any online shop. A product page gives the customer a clear idea of what you are selling, along with the pictures, the price and a description. It makes ordering simple, and you can shape it to make the product look and feel as appealing as possible.
Why is a product page important?
Without a product page, where would your customers go once they have found the thing they want to buy? Individual pages for each product let you show them off properly, and they give the buyer the confidence that the product does what they expect and looks the way they expect. A good product page should do three things.
Inform
Give all the information you can about the product. That might include the materials it is made from, a full description with bullet points for the features and the benefits, photographs of the product itself, and your standard delivery and returns information.
Delight
Professional photography will always do your products the most justice. If that is not an option, make sure your own photos are clean, with nothing distracting behind the product, and shoot it from as many angles as you can. Good photographs are what make a customer fall for the look of something before they have read a word about it.
Reassure
An attractive product page gives a shopper the peace of mind that your business is a sound one, that it will look after them, and that the product is well made. It also makes them more inclined to look at the rest of what you sell.
Product pages dos and don’ts
- Write enticing product descriptions. A good description lets the buyer picture themselves owning the product and what it will do for them. List the benefits as well as the features, and do not be afraid to be specific and back your claims up. Descriptions should also be succinct. They do not need to run to 300 words. Done well, a short one will hook the buyer in.
- Use videos demonstrating the product. There is a reason infomercials were so popular and why shopping channels still pull in thousands of viewers. A demonstration goes a long way towards showing the buyer exactly what an item can do. If a product cannot really be demonstrated, use a full 360 degree video so customers can see all of it.
- Do not rely on the product alone. Use reviews if you have them, social proof to show how good the product is, and recommendations for other items as a gentle way to upsell.
- Make it easy to buy. Payment integration tools give your customers more ways to pay. With WooCommerce or Shopify we can integrate a range of tools so you can take credit and debit payments, VeriSign, PayPal and Worldpay among many others, and you can pick the ones you actually want to use.
The things that quietly lose you the sale
Most abandoned product pages are not abandoned because the product was wrong. They are abandoned because something was missing. The usual culprits are worth checking on your own shop.
- No delivery cost or timescale until the very last step. If a shopper cannot see what postage will be and roughly when the item arrives, plenty of them will leave rather than find out.
- No returns information. A visible, plainly worded returns policy removes most of the risk a first time buyer feels.
- Unclear stock status. “In stock” or “back in two weeks” is far better than silence, even when the answer is not the one the customer wanted.
- Photographs that do not show scale. A mug, a planter or a piece of jewellery all benefit enormously from one shot that shows the thing in a hand or on a table.
- A slow page. Large, uncompressed product images are the most common cause, and they hurt most on a phone with a weak signal, which is where a great deal of shopping now happens.
Test on a phone before anything else
Open your own product page on your phone and try to buy something. Can you read the price without zooming in? Is the add to basket button reachable with a thumb? Do the photographs load quickly? Can you get to delivery information in one tap? Most product page problems show up in that two minute test, and fixing what you find there usually does more for your sales than any redesign.
FAQ
How many photographs should a product page have?
Three to six is a sensible range for most products. Aim for one clear shot on a plain background, one or two from different angles, one close up of any detail or texture, and one that shows the item in use so the buyer can judge the size. More than that rarely helps and only slows the page down.
How long should a product description be?
Long enough to answer the obvious questions and no longer. A short paragraph explaining what it is and who it suits, followed by bullet points for the specifics such as size, materials and care, works well for most shops. Technical products may need more detail, but padding a description out never helps anybody.
Do I need customer reviews on my product pages?
They help, but only genuine ones, and there is no sense pretending you have them when you are starting out. If you have none yet, lean on clear photographs, honest descriptions and visible delivery and returns information instead. Ask your first customers for a review afterwards and build them up gradually.
Should I use WooCommerce or Shopify for my shop?
Both are good. WooCommerce suits you if you already have a WordPress site and want full control over how everything works. Shopify suits you if you would rather have more of the technical side handled for you. The right answer depends on your products, how many you have and how much you want to manage yourself.
Why are people leaving my product pages without buying?
Usually because something they needed was missing or unclear. Check delivery costs, stock status, returns information and how quickly the page loads on a phone. Work through those four before changing the design, because they account for the bulk of abandoned baskets on most small shops.
If you would like the professional touch on your website, whether it is a shop, a blog or a company page, speak to Strand Creative and we will help get your ideas off the ground. We are based in Sale, South Manchester.
