How to Write Product Descriptions That Sell

Go to your website, pick any product, and read the description as if you've never heard of your brand before. Does it tell you what the product does, who it's for, what you'll notice, how to use it, and why you should trust it? If the answer to any of those is no, keep reading, friend.

This is my biggest gripe with the beauty industry, and trust me, I have many. Product descriptions that take up space without earning it. They exist on the page, technically. They describe the product in the loosest possible sense of the word "describe", but they don't sell, inform or make anyone feel confident enough to hand over their money.

For example: "A nourishing blend of botanicals for a healthy-looking complexion."

That could be literally any product from any brand on the planet. A $12 moisturiser from the chemist. A $180 serum from a luxury skincare house. A candle, probably. Somehow.

It tells me nothing. What does it do specifically? What will I see? How quickly? Who is it best for? What problem does it solve? I have questions, and your description answered precisely none of them.

Your product description is a sales assistant who isn't in the room

Think about what happens when someone picks up a product. They ask questions. "What does this do?" "Is it right for my skin?" "How do I use it?" "Will it work with what I'm already using?" "Is it worth the price?"

A good therapist answers all of those questions naturally, reading the customer's hesitations and addressing them before they become reasons to put the product back down.

Your product description has to do that same job with zero eye contact, tone of voice, and ability to read the room. It has to anticipate every question, overcome every hesitation, and make someone feel confident enough to click "add to cart" without being able to touch, smell, or test anything first. That's a massive job for a little paragraph. So why are so many brands phoning it in?

The biggest offenders I see constantly

A description that says nothing. 

"A luxurious serum for radiant, glowing skin." Right. What's in it? What does it target? What will I notice? When? This isn't a product description. It's a sentence that exists so the page doesn't look empty.

A description written for a chemist, not a customer. 

"Contains 10% L-Ascorbic Acid and Tocopheryl Acetate in a stabilised anhydrous formulation." Wonderful. I have a chemistry degree now, do I? If your customer needs to Google your product description to understand it, you've lost them. Lead with what it does for their face, not what it does in a lab.

A description that sounds identical to every other product in the range. 

If I can swap your moisturiser description with your serum description and nobody notices, the copy isn't specific enough. Every product in your range exists for a different reason. The descriptions should reflect that. If they all blur into one vague paragraph about "nourishing" and "healthy-looking skin," they're doing nothing to help someone choose between them.

A description that's all ingredients and no outcomes. 

"Formulated with hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, and peptides." Great. What does that combination do for me? Why those three together? What problem does that solve? Ingredients are the proof, not the pitch. Lead with what the customer cares about (the result) and back it up with why it works (the ingredients).

Well then, smart pants, how do I write a product description that doesn't suck?

Thanks for asking. And thank you. My pants are quite smart.

Here's a framework you can apply to every product in your range. It answers three questions in roughly this order, and you can adapt it whether you're a skincare brand, a salon retailing products, or a clinic with an online store.

1. What is it?

Not in clinical jargon. In human words that your customer would use. Skip the poetic intro and get to the point.

Instead of: "An advanced corrective serum harnessing the power of potent actives." Try: "A lightweight brightening serum that targets dark spots and uneven tone."

Your customer should know within one sentence whether this product is relevant to them.

2. Who is it for?

This depends on the product. A gentle cleanser genuinely is for most skin types, and that's fine. But if you're selling a corrective serum with active ingredients that could melt someone's face off if they use it wrong? Be clear about who it's for.

Instead of: "Suitable for all skin types" (on a product that is very much not). Try: "For anyone dealing with pigmentation, post-breakout marks, or skin that won't stop looking dull no matter what you throw at it."

3. What will I achieve?

This is where most descriptions completely drop the ball. They talk about what's in the product but never tell the customer what they'll see in the mirror.

Instead of: "Promotes a more radiant and youthful-looking complexion." Try: "Brighter, more even-toned skin. Stubborn dark spots start to fade with consistent use."

That's it. Three questions. What is it, who is it for, and what will it do for me?

If your product description answers all three in language a real person would use, it's doing its job. If it doesn't, it's just taking up space on the page while your customer closes the tab and buys from someone who explained it better.

The cost of getting this wrong

Every vague product description on your website is a potential sale that didn't happen. Someone landed on the page, read "a luxurious blend of botanical ingredients designed to nourish and hydrate," felt nothing, learned nothing, and left.

You'll never see that in your analytics. It just looks like a page visit that didn't convert, but the reason it didn't convert is sitting right there in the copy. Multiply that by every product in your range, every visitor to your site, every single day. That's the cost. Not dramatic. Just maths.

Where to start if this feels overwhelming AF

You don't need to rewrite every product description overnight. Start with your top sellers or the products that get the most website traffic. Rewrite those using the three-question framework above and see what shifts. Then work through the rest over time.

If "how to write product descriptions" has been in your Google history for the last 2 years or you're too close to your own products to describe them objectively (which is completely normal and extremely common), that's what copywriters are for. Specifically, those who understand beauty, how consumers make purchasing decisions and can translate ingredient science into language that makes real people want to buy things.

I happen to know one. She's on her couch right now with an almond latte. Ready when you are.