Amazon FBA, and generally selling products on the Amazon platform, has quickly become a goldmine for a number of vendors – who both got in early and managed to cultivate an audience who wanted what they were offering.
To do this properly, you have to be able to consider exactly what you’re doing regarding the sale of products, and how they’re showcased.
Apart from appealing photos, the description is the main way people are able to gain an insight into what the product does, how it works – and how it’s different to other competing ones.
This tutorial aims to highlight how you’re able to manage the most effective Amazon product listing descriptions…
Structure
Amazon product listings adhere to the same structure:
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Title
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Images
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Features (Bullet Points)
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Description (incl HTML)
What most people see in the Amazon listing is the top part (Title, Images & Bullet Points) – the “meat” of the listing is the description, which can include basic HTML formatting.
If you want to create an effective listing, the trick is to be clear, concise and thorough.
The best generally have clear, high definition images, coupled with informative & compelling bullet points (which are focused on benefits) and a keyword-rich title.
The real killer the “copy” used throughout the listing. Both in the bullet-points and the full description, being able to convey the benefits of the product whilst ensuring the reader is compelled to buying your particular product is a fine line.
Due to the nature of this copy, a number of copywriting experts have been making serious money providing “Amazon Product Listing” copywriting services. The premise is they will help people make more money by writing more lucid copy.
How To Do It Yourself
As mentioned, the above structure is pretty-much what determines whether a product will be accepted by Amazon.
The most important thing to do is understand what “triggers” buyers to trust your product.
When selling products, it’s far better to deal with emotion than logic…
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Logically, you may think the product can be listed and people will pick it, evaluate it based on its features and make a purchase.
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Emotionally, people choose products by the company they feel will deliver an experience as close to their aspirations as possible.
Such examples as creating a “compelling” title (which just has to list the various features of the product from the perspective of how it can be used) and a “description” which showcases how the product can fit into the buyer’s life will convert much higher than simply listing the features of the product. Remember, the majority of people are buying the product for an ulterior reason… highlighting how it will push them to this underlying result will make the difference between buying the product or not.
To this end, the following explains how each of the elements of the description work:
Title
The most important thing to ensure with a product’s title is that it’s as descriptive as possible.
Obviously – some products (such as books) don’t need overly descriptive titles. However, the majority of categories do require the most descriptive title possible.
Consider the following examples:
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AYL Silicon Cooking Gloves – Heat Resistant Oven Mitt For Grilling, BBQ, Kitchen – Safe Handling of Pots and Pans – Cooking & Baking Non-Slip Potholders – Internal Protective Cotton Layer
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AYL Silicon Cooking Gloves (Green) – Heat Resistant Oven Mitt + Internal Cotton Layer
It’s proven that the top title converts higher.
The reason for this is actually very simple – people trust the more descriptive nature of it.
In a wash of 100’s of similar products, people want quality, value and assurity that the company behind the product is actually going to be legitimate. Having a descriptive, inclusive title as the top one is one of the best ways to do it.
Images
Images are necessary for getting products noticed.
The keys with images are as follows:
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Clarity is *everything* – don’t worry about any background or whatever – people want to see the quality of the product and expect 4k+ imagery to show it
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Only show what’s required – software products don’t “need” a box but they’ll obviously add to the perception of its quality — people primarily need to see screenshots
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Make sure the images represent *exactly* what the buyer is getting – don’t use any tricks/hacks to make the product look better than what it is – just show people the product & accessories which may come with it
If you’re not very good with photographs, you’ll need to talk to a photographer.
Alternatively, there are companies on the likes of Fiverr who’ll be able to set up a good shot as well.
The point is that as long as you have ~5 really good images, this should be okay.
Features (Bullet Points)
This is where things start to get important.
The features (bullet points) are meant to describe the specifications of the product; they’re now mostly used to provide users with information about the product (copy).
Regardless of what you write there, there are several factors to consider:
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Wrap features inside benefits – Rather than saying “15cm long”, say “3 HANDY SIZES – 5cm, 10cm & 15cm”
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Include ALL 5 bullets – might be tempting to only use 3 – use all of the 5 and talk about the company & “guarantee” for the last one
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Lead with “CAPITALIZED” benefits – buyers want to know what the product is going to for them, and then why – you do this with “CAPITALIZED TITLES – followed by an explanation of each point”
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Don’t be afraid to use several sentences for each bullet – some products just need the features listed; if you need extra edge, add copy
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Focus on the product (not the buyer) – beginners make the mistake of leading with buyer-centric benefits (because they read it in some copywriting forum) – this is bad. People are on Amazon to buy products, not learn about how an oven glove will make them look younger etc.
As mentioned, if you’re looking at developing an effective system, you need to be able to encourage buyers that your company – and by virtue – your products are trustworthy and high quality.
The way you do that is to make as much use of the available content area as possible.
Description
Finally, the description is the bulk of content below all the specifications laid out “above the fold”.
Depending on the type of product, and whether you have a new brand or established company, the “description” area can be a number of different things.
It’s best to consider it similar to a product listing page on eBay – showcasing exactly what’s for sale. Minus images, a similar state of affairs exists (you can use limited amounts of HTML in it).
The most important thing to realize is that you’re not restricted to just bullet-points (as you are with the product features) – this not only gives a little more creative freedom. Obviously, this means that you need to ensure you’re making the right choices…
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Lead with the SINGLE reason why people would buy YOUR product over a competitor’s – marketing / sales 101 but it’s so easy to forget it. There’s always a SINGLE reason why people buy a particular product (it can be the quality, design or how it works)
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Lead with a headline, use a small bit of blurb to describe the product and then use several bullet points to describe what the buyer is going to get – you only get ~300 words so don’t go overboard
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Pick an emotive angle – The best product are sold through emotion – use copy that evokes ideas of how the product will fit into someone’s life
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Use HTML sparingly – bold text is nice, but not the defining factor of your product – don’t go overboard with the stylization (it should compliment the copy, not define it)
Recommended Resources
If you’re brand new to the Amazon game, you need to be remember that nothing will replace having an effective product.
How you display said product is also extremely important, as are reviews.
To get a better insight, there are several really good resources:
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levinewman on Fiverr (also search for “Embrava” on Amazon for examples of his work)
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splitly – “The Utiltimate Amazon Product Description Template” (VERY good information)
The point is that if you’re looking to list either new or existing products – it pays to ensure that you’re using the most effective techniques to instill trust, desire and confidence in your buyers.
