If you’re trying to get your business, and your products to stand out in a crowded market, writing strong product and service descriptions isn’t just about listing the features. It’s about sparking a real interest and trust with your prospect. Many businesses have generic, boring copy and Ads that sound like everyone else’s. Good descriptions of your product or service will give your customer everything they need to make that decision to say yes and place that order with you.
With the right words, you help your potential buyers picture their lives with your product or service in it, answer their questions ahead of time, and take away their doubts. A clear, relatable description can lift your sales and keep customers coming back.
This practical guide lays out the steps you can use to craft descriptions that actually sell, even if you don’t think of yourself as much of a writer.
You’ll find some easy ways to talk about your offer so more people are ready to press that “buy now” button.
Step 1: Know Your Audience—Speak Their Language
Before you write a single word, you need to get a handle on exactly who you’re talking to. Knowing your customers’ likes, struggles, and favourite phrases lets you pick examples that align.
Key Questions to ask about your Audience:
- Who’s the description for? (Age, lifestyle, interests, location, etc.)
- What problem or pain point do they want help with?
- What common hesitations or worries do they have?
- How would THEY describe what they’re after?
Tips From My Own Experience:
- If your audience is parents, paint a picture of how your product makes family life smoother.
- For business owners, stick with results-focused words and skip the extra fluff.
- Use phrases your buyers might say themselves. I often grab snippets from reviews—it helps the words feel natural and believable.
Once you’re tuned in to your audience, you’ll stop leaning on generic, boring lines and show what really matters to people.
Step 2: Highlight Real Benefits, Not Just Features
Features are the facts— the size, the product colour, the speed, etc. The Benefits, however, are why anyone cares. The benefits allow your potential buyers picture your product or service fitting into their lives, making things better or easier. That is – Solving a problem they have.
An example of Breaking Down Features and Benefits:
- Feature (what it is): Stainless steel travel mug
- Benefit (what it does): Keeps your coffee hot for hours so morning commuters can enjoy it on the drive or at their desk.
Always ask yourself,
“So what?” about every feature. If the answer isn’t obvious, go further
“How does this help my customer today?”
“How does this solve problem X for my customer?”
Drilling this down will almost always leads to bigger selling points.
Practical Example:
Don’t just say, “12-month warranty.”
Instead, say, “Protected from surprises—easy, hassle-free support for a full year.”
Details like that show you stand behind your product and make buyers feel cared for.
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Step 3: Use Sensory and Relatable Details
People remember what they can picture or feel. Adding sensory words and relatable small details helps your description to stick in their minds and creates that “lightbulb” moment.
How To Make your Descriptions Come Alive:
- Share how something feels, looks, smells, or even sounds (“warm, toasted edges” or “whisper-quiet motor”).
- Describe the experience of using your product: “Soft, cozy fabric wraps you up on chilly evenings.”
- Paint mini-stories of your service: “No more fumbling around—your appointment is set in seconds.”
Read your drafts out loud. When something sounds flat, add in words that make people imagine using it, tasting it, seeing it at home, solving their time problem.
This gets your readers picturing their own lives with what you’re offering.
Step 4: Make Descriptions Easy to Scan
Most shoppers don’t read every line. They skim, look for highlights, and move on quickly. A description that’s easy to scan will grab attention and hold it longer.
Top Formatting Tips for you to use:
- Use bullet points for the main features and perks.
- Keep info in short, snappy paragraphs for easy reading.
- Make big points bold or add mini-headings (like “Why you’ll love this”).
- Summarize the best benefits or features near the top for instant impact.
You should always create a list of three top takeaways and make sure they’re easy to find on the page. Even if someone just skims, they’ll know what makes your product or service special.
Step 5: Build Trust with Details and Social Proof
Shoppers are cautious, especially online, where competition is fierce. Using real proof and specific details builds trust and makes people more comfortable buying from you.
Ways to Show Trustworthiness:
- Mention positive customer reviews or well-known awards (“More than 1,000 real five-star reviews”)
- Be clear and up-front about guarantees, returns, and shipping costs
- Share real testimonials or results, especially for services
- If your offer isn’t for everyone—call it out. Say so. Honesty builds confidence.
A good tip is to link to any returns policy or review links to the product or service page. This helps for anyone undecided and on the fence.
This is especially helpful for bigger cost purchases, investments or sensitive services where people need extra reassurance.
Step 6: Add a Clear, Confident Call to Action
Once you’ve covered the highlights, don’t leave folks guessing about the next step. Use a call to action (CTA) that’s friendly, bold, and encourages them to make a move.
CTAs That Work:
- “Grab yours today and start enjoying mornings your way.”
- “Book your session now—spots fill up fast, don’t miss out!”
- “Add to cart for free express delivery this week.”
- “Contact us for a no-obligation price quote.”
etc
Notice how each CTA doubles down on a benefit or adds gentle urgency. Little nudges like these can make all the difference in kickstarting a sale.
Troubleshooting Common Product Description Issues
How do I avoid sounding cheesy or fake?
Stick to actual examples and solid benefits. Don’t exaggerate or promise what you can’t back up. A simple fact in support (“trusted by hundreds of families for over a decade”) can do more than flowery talk.
What if I sell something that isn’t exciting?
- Show how your offer saves time, avoids headaches, or takes care of a common hassle.
- Add a practical detail—a broom that “picks up crumbs in a single sweep” is easier to imagine and value than just “efficient.”
How long should my descriptions be?
Long enough to answer main questions and wipe away doubts, but short enough to skim easily. Sometimes, less is more.
If a customer is going to need more info, use and link your descriptions to an FAQs, a comparison chart, or a link out to extra details.
Keep the product description as short, skimmable, benefit focused, text.
Next Steps: Action Plan for Better Descriptions
Try This Out:
- Choose one product or service and rewrite your description with these steps in mind.
- Ask a real customer, a friend, or someone in your target crowd to read it. See what catches their eye and what doesn’t.
- Test your new description—track which one gets you more clicks, calls, or purchases.
Keep tweaking and testing—that’s the secret with product or service descriptions. The more you play with phrasing and detail, the easier it gets to spot what pulls people in and what makes them click away.
Thanks for reading, You can join my FREE weekly email series of tips and hints to help you with your content, writing Ads, copy, etc, and get your FREE Downloadable E-Book on ‘How to Write Content for Your Business’ which covers things like:
- The 4 Types of Content You Need
- Templates You can Use
- The 10 Minute Content Creation Formula