Product descriptions are an important part of your Shopify store SEO-optimization. In this article, we show you how to create SEO-optimized Shopify product descriptions that drive organic traffic to your website. We give you the key ingredients that make a product description converting and efficient, and that will improve your rankings in Google search.

But first, let’s talk very briefly about SEO…

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is essentially a process of improving your website, in order for it to get better rankings in Google search, as well as in other search engines.

One of the most important SEO techniques for e-commerce stores is using the right keywords to describe your products. By doing that, when your potential customer runs a search for a product like yours on Google, one of your Shopify product pages will appear in the first results.

For example, if you’re selling “handmade gold-plated earrings”, by using this specific key-phrase in your product title, description and meta-description, your product page will start to rank in Google search for these keywords. Consequently, when someone types in “handmade gold-plated earrings” on Google, they will find your product somewhere in the results.

The better your product optimization, the higher in the results you will get featured. But remember, Google ranking takes time. So be patient, you won’t show up in the first results over night.

For a successful product SEO-optimization, we recommend optimizing your Shopify product title, description and the search engine preview (or meta-description).

In this article, we cover SEO-optimized Shopify product descriptions…

How to write good SEO-optimized Shopify product descriptions

Your product description is definitely something you can use to drive free, organic traffic on your website. It allows you to use a multitude of keywords that describe and differentiate your product from all others out there.

Here are some tips to make your Shopify product descriptions stand out:

1. Use SEO-optimized paragraph headings

If you’re new to Shopify and product descriptions, don’t worry. We’ll take it step by step.

In the photo below we show you how to add a heading in the Shopify product editor:

Paragraph headings are essentially paragraph titles. They are ranked in order of their importance, Heading 1 being the most important title, followed by Heading 2, and so on.

This is the way you should also organize your description. The most important information needs to be presented at the beginning.

By SEO-optimized headings, we mean headings that contain keywords people would use in Google search to find your specific product.

Let’s take the example of our Handmade Gold-plated Earrings.

The first heading could be the title of the product:

H1: Handmade Gold-plated Earrings

And the second heading could be something like:

H2: Bohemian Jewelry Handmade in Portugal

After each heading, write a descriptive paragraph that contains as many keywords as possible that classify your product. In the first paragraph, you will talk about the handmade gold-plated earrings, and maybe include some specifications (materials, dimensions, colors, etc.).

In the second one, you can talk about your bohemian jewelry business, about how and where the products are made, and any other relevant information your potential customers might want to read.

If you want, you can use multiple headings and paragraphs.

2. Use as many keywords and key-phrases that describe your product

If your Shopify store is focused on a specific niche, the easiest way to find relevant keywords is to analyze your competition. For instance, if you’re selling handmade jewelry, start looking for handmade jewelry in Google search.

Check out the first stores that show up in searches. See what keywords they use, what attributes they choose to describe their products. Then, go deeper into the search. See what other suggestions you get from Google – maybe “handmade earrings”, “gold-tone earrings”, “tribal jewelry”, etc.

Start building a list with all the keywords that accurately describe your products. And use them in your descriptions.

Hot tip! Do not overuse keywords in your description and make it difficult to read. The description paragraphs need to sound natural to the reader. So, if you only go through keywords on top of keywords, Google will know. Always favor quality on top of quantity.

3. Include useful and transparent information about your product

The more useful information about your product and your brand you include in your description, the easier it will be for people to have trust in your store. If you’re a Shopify store owner, you know that buyers are often hesitant to make purchases on websites they haven’t heard of before.

Make it easier for them. Give them transparent information about your product (how and where it’s made, where your store is located, what materials are used, dimensions, colors, etc.).

Hot tip! A great thing we did when we worked on our Shopify product pages was to ask friends to look over them and give us feedback. We asked them to browse through our website and product pages, and follow the whole shopping process until the check out page. Finally, we asked them to let us know whatever information they found was missing, and what elements would prevent them from buying from our store.

4. Proofread your description

Proofreading your descriptions is essential. No one trusts a website with a lot of grammar and vocabulary mistakes, not even Google.

Badly-written descriptions can affect your Google rankings. In order not to make as many mistakes, our best suggestion is to use the free Grammarly browser extension. It’s a tool that all of our team members are using now, which prevents them from making mistakes.

If you get a thing or two wrong from time to time is no big deal. But try to be as vigilant as possible.

5. Include links to other pages on your website

A product description works like a little blog post. You have the option to keep your visitors on your website for a bit longer, by inviting them to check out some of the other exciting things on there. So why miss that opportunity?

In good SEO-optimized Shopify product descriptions, you will often find links to other pages on the website. For example, you can link to a product collection, a blog post, or useful pages, like your About us page, your Shipping or Return Policy, etc.

Remember, Google can see how much time your visitors spend on your website. The longer you keep them there, the better. If people spend a lot of time on a website, Google sees it as a good-value website, worthy of taking a better place in the rankings. So keep your visitors engaged!

What well SEO-optimized Shopify product descriptions can look like…

Finally, let us show you an example of a well SEO-optimized description we have made for the pair of handmade gold-plated earrings.

Product description:

(Heading 1)

Handmade Gold-plated Earrings

(Paragraph 1)

Our handmade gold-plated earrings are designed in Portugal, with sustainably-sourced materials and great attention to details. This beautiful pair of bohemian drop earrings features an elegant white stone, and delicate gold-tone vintage details.

Dimensions: 1.5 x 1.5 cm.
Materials: 925 silver, gold-plated
Colors: gold, orange, gray

(Heading 2)

Sustainable jewelry designed in the heart of Portugal

(Paragraph 2)

Our little jewelry design atelier is located in Coimbra, in the heart of Portugal. All of our jewelry pieces are made of 925 silver, and some pieces are gold-plated. We offer a wide selection of bohemian, minimalist, and tribal jewelry pieces, but our main focus is on earrings and necklaces.

Read more about our brand here. (link to the About us page)

(Heading 3)

Shipping information

(Paragraph 3)

All of our products are shipped with DHL Express shipping from Portugal. We offer domestic shipping (1-2 business days) and international shipping (2-10 business days). For more information, please consult our Shipping Policy. (link to the Shipping Policy).

This is an example of a decent SEO-optimized product description. You can obviously do a lot better, because you have a lot of information available about your products and brand that you can include. So, are you up for the challenge?

Before optimizing your descriptions, you might want to optimize your titles!

Check out our tutorial on how to optimize your Shopify product titles:

And our comprehensive piece on 5 ways to drive free organic traffic to your Shopify store:

Finally, don’t forget to share your Shopify store in the comments, to get some free traffic and some love from the community!