How to Make an Informative E-Commerce Product Page that Converts

When it comes to e-commerce, you have to nail your product page. We know consumers are increasingly moving away from brick-and-mortar shopping and taking to the internet instead (especially in the era of COVID). Of course, this means potential customers can’t see, feel, or experience a product in person before making a purchasing decision.

This is where the product page comes in. It may seem that this page’s job is simply to provide an experience that’s as close to the real deal as possible, but it actually goes above and beyond that. A strong e-commerce product page mimics the important parts of the in-person experience, while also offering one better on the information front. Arguably, you should be able to get to know a product better on an e-commerce product page than you would in person.

Exactly what information your audience needs to make a purchasing decision will be based, in part, on the type of product you’re offering. For example, someone shopping online for apparel is looking for a much different experience than someone shopping online for a candle. We’ll talk a little below about how to determine what experience your audience is looking for — and, we’ll touch on the key elements that uniformly strengthen any product page, regardless of what you’re selling.

Mimicking the in-Person Experience

A good place to start is always to put yourself in the customer’s shoes. You’ve likely already made a habit of this in the process of creating your product. You’ll find it comes in handy when creating your product pages, too. 

Consider what the shopping experience would be like in person for your specific product. What factors play into the decision-making process for the customer? Let’s practice walking through this using a tough one: apparel. How does the in-person apparel shopping experience differ from shopping for other products? Which parts of the experience need to be mimicked to help the customer feel informed?

For apparel, the in-person experience is pretty involved. A huge decision-making factor is fit. “How will this fit me? Is it going to look good on me? Will I be comfortable in it?” Because an e-commerce customer can’t try the piece on, it’s the product page’s job to mimic that experience, communicating fit in as much detail, and with as much clarity, as possible. How can we help the customer go from looking at a pair of jeans online to visualizing wearing them?

When it comes to fit, it’s often not enough to simply indicate size or provide a size chart on product pages (though those things are important and should always be present). For jeans, at the very least, to mimic the try-on experience, you need high-quality product photos that show the important details (all angles, any distressing, a close-up of the wash) and product descriptions and titles that point out key fit preferences (rise, length, leg taper).

If you want to go above and beyond the basics, look to the market leaders. Popular intimate apparel brand Aerie features product photos of models with a range of different body types and sizes. When the customer sees the product on someone who looks like them, they have an easier time visualizing themselves wearing it. Other apparel retailers also offer things like virtual try-on or videos of the product in addition to photos.

What’s Even Better Than in-Person?

In many ways, e-commerce product pages can offer an even better and more informative experience than in-person shopping — seriously! The level of information you’re able to offer your customers goes well beyond what they’d usually experience in person. In fact, this extra information is critical to an effective e-commerce product page. So, what is this secret ingredient that gets online customers on board?

You guessed it: Reviews

“97% of online shoppers say they’re influenced by reviews and 88% indicated that online reviews factor into their purchasing decision.” — Business2Community  

For the customer, reviews are like a crystal ball. They get to take a peek into what the future could look like if they make a purchase. In fact, online shoppers put a lot of trust in reviews — 91% of 18-34 year olds say they trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. Make sure the reviews are easy to find on the product page, and consider featuring a positive review prominently on the page.

Need to pull in more reviews? We have you covered.

Key Takeaways:

Creating a strong product page is crucial to steering your audience to a purchasing decision. Make sure you’re as informative as possible by mimicking the in-person experience with a customer-first mentality. Make sure you’re pulling in reviews and featuring them on the page to gain trust in the product. Pair these elements with clean web design and you’ll have a high-impact, sales-boosting product page.