Nobody reads copy. (Psssst: Except when they buy.)
We are a society of scanners and clickers. We spend as little time as possible to get through as much as possible. The truth is that shoppers are busy people. Many mobile shoppers are killing time while commuting, or in a waiting room, or picking up kids or, or, or. You have just a few precious seconds to get their attention.
So how much copy is ideal?
If your store is on a platform like Shopify, you have to think of how much copy you need to effectively sell, and where that copy goes. You have two places to add copy, the product name and the product copy block. The product name is where you need the quick read most. “Women’s wide leg denim stretch crossover pant with hidden size zipper” is not going to get anyone’s attention fast. “Mardi Gras Pant” isn’t going to help with SEO. So you have to find a balance.
Does Your Site Do This?
It can with Stylaquin! Stylaquin is the easy to add Shopify app that transforms your website. Stylaquin makes shopping faster, more engaging, and more fun. Stylaquin shoppers stay longer, view over 85% more products, come back more often, and buy more when they do. Find us in the Shopify App Store.
Start with the customer’s journey
What are your customers looking for? If they are looking for a staple they always buy, like me buying Allegro Italian Roast Whole Bean Coffee, they aren’t shopping, they’re buying. They just need to find the item and check out fast. If they aren’t sure what they want, then they need to be able to compare. If the item has a design component, the first sort is going to be visual. Most products have at least some design component. Can you answer any of your customers’ questions with pictures? Can you add callouts to make the pictures more of a quick read?
If they still have interest, they read the copy
Take a moment to think about the last time you bought something without reading the copy. Didn’t happen right? We all read the copy before we buy and customers can be lost if they have concerns or questions that the copy doesn’t answer. How crazy is it to cut out product copy that will be read when the customer is weighing whether to buy or not? It’s pretty darn crazy my friends. Pretty darn crazy.
Add a Styling Board and a Wishlist!
The Stylaquin Idea Board keeps customers engaged in two ways: it’s an interactive styling board where shoppers can collect and curate all the things that interest them; and it also acts as a wishlist that shoppers can return to. Find us in the Shopify App Store.
What purpose does copy serve?
Product copy serves three masters. The internet gods, the customer, and the FTC. The internet gods require that product copy contains keywords, lots and lots of keywords. The consumer requires that product copy contains the dream of ownership, the benefits of ownership, the features of the product, and the price. The final master is the Federal Trade Commission or whatever that body is called in whatever country your store lives in. The FTC requires the specifics, which are different for different types of products but typically include the content and country of origin for the product.
The internet gods must be appeased
Think about what someone would type into Google if they were searching for your product online. Use those words in the product copy. AI is actually helpful for this and worth the chatGMP subscription.
How to write good product copy with AI
in order to get good product copy you’ll need to tell the AI who your target customer is. Age, sex, education level, hobbies, and anything else you know about them. If you don’t know, give it your best guess. Then tell the AI that you would like it to act as the head of marketing for a company that sells what you sell. Feed it your customer information, and then ask it to write copy for the product that has at least 5 keywords. You can also have the AI make a list of keywords first and then have it write the copy using the ones you like the best. The more information you can give the AI about the product the better the result.
Is AI copy as good as professionally crafted copy?
No. A professional copywriter will think about the hierarchy of information, the aspirational opportunities, the cultural tie-ins, and more. AI is a great starting point and most professional copywriters are using it to do some of the heavy lifting. AI is a time saver, but there’s an art and craft to copy that AI may never master.
