How to write product descriptions shoppers trust: a checklist for every marketplace

To write a product description shoppers trust, start from the facts on the package (what it is, measurements, materials, contents, care, origin and warnings), write specifics instead of adjectives, and leave out any claim you cannot prove today. Open with one or two sentences on what the product is and who it is for, then shape the same facts for each marketplace: Amazon's bullets and description, Walmart's key features, Etsy's description, eBay's mobile summary and your Shopify product page.

A product description has a harder job than it looks. It has to tell a shopper exactly what they will receive, answer the questions that would otherwise stop them buying, and do it without a single claim that is not true. It also has to fit a different shape on every marketplace. Most weak descriptions fail the first job: they are full of adjectives and short on facts.

This guide gives you a method that works for any product: start from the facts, write specifics, keep to claims you can prove, and shape the same facts for each marketplace. A template at the end puts it together.

What should a product description start from?

A product description should start from the facts on the package. Before you write a word, gather them. Most are already printed on the package, the label or the supplier's specification:

• What it is, in the words a shopper would use.
• Measurements: size, weight, capacity, with units.
• Materials: what it is made of, down to the fibre or the metal.
• What is in the box, every piece.
• How to use it and how to care for it.
• Where it was made.
• Warnings, age grades and certifications, exactly as printed.
• Options: colours, sizes, versions.

This list is your source of truth. Every line of the description will come from it, and anything not on it does not go in.

Why it matters: Salsify's 2025 survey of US and UK shoppers reports that 54% had abandoned a purchase because of conflicting product information. A description that says 500 ml when the label says 450 ml is conflicting information, and so is a colour name that does not match the photo.

How do you connect product facts to the shopper?

Connect product facts to the shopper by saying who uses the product, what it replaces and when it is used, because facts alone read like a spec sheet:

• Who uses it? A runner, a new parent, a home cook, someone with a small kitchen.
• What does it replace or improve? A bottle that leaks, a pan that sticks, a bag with no pockets.
• When do they use it? On the commute, at the weekend, every morning.

One or two sentences that answer these give the facts a purpose. "Holds 750 ml" becomes "Holds 750 ml, enough water for a long run without a refill." Keep it to one or two sentences: the shopper came for the product, not a story about it. The exception is handmade and small-batch work, where who made it and how is part of what the buyer is paying for.

Why do specifics work better than adjectives in a product description?

Specifics work better because a shopper can check them, while adjectives cost nothing to write and tell the shopper nothing. Specifics do the persuading:

Use the specifics that are true of your product. If you do not know the weight, weigh it. If the supplier's sheet says "durable", ask what it is made of.

Etsy's April 2026 title guidance makes the same point from the other side: it asks sellers to move subjective words such as "perfect" or "beautiful" out of the title and into the description. Even in the description, a subjective word works best beside the fact that earns it.

Which claims need proof in a product description?

A claim is any statement a shopper could hold you to, and origin, environmental, material, "free of", health, certification and guarantee claims all need proof before you make them. Some cannot be made at all for certain products:

• Origin. "Made in USA" has a standard behind it, set by the FTC. Walmart bars the claim when the images, packaging and attributes conflict.
• Environmental claims. "Eco-friendly", "biodegradable", "compostable" and "non-toxic" need evidence and must not mislead, under the FTC's Green Guides. Walmart restricts "biodegradable" and "compostable".
• Material claims. Walmart bars calling rayon made from bamboo "bamboo".
• "Free of" claims. Walmart bars "PFAS-Free" and similar wording on its listings.
• Health claims. For health products, the FTC judges an ad by its whole impression, and claims need evidence. A claim to treat or prevent a disease turns many products into drugs. See our pages on supplement rules and cosmetics rules.
• Certification claims. "FDA approved", "certified" and "tested" need a certificate behind them, and Walmart bars FDA logos.
• Guarantees. Amazon restricts refund-related guarantees in bullets. Make no promise you would not honour.

A simple test for every sentence: could you show a marketplace the proof today? If not, take it out or rewrite it as a fact you can show.

If you use AI tools to help write, the same rules apply to what they write. Walmart's guidelines say "All claims, images, and descriptions must match the actual product including size, color and other features", and make the seller responsible for checking AI content before it goes live.

How should a product description be structured for a phone?

Structure a product description with a one or two sentence opening, grouped details and short paragraphs, because most shoppers read on a phone, in a hurry:

1. Open with one or two sentences that say what the product is and who it is for.
2. Then the details, grouped: features, size and fit, materials and care, what is in the box.
3. Short paragraphs, two or three sentences each.
4. Facts with units, written the same way every time.
5. End with what is in the box, so the shopper knows exactly what arrives.

Where a marketplace allows it, short labelled sections ("Size", "Materials", "Care") are easier to scan than a block of text.

How do you describe variations, sets and bundles?

Variations, sets and bundles need extra care in a product description:

• Variations. When one listing covers several sizes or colours, say which facts change between them and which do not. A size table is clearer than a sentence for each size.
• Sets. Name every piece and its size: "a set of 3 bowls: 12, 15 and 18 cm wide". A shopper who receives two bowls when they expected three will not read the description again; they will ask for a refund.
• Bundles. Say what is in the bundle and what is sold separately. "Batteries not included" belongs in the description, not in a review.

How does a product description differ on Amazon, Walmart, Etsy, eBay and Shopify?

Each marketplace reads the product description differently, so the same facts take a different shape on each:

• Amazon. The description sits below the bullets, and if the listing has A+ content, A+ replaces the description on the page. Keep the description complete anyway: it is the text for listings without A+. Put the most important facts in the title, Item highlights and bullets, where shoppers read first.
• Walmart. The description and key features carry the facts. Keep the claims rules above in mind: Walmart enforces them on the listing text.
• Etsy. The description is where the story of a handmade item belongs, together with the facts and, if AI tools helped with the images, a sentence saying so. Open with a plain summary of the item.
• eBay. eBay shows a short mobile summary of the description on phones, so the first lines matter most. eBay's developer guide explains how the summary is built.
• Shopify. Your store's product page is your description with no character limit. Use the room for care, sizing and questions, but keep the opening short.

Our guide to listing on several marketplaces covers keeping these versions in step.

How do you write a product description for search?

Product descriptions are read by search as well as by shoppers, so the phrases shoppers type belong in them, each used once where it fits naturally:

• The main phrase in the first sentence, the way a person would say it.
• Supporting phrases inside the feature sentences, where they describe a real feature.
• Never a list of keywords at the end, or the same phrase repeated in every paragraph. Shoppers notice, and marketplaces discourage it.

If a sentence only exists to hold a keyword, delete it. The phrase belongs in a field built for it, such as Amazon's backend search terms or Etsy's tags.

Before and after

A description written from adjectives:

Our premium water bottle is the perfect companion for any adventure. Made with high-quality materials, it keeps your drinks cold for ages and is super easy to carry. A must-have for everyone.

The same product, written from its facts:

Insulated water bottle for hikes, gym and commuting. Double-walled 18/8 stainless steel, 750 ml, with a leak-proof screw lid and a carry loop.

Size. 26 cm tall, 7.5 cm wide; fits most bike bottle cages and car cup holders.

Care. Hand wash the bottle; the lid is dishwasher-safe.

In the box. One bottle and one lid.

The second version answers more questions and contains nothing a shopper could dispute, provided every fact is true of your bottle.

A template to copy

Adapt this to any product. Every bracket is a fact from your list.

[What it is], for [who]. [One sentence on what it does or replaces.]

Features. [Feature 1, with the fact behind it.] [Feature 2.] [Feature 3.]

Size and fit. [Measurements with units. What it fits or holds.]

Materials and care. [Materials.] [Care instructions.]

In the box. [Every piece.]

Good to know. [Warnings, age grade, certifications, origin, exactly as printed.]

For filled-in versions for seven kinds of product, see our product description examples.

A checklist before you publish

1. Every fact matches the label, the package and the photos.
2. Every measurement has a unit, written the same way throughout.
3. No adjective without a fact beside it.
4. No claim you cannot prove today.
5. No disease or treatment claims for health and beauty products.
6. The opening says what it is and who it is for, in two sentences.
7. It reads easily on a phone.
8. What is in the box is listed.
9. Each marketplace's version uses the same facts.

How Commicorn helps

• Written from your facts. Commicorn writes each marketplace's description from the details you give us: measurements, materials, contents, care and the rest.
• Claims checked. A claim that needs proof is marked with what the marketplace asks for, and wording a marketplace bans is kept out, with the reason shown.
• Each marketplace's shape. Amazon's bullets and description, Walmart's key features, Etsy's description, eBay's description with its mobile summary, and your Shopify product page, all from the same facts.
• You check and change everything before you export.

Commicorn writes your description from your product's facts for each marketplace. Start free.

Questions sellers ask

How long should a product description be?

Use about three quarters of the room the marketplace gives, filled with useful detail: about 1,500 of Amazon's 2,000 characters. Reach it with what your facts already hold: what each feature means for the shopper, the everyday moments the product is used in, what its materials look like, and the answers to their questions on size, care and what is in the box. Never pad to reach it. A fact said twice, a keyword stacked in or praise with no fact behind it makes a description longer and worse. If your facts run out first, stop there and add the facts a shopper still needs. Your Shopify store has no character limit, but keep the opening short there too.

What should the first sentence of a product description say?

What the product is and who it is for, in the words a shopper would use, with the main search phrase in it.

Can I say "eco-friendly" in a product description?

Only with evidence, and only if the claim does not mislead, under the FTC's Green Guides. Walmart restricts "biodegradable" and "compostable" on its listings.

Does Amazon show the product description if I have A+ content?

No. If the listing has A+ content, A+ replaces the description on the page. Keep the description complete anyway, for any listing without A+.

Can I use AI to write product descriptions?

Yes, but the same rules apply to what it writes. Walmart's guidelines say all claims, images and descriptions must match the actual product, and make the seller responsible for checking AI content before it goes live.