Product pages are your moment of truth. Either they convert your shoppers into a customer or they don’t.

As an online store owner, it's important to remember that your customers don’t have the luxury of trying on, or feeling your products. Your product pages are on the front line in the battle to win over customers and close a sale – and they're your one shot at doing so.Most new online store owners spend a lot of time on their homepages, forgetting that the product page is ultimately where your customer decides to add something of yours into their shopping cart. Small, proactive tweaks to your product pages can make all the difference, so we've compiled a list of 10 ways you can make sure your product pages are optimised to turn visitors of your online boutique into customers.

TIPS

1. Image Is Everything

When it comes to the images on your product pages, bigger is better. Think of the last time you bought a piece of clothing online: you were enticed by how it looked in an image long before you read anything about it. You probably enlarged the image to see as much detail as possible – and when you bought it, you were confident that you knew what you would be getting in the post. You want to give your customers the same confidence by posting large, clear, and detailed shots of your products from multiple angles.
You can also use images to add an air of professionalism to your store by making all of your product pages look cohesive. Photograph your products from similar angles and against similar backgrounds so that every product page a customer sees adds to the consistency of your brand.

Example by SupaDupa online store, Mury

2. Remove The Background

If photographing your products against similar backgrounds will add consistency to your online store, removing the background entirely – either with your own photoshop skills or through an online service that helps ecommerce businesses – can really make your products pop. Removing the background of your images is particularly useful if you have items that you want to show together as a set, or if you have one product page that bundles and shows your products off as a collection.

3. Call Your Customers To Action

A well-placed call to action can make the difference between converting a customer and losing a sale. They're the buttons you see on websites that say “Buy Now” or “Add to Cart,” and they make it much easier to get your customer to checkout. Your “add to cart” button – and it should be a button, not just text – should be instantly visible, in a colour that stands out, and in a prominent place such as underneath the product title.

Example by online fashion store, Hunter, stating the obvious with an 'Add to bag' button on the product page.

4. Catchy Vs. Descriptive Titles

We could go on at length about the importance of writing product descriptions that sell and enticing copy on your product pages. In fact, we have. But what should your product titles be like? Should they be packed with keywords so that search engines and humans alike know exactly what they're clicking on? Or should they have catchy, funny, or clever titles that entice people to read further about the product? You can make either one work for your business, and it really just depends on what is most consistent with your brand. If you don't decide to write straightforward product titles, just make sure to put descriptive keywords in your product page title tags so that search engines still know what the product page contains.

5. Include Shipping Details

Shipping charges are the single biggest reason for cart abandonment, and one of the best ways to state your shipping information clearly, and often. Disclose shipping information directly in your product descriptions, on every product page, even if you already have a dedicated shipping policy page. Just one little line below the product title, “Free UK shipping on orders over £X,” can keep the shock of unexpected charges and cart abandonment at bay.

6. Keep Down The Clutter

With everything that the perfect product page needs to contain – call to action buttons, multiple images, social sharing buttons – things can get very cluttered. Keeping the clutter down will ensure your product pages are quick to load, and that your customers always know exactly where to look to get the information they need. Try having drop-down tabs that can be expanded to give customers more information without sending them to another page or cluttering up the simple, easy design of your product page. Too many distractions can be confusing, so make sure everything on your product page either delivers information that your customer needs to know about your product or gets your customer to the checkout stage quickly.

Example by SupaDupa store, Jwon London, selling beautiful garments, has a great minimalistic and clean product browsing experience. Currently using the new Tla theme

7. Keep Product Descriptions Concise

Ever read a product description at IKEA, H&M, or another hugely successful retailer? They're short and sweet, conveying the materials used, advantages of a product, and possible uses in just a sentence or two. This doesn't mean you can't write more about the inspiration for a product, the design process, or elaborate on how your product will fulfil a need in your customer's life. Just put the highlights in the product description, with a “read more” button that people can click to expand. Besides keeping the clutter down, having another call to action button is never a bad idea because it gets customers used to clicking and following directions. Every time a customer takes an action that you want them to take, you increase your conversion rate which will, in turn, increase revenue.

8. Add Testimonials

The best salesmen can sell their products without people feeling like they're having something pushed on them. Your product descriptions may be wonderful, but people know that they're written by someone with an agenda, and therefore take them with a grain of salt. A great way to counteract this is by adding real reviews and testimonials to your product page, which reveal both the positives and drawbacks of your products. You're giving customers more information, which makes it easier for them to purchase with confidence, while also “keeping it real” with them. Customers appreciate transparency from businesses, and as a small online boutique it's one of the best tools you have in your arsenal to build the perfect product page.

9. Add Value By Giving Specific Instructions

A great way to set your online store apart from others is to go the extra mile to show your customers exactly how to use your product. If you sell gourmet coffee that needs to be ground in a certain way, you might want to include special instructions on your product page. Why not a tutorial video that shows how to brew the perfect pot of coffee in a french press?

If you're a fashion boutique, consider short clips that show exactly how the clothes move when they're actually being worn, or a video that has suggestions for how to wear a certain scarf or blouse in multiple different ways. You're adding value to your customer's shopping experience and showing the versatility of your product exactly when it counts: on your product page, right before checkout.

Example by SupaDupa store, The BrimLabel, selling hats and accessories, showcasing the Lulu Vintage Rome Hat. A super simple and effective 13 second video captures exactly how the product should be worn.

10. Convince Customers That They Need Your Product

In addition to specific instructions, your product page should also highlight the advantages of your product. In short, don’t just tell people what your product is; tell them what it does for you. In what way does it make your life better? What problem does it solve? If you sell clothing, art, or giftware, you may feel like your products aren’t ‘inventions’ and therefore don’t ‘problem solve’ in the same way. But after all, even a necklace can solve a problem -- what about the problem of going from day to night, or finding something unique that no one else will have in their jewelry box? People are much more likely to think your products are relevant if they can relate them to themselves! What need will your particular product fulfill in your ideal customer’s life? Use the word ‘you’ when describing your product’s advantage, and really explain what your products will do for your customers in their everyday life.