What is a good product sheet?
How to make a product sheet that sells?
Creating a product sheet that converts is not just about following a certain number of “best practices” read here and there on the internet. Putting together a list of elements without first thinking about a strategy is the best way to not get the expected results. You therefore need to define a strategy, which will allow you to create a relevant structure and align the planets to obtain very good results. This is why we have defined in this article the three main steps to create the perfect product sheet:
Define a strategy
It is necessary to ask yourself all the right questions upstream, in order to know which direction to take to create an optimized product sheet, which will generate more sales. Indeed, most optimizations are relative: if some work for a sector, a product, a type of catalog, they will be ineffective or even counterproductive for others.
The brand universe
This point concerns the elements that make up the visual universe of your brand, but also the tone used to communicate. It is essential to align the universe of your store with that of your brand.
The UX and UI of the site
User experience and user interface are two key elements for creating a product sheet that converts. Particular attention will be paid to cognitive overload. Indeed, the arrangement of too many elements (texts, CTAs, images, videos, etc.) risks confusing the message and scaring away the visitor (if they do not quickly find what they are looking for, they are likely to leave the page, or even the store).
Important note: if you follow all our advice, you should be able to create a good product sheet. However, the optimization process does not stop there: we could indeed add a fourth step: A/B testing (this will be the subject of a separate article). A/B testing consists of making subtle modifications to the product sheet and analyzing the results obtained by comparing them with those of the unmodified version.
1) Define a strategy to optimize your product sheet by asking yourself the right questions.
The structure, features and content of an optimized product sheet depend on the sector in which you operate, the nature of your products and the size of your catalog . Each market has its specificities, its target audience and the specific expectations of the latter. Here is a list of questions that should help define a relevant strategy based on your sector and your products.
What products do you offer? What sector do you operate in? Who is your target?
There would be a lot to say on this point since there are an infinite number of different products on the market. The advice we give you is to think about what the customer is looking for and wants, or your target more generally. Put yourself in their shoes: what do they need? What will make them want to buy? What questions are they likely to ask themselves, knowing that there is no salesperson present directly to answer them?
Also study your sector: what do your competitors offer? At what price? How do they do it? How can you stand out? What are the trends?
Here are some examples to illustrate the need to adapt your sheet according to your product or sector.
How does this affect your product listing?
- If you're selling clothing, the structure can highlight things like size, fit, material, available colors, care instructions, and information about current trends. High-quality images, showing the garment worn by a model, are also crucial.
- If you sell electronics, products will require detailed specifications such as power, capacity, technical features, compatibility, connectivity options, etc. Images of ports and interfaces can be important to help customers understand the product.
- If you sell luxury or high-end products, highlight the exclusive features, premium materials, unique design, or exceptional craftsmanship of the product. High-end products will likely require a storytelling approach to create an emotional connection with customers. Luxury brands often have a backstory, philosophy, or values that can be highlighted.
- If you sell furniture, product listings can highlight dimensions, materials, assembly and care methods, as well as images showing the product in a home environment.
- When it comes to food products, they must include information on ingredients, nutritional values, certifications (such as organic labels), possible allergies, preparation methods, etc.
- For sports equipment, it is advisable to focus on performance-enhancing features, construction materials, available sizes, and information on how the product can be used in different sporting activities.
- Etc…
Are these products that involve a considered, impulsive or recurring purchase?
- Recurring purchases are often a daily necessity, but sometimes they are simply a matter of consumption habits. In both cases, it can make sense to offer a subscription-based solution: the customer automatically receives their products at a defined frequency. The challenge is therefore to create a simple, fluid purchasing journey and to convince the visitor to opt for this solution.
- In the context of an impulse purchase, it will probably be necessary to play on psychological factors (e.g. urgency or rarity), on emotions, on promotions, on personalization to meet everyone's desires, on the possibility of returning the product easily and obtaining an exchange or a refund.
- Considered buying is usually rarer and as its name suggests, it is the result of a study before making the purchase. In this case, it will be necessary to highlight more the characteristics and benefits of the product, possibly compare it to other products on the market, offer customization, highlight an FAQ and customer service (chat, telephone line, etc.), etc.
Is it the same product for everyone, or on the contrary does it come in a large number of variations (size, color, patterns, etc.)?
The structure of the product sheet will be radically different if you offer many variables (see bundles, i.e. product packs), because you will have to highlight them clearly and visibly. You will also need to have all the necessary photos so that the changes can be made automatically when you click on a variable: it is necessary to have an immediate idea of the rendering of the product with the selected variable.
Is this a product that requires advice?
Many products require advice from a specialist in order to make a choice. Integrating a chat and an FAQ, highlighting a telephone line and an email, are essential elements in order not to miss opportunities. Setting up a configurator or a diagnosis can also make a lot of sense.
Does the visitor need to be reassured in order to make a purchase?
Generally speaking, it is possible to answer this question in the affirmative, but once again, it will be necessary to adapt to your type of product, your sector and your positioning.
- Remind essential information regarding payment, return and refund policy, delivery.
- Emphasize social proof, by highlighting reviews and comments. Maximize transparency.
Warning: if it is a premium or luxury product, it is unlikely that you will highlight customer reviews or comments from them. Indeed, a luxury brand does not have to prove its reputation or that of its products. In addition, it maintains this situation where it is the buyer who is waiting, dreaming of being able to afford the product. Finally, it would be very frowned upon for the brand to obtain an average rating for a product whose price is particularly high, and whose manufacture is made by hand with noble materials. - Implement “nudge marketing”. For example: “9 out of 10 customers recommend us”.
- If you have a serious study or expert opinion, shine a spotlight on them.
- Once again, take the time to write a good FAQ, whether it is directly present in the product sheet or on a dedicated page.
How to stand out from your competitors?
- If there are a lot of competitors in your market, you will have to stand out as much as possible by communicating on the elements that differentiate you (your universe and brand image, your values, the benefits of your product, good illustrations and photos, etc.) and perhaps by creating promotions or attractive offers. Create a community.
- If the product is absolutely identical to your competitors', then focus on the quality of your service, especially your return and refund policy. Remember that the success of many brands comes from the fact that the consumer does not just buy a product: he buys a service. Example: you sell office furniture, and offer free delivery and installation.
Is the product unknown to the public and your audience? Is it innovative?
- An evangelism strategy needs to be developed: define precisely the benefits of your product and communicate them in the simplest way possible. You can then detail them further down, in illustrated content blocks.
- Compare your product with what it replaces or improves, in the form of a table or diagram.
- Focus once again on social proof: visitors will need to be reassured before making a purchase.
How big is your catalog?
This question is absolutely essential, because it will define the structure of your product sheets. Indeed, if you have 2000 products in your catalog, it is unlikely that you will be able to create sheets with an explanatory video and a dozen blocks of content (text and photos) per product like Asphalte . You will instead need to define a structure that allows you to integrate the essential elements and thus import everything massively. This is probably what Ralph Lauren does.
Here are the main questions you will need to answer: this is the first building block that will allow you to define a real strategy and then develop an optimized product sheet. There are probably many other questions you can ask yourself, so don't stop there.
Even though most of the things mentioned may seem obvious, remember that defining a good strategy means prioritizing the important elements and limiting or even excluding the others: this is what will ensure that you do not have a “Christmas tree” product sheet, the main effect of which will be cognitive overload – that is, for the visitor, the inability to find the information they are looking for or that will convince them to buy. We will detail this point in the rest of this article.
You may be interested in this mini-guide on how to set up your catalog and product sheets on Shopify .
2) The design of an optimized product sheet.
Once the sector and the nature of your product have been defined, we advise you to look at the universe of your brand . We too often see sites whose design is very far from the brand identity manual, or more generally from the visual elements of the brand (content broadcast on social networks, packaging, photos and videos, etc.). Aligning the image of your site with that of the brand is important: it generates the trust and desirability necessary for your products to sell optimally.
Brand identification and consistency
Web design should be an extension of your brand's unique and memorable visual identity. The visitor or customer who is on your site must be able to identify you immediately, and the omnichannel experience (if this is the case) must be consistent (brand image, tone of voice, etc.).
- We note that many players, whose stores are sometimes well established, do not have a brand identity manual or even a graphic charter. If this is your case, we advise you to start by at least creating a graphic charter.
- A consistent design across the entire e-commerce site helps to reinforce positive brand perception. Consistency in colors, typography, icons and other visual elements gives an impression of professionalism and trustworthiness.
Competitive differentiation
In a saturated market, a web design aligned with the brand universe can help to stand out from the competition. A unique and distinctive design attracts the attention of visitors and encourages them to choose this brand over another.
- To do this, it is best to start by studying your competitors' stores so that you can stand out from them and be sure that you are not reproducing something that already exists.
- Also, the quality of your web design allows you to position yourself as a leader (if applicable) or as if you are much more important than you really are. While it is often difficult to have a physical store on the most beautiful shopping street in your city, it is much simpler and less expensive to have a premium design and experience online.
Credibility
A neat web design inspires trust in users. Many visitors remain wary and do not want to provide their bank details if the platform does not seem secure to them. A sloppy web design can easily create this feeling. Even if the goal is not to have the best design on the web, you will at least have to succeed in reassuring your visitors.
Brand Storytelling
Your web design should help you tell the story of your brand, its values and its mission. Remember that too few texts are read on the internet, just study the average time spent on the different pages of your platform to realize that it is impossible to read everything you want to say. Design is there to convey your messages without words, or almost: an icon or an image can often replace a paragraph of text.
Customer loyalty
A web design that is aligned with the brand universe finally strengthens the emotional connection between the brand and the customers. This can lead to greater long-term loyalty and a positive spread of word-of-mouth. Make your design convey emotions
In summary, a web design aligned with the brand universe is an essential investment to strengthen the brand image, optimize the user experience and achieve your business objectives.
3) The UX (user experience) and UI (user interface) of an optimized product sheet.
They are the extension of all the elements you have just defined. Once again, check that each of the following points makes sense in relation to your strategy. We will insist in this study on the most recurring elements, so that they can make sense for the vast majority of e-commerce stores. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have a project and would like us to study your site specifically.
Cognitive overload
If we start with this point, it is not for nothing! This is what you must absolutely avoid and yet it is what we see most often: the stores have applied to the letter the lists of recommendations to have a good product sheet and suddenly there are useless elements absolutely everywhere, which confuses the message and scares away the potential buyer. Here are our recommendations to avoid this.
- Make wireframes (mockups) of your product page, before going through the design and development boxes. Remember: a good strategy is to limit the number of elements and therefore to define those that are priorities.
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Limit your texts: a good title is short (5 words), a good description too. If you think you will move up in the search results thanks to blocks of text everywhere, you risk just not being able to obtain any results, neither in terms of SEO, nor in terms of conversion. Possibly set up accordions for your SEO texts lower down the page, if this must be part of your strategy.
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Graphic elements (photos, visuals, icons, etc.) allow you to say a lot without words, but don't overdo it: the result must be airy.
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There's no point in repeating the same things over and over : if you do, you probably didn't communicate them well the first time (or they weren't in the right place).
- Reduce the number of options presented to the visitor: everything should match what is expected in the sales funnel at a specific moment.
UX Design
Here are some points to emphasize.
- Divide the different types of information into separate blocks. Understanding must be immediate: we must understand what each block corresponds to without having to read or think. To do this, play with colors, shapes, elements allowing division (lines, frames, white spaces, images, etc.).
- Remember to balance the structure of the page with different contents: photos, texts, icons, images…
- Only use graphic elements that everyone knows (icons, shapes, layout, location, etc.)
- In general, do not use visually overloaded images. Prefer refined content.
- Your CTA should be – generally speaking – visible above the fold.
- If you are setting up two CTAs, differentiate them in an obvious way (different color, bold text for one of the two, possibly underlined text, possibly boxed text).
Cross-platform adaptability
With the rise of mobile devices, a good responsive experience is essential to provide consistency across all devices (computers, smartphones, tablets).
- All elements must be designed to be used by thumbs on mobile (menus, CTAs, product cards, etc.)
- The limitation of the number of words and texts is even more to be taken into account for mobile.
- Limit the number of fields in forms
- Consider optimizing the size of your photos and videos for faster page load times. Of course, if you can improve the quality of your code, that’s a big plus. Finally, remove any unnecessary plugins, as they’re probably also weighing down your performance.
Optimize your product page photos
- Preferably use a neutral background for the main photo: white, black or beige.
- The main photo should be of high quality and make you want to see others or check out.
- Complement the main photo with images that present the product in context.
- Play on the size contrasts between the product and the background context.
- In some cases it may make sense to blur the background context.
- Show the product from many angles.
- Set up a zoom so that we can see the product more closely.
Make it easier to navigate between product sheets
- It is likely that the visitor wants to see other products on your site: offer them the chance to see similar and/or complementary products.
- Integrating a breadcrumb trail at the top of the page will allow for smoother navigation, without necessarily having to go back through the menu.
Here is an illustration of an optimized product sheet
This is just a suggestion. We invite you to adapt it based on everything we have seen in this article and that you will have defined in your strategy.
The potential “pluses” to implement depending on your strategy
- Indicate the amount from which delivery costs are free, for example in the top bar. Emphasize the term “Free”.
- Indicate the cost and delivery time.
- Use a secondary photo to also showcase the benefits of the product (give example)
- Indicate sizes and their international equivalents (if applicable) if clothing or footwear.
- Sticky add to cart (desktop and mobile).
- Cross-sell / upsell in “checkbox” mode
- Content sections highlighting the benefits of the product, its manufacturing or the brand universe.
- Testimonials
Despite all this advice, you may need to be supported by a Shopify agency , so don't hesitate to contact us!
