10+ years of proven results. Trusted by Dr Squatch, L’Oréal, Once Upon a Farm, Amika, Beachbody, Transparent Labs, and more.
10+ years of proven results. Trusted by Dr Squatch, L’Oréal, Once Upon a Farm, Amika, Beachbody, Transparent Labs, and more.
10+ years of proven results. Trusted by Dr Squatch, L’Oréal, Once Upon a Farm, Amika, Beachbody, Transparent Labs, and more.
10+ years of proven results. Trusted by Dr Squatch, L’Oréal, Once Upon a Farm, Amika, Beachbody, Transparent Labs, and more.
10+ years of proven results. Trusted by Dr Squatch, L’Oréal, Once Upon a Farm, Amika, Beachbody, Transparent Labs, and more.
10+ years of proven results. Trusted by Dr Squatch, L’Oréal, Once Upon a Farm, Amika, Beachbody, Transparent Labs, and more.
10+ years of proven results. Trusted by Dr Squatch, L’Oréal, Once Upon a Farm, Amika, Beachbody, Transparent Labs, and more.
How To Create Copy That Sells With User Insights & Testing
Create Magnetic Ecommerce Copy With User Insights & Testing
Your product pages, landing pages, and homepage all say something to the people who land on them. The question is whether what they say is what your customers need to hear before they'll buy.
Most ecommerce copy gets written from the inside out: the brand decides what sounds good, a copywriter polishes it, and the team ships it. But the copy that converts, the kind that moves real revenue, gets built from the outside in. It starts with what your customers are already telling you through their behavior, their survey responses, and their objections, and then puts those words back on the page in a way that answers the right questions at the right time. In this guide, we'll break down what makes ecommerce copy convert, how to use customer research to write it, and how to validate it with A/B testing so you're not guessing.
Why Does Your Copy Matter?
Your ecommerce copy is often the first point of interaction between your brand and your target audience.
It's your chance to grab their attention, pique their interest, and persuade them to choose your products over countless others.
Here's why investing in great copywriting is non-negotiable:
1. Drive Targeted Traffic: Compelling copy helps you attract the right people to your store. By strategically adding relevant keywords and writing meta descriptions that stand out in search results, you can draw in shoppers who are most likely to convert.
2. Engage & Educate: Once visitors land on your product pages, your copy takes the lead in keeping them engaged. By showcasing benefits, addressing pain points, and providing helpful information, you can build trust, overcome objections, and guide shoppers towards a purchase.
4. Differentiate Your Brand: In a crowded ecommerce landscape, your copy is a powerful tool for setting your brand apart. A distinct voice, tone, and messaging strategy can help you forge a unique identity and create a memorable shopping experience that keeps customers coming back.
5. Boost Conversions & Sales: Ultimately, your copy has a direct impact on your bottom line. By persuasively articulating your products' value, creating urgency, and nudging hesitant browsers to take action, you can dramatically improve your conversion rates and drive more sales.
Take Bellroy, for example. This brand sells wallets and bags, but their copy goes beyond just describing product features.
They use storytelling and emotion to connect with their audience, highlighting how their products can simplify and improve people's lives. As a result, Bellroy has built a loyal following and a strong brand identity.
Here’s an example of how Harry’s, a personal care company for men, makes their audience feel like they’re the hero of the brand story.
The Difference Between Good & Bad Copy
Not all copy is created equal. While good copy turns heads and converts, bad copy can leave your visitors confused, disinterested, or worse - heading straight to your competitors.
So, what separates the cream from the crop? Here are three key characteristics of good ecommerce copy:
1. Use Emotion Words Strategically
The most impactful copy doesn't shy away from tapping into emotions - both positive AND negative. Using the full range of human feelings strategically is important for catching attention and motivating action.
By highlighting the risks or consequences of not taking action, you can create a sense of urgency and motivate shoppers to buy. Phrases like "don't miss out," "limited time offer," or "before it's too late" can be highly effective when used judiciously.
However, it's not all about leveraging negative emotions. Stirring up positive feelings can be just as impactful. Emphasizing the benefits, showcasing social proof, and painting a vivid picture of the desired outcome - that appeals to the aspirations and excitement of your audience.
The key is striking the right balance for your brand and buyers. Finding that sweet spot between opportunity and risk, between excitement and reassurance.
2. Keep It Concise & Consequential
Attention spans are short, and online shoppers are often in a hurry. Good copy gets to the point quickly and makes every word count. It focuses on the most important benefits and outcomes, using clear, concise language that's easy to scan and digest.
3. Demonstrate Trust & Credibility
In an age of skepticism and information overload, building trust is essential. Good copy establishes credibility through elements like social proof (customer reviews, testimonials), trust badges, and transparent policies. By showing that others have bought and loved your products, you can alleviate doubts and instill confidence in potential buyers.
Take this product description from Aesop as an example:
Resurrect rough, ruined hands with this balm of miraculous power. Twice daily, massage a small amount into clean hands, rubbing well into cuticles and dry, parched skin.
In just a few sentences, Aesop tackles the reader's concerns (rough, damaged hands), provides a solution (a miraculous balm), and offers clear instructions. The copy is succinct, evocative, and benefit-focused.
In contrast, bad ecommerce copy often suffers from:
Focusing on features instead of benefits
Using jargon or overly technical language
Lacking proof points or credibility indicators
Failing to create a sense of urgency or motivation
To write copy that works, you must understand your target audience's needs, wants, and pain points. Thorough user research and customer feedback analysis can provide invaluable insights to guide your copywriting strategy.
So, what goes into a high-converting product description or ecommerce page? While the specific ingredients may vary depending on your industry and audience, there are several core elements that the best copy often includes:
1. Catchy Headlines
Your headlines should be attention-grabbing and focused on the primary benefit or outcome your product delivers. They're often the first (and sometimes only) thing a visitor will read, so make them count.
For instance, Death Wish Coffee's headline, "The World's Strongest Coffee," immediately grabs their audience's interest and sets their product apart.
Your product descriptions should be all about your customer. Focus on how your product will improve their lives, solve their problems, or help them achieve their goals. Use "you" and "your" to speak directly to the reader.
Brandless excels at this, using mouthwatering descriptions like, "Sweet and tarty, with a lemon peel that tastes like it was picked fresh off the tree."
3. Clear CTAs
Use action-oriented language and create a sense of urgency to motivate visitors to take the desired action, whether it's making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or engaging with your brand.
MeUndies, an underwear subscription service, uses CTAs like "Get 20% Off" and "Become a Member" to drive conversions.
Break up your copy with short paragraphs, bullet points, and subheadings to make it easy to scan and digest. Use bold or italicized text to highlight key benefits or information.
Brands like Amazon are well-known for their effective use of bullet points to highlight key product features and benefits.
Of course, creating high-converting copy is an ongoing process, not a one-time event. To ensure your efforts are paying off, you need to continually measure your copy's performance and gather insights from your target audience. Here are some key metrics to track:
Conversion rate: The percentage of visitors who take a desired action, like making a purchase or subscribing to a newsletter.
Click-through rate (CTR): The percentage of visitors who click on a specific link or CTA.
Bounce rate: The percentage of visitors who leave your site after viewing only one page.
Average order value (AOV): The average amount spent per customer order.
According to Shopify, the average conversion rate across industries is 1-2%. That said, conversion rates will vary immensely based on your vertical, products, and the price of what you sell. Take benchmarks with a grain of salt.
An “ideal” conversion rate is a conversion that’s higher than the one you currently have - Raphael Paulin-Daigle, founder of SplitBase
By consistently monitoring these metrics, you can pinpoint areas for improvement and optimize your copy accordingly.
Using A/B Testing To Drive Maximum Success
A/B testing is a powerful tool for validating the impact of your ecommerce copy and driving ongoing optimization. By comparing two versions of a page or element, you can determine which variant performs better and make data-driven decisions.
Some key variables to test:
Headline phrasing and length
Benefit statements and value propositions
Social proof elements and placement
CTA wording, design, and placement
Product description length and format
To run effective A/B tests:
Start with a clear hypothesis based on data and user insights
Create two or more distinct versions of the element you want to test
Split your traffic evenly between the each version
Run the test for a full sales cycle to account for any fluctuations
Analyze the results and implement the winning version
By regularly testing and refining your copy, you can unlock new growth opportunities and stay ahead of the competition.
The testing trifecta
Summing Up
If you're not creating persuasive copy, you're leaving money on the table.
Copy that captivates your audience, drives conversions, and boosts your bottom line is no longer a luxury—it's a necessity.
Achieving ecommerce success through copy optimization is an ongoing journey that requires dedication, a data-driven mindset, and a willingness to adapt. By keeping your finger on the pulse of your audience's needs and consistently refining your approach, you can unlock the full potential of your online store and build a sustainable, thriving business.
But you don't have to go it alone.
Our experts at SplitBase are here to help. We'll work with you to uncover valuable insights about your customers and find the best ways to improve your website.
Whether you need optimized post-click landing pages to reduce customer acquisition costs, a conversion-focused Shopify store redesign to boost AOV and sales, or an in-depth site-wide optimization and A/B testing program to convert more visitors into customers – we've got you covered.
Interested? Reach out to us today for a free consultation and start seeing real results for your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if my ecommerce copy is hurting conversions?
Look at the data first. If a page has high traffic but a low conversion rate, or if your bounce rate spikes on key product pages, your copy is likely part of the problem. Session recordings and on-page polls can tell you why, whether visitors are confused by the messaging, don't see enough proof, or simply aren't finding the information they need to buy.
What's the difference between feature-focused copy and benefit-focused copy?
Feature-focused copy describes what a product is or does ("100% organic cotton, 220 GSM"). Benefit-focused copy tells the customer what that means for them ("Soft enough to sleep in, tough enough to last years of washes"). The best product descriptions do both, but lead with the benefit because that's what earns the click and keeps the reader going.
How often should I update or test my ecommerce copy?
There's no fixed schedule, but you should revisit your copy any time you notice a shift in performance metrics, launch a new product line, or gather fresh customer research. A/B testing lets you validate changes before you commit to them site-wide, so you're not rolling out a new headline based on a gut feeling.
Can I write high-converting copy without doing customer research?
You can write something, but you'll be guessing at what resonates. The brands that consistently convert well build their copy on real voice-of-customer data: survey responses, interview transcripts, support tickets, and reviews. Without that foundation, even well-written copy tends to answer questions your customers never asked while ignoring the objections that are stopping them from buying.
What's the most common mistake brands make with ecommerce copy?
Writing for themselves instead of for the customer. It shows up as jargon-heavy product descriptions, vague benefit claims with no proof, and homepage headlines that sound impressive but don't tell a first-time visitor what the brand sells or why they should care. The fix is grounding every line in what your customers have told you matters to them.
How does A/B testing apply to copywriting specifically?
A/B testing lets you put two versions of the same copy in front of real traffic and measure which one drives more conversions, revenue, or whatever metric matters most. You might test different headline angles on a landing page, swap the order of benefit statements on a PDP, or try a longer product description against a shorter one. The key is testing one hypothesis at a time so you can attribute the result to a specific change.
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