It is an undisputed fact that your e-commerce business should have a great product and a compelling story that attracts customers. No matter what product you are selling, what is of utmost importance is how your business positions the products to the casual shopper who is thinking about making a purchase. Is the product something that they need? Will it solve their pain point? Can it make their life better? That’s what a product listing page can help with.

In the e-commerce business space, crafting the perfect layout to present your product is very important.  In this guide we will break down product listings, the best strategies you can use when designing your product listing on your e-commerce website and how they influence customers’ purchasing decisions. 

What is a Product Listing Page

A product listing page (PLP) is a page that lists the products that are available for purchase from your e-commerce site. 

Ideally, your product listing page should include: 

Online shoppers cannot talk to an employee about a product like how they would at a brick-and-mortar store. You would have to make up for that by providing all the specific details and features about the item, the shipping options, the customer reviews and testimonials, and the technical details. Thus, your online customer can make a decision based on the complete information provided to them.

What is PDP in E-commerce?

A Product Detail Page or a PDP in e-commerce is a page that displays to the customers all the specific and detailed information about the product like the materials, ingredients, sizes, etc. Here, the e-commerce business should provide as much information as possible to the customer.

If a product detail page seems to lack clarity and doesn’t provide all the necessary details then the potential customers and visitors of the site may hesitate to purchase anything from you. A cleverly crafted product detail page can help you retain the attention of your visitors, enticing them to purchase a product from your business. 

Why is a product detail page so important?

Ultimately, they want to see if your product detail page delivers on the criteria of presenting your product exactly how it looks, the materials it is made out of, its dimensions, if it will meet their requirements and how it has worked for others in solving similar problems. Your product may be better than that of your competitors but if your product detail pages aren’t optimized then it will not yield positive results. A study conducted by OneSpace confirms this- 87% of consumers are less likely to purchase products if the content on the product pages isn’t of significance, essentially stating that product detail page content is extremely important.

Thus, if you craft your product detail pages to be superior to those of your competitors, then you have the opportunity to increase your conversion rates and boost sales and profits.

Elements of a Great Product Listing

Now that we have looked into what is a product listing and product detail page and why are these crucial to an e-commerce business, let us understand the elements that will help you create a great product listing page.

Seo-Driven Keywords

SEO is important for e-commerce businesses. And it is imperative for the product details page as well. When taking into account the importance of SEO, product listing pages account for 50% of e-commerce traffic and there are mainly two reasons for it:

• They are keyword rich. Since the product details page includes the names, prices, specifications, and product description, they are keyword rich i.e they naturally rank for the keywords on search engines. 
• They are the most linked pages. Product listing pages are where the customers should start their journey and the SEO specialists focus their efforts to ensure that. Moreover, the product pages, within a category, are generally linked back to that category. Thus, creating a strong internal link-building pattern.

Detailed Product Information

A detailed product description is a key to success as it can help you with your conversion rates and help you rank higher on search engines for your products. Your product description should represent the product in the best like and resonate with the customers. It should highlight how it can help in solving the problems that the customers have, that led them to find your product.

The product description includes the product details and specifications. And it should tell a story to your customers about how your product can help transform their lives and erase their problems. 

Your product description has to be a combination of optimization and creativity. This will have a direct impact on your customers.

Scannable Formatting

You can format your product listing page either in the list view or grid view. List view is best suited for products with extensive information and specifications. Think of electronics or tech products like television, computers, etc. And grid view is used for products that focus on pictures and images without paying much attention to the specifications; it provides a more visual experience. 

Depending on your choice, you can either present your product listing page in a grid view or a list view. But remember to format the number of rows in both cases so that you don’t bombard your customer with various products all at once.

Focus on the size of your images if you are opting for a grid view. We’d suggest not having more than three rows of image-based product listing in the grid view. 

And if you are opting for a list view, be mindful of the volume of information. Just because there is space, doesn’t mean to stuff all the information. Remember to add space when required.

Engaging Visuals

Speaking of grid view and images, product pictures, or in the case of product listing pages- product thumbnails are important. These are especially true for visually-driven industries of beauty, apparel, travel, etc.

Your product thumbnails should be attractive, and pleasing and create a sense of harmony that presents the product aesthetics. And the size of the product thumbnail, when used for display, depends on the industry. For instance, the fashion industry opts for a bigger size than beauty.

Best Product Listing Strategies to Boost Sales

Now that you have understood the elements to create a product listing page, let us dive into some product listing strategies that will help boost your sales. 

It is essential to integrate these strategies in your product listing if you want to increase your conversion rates and help it oil all the cogs in your e-commerce business machine, ensuring smooth operation.

Keyword Research, Thorough Descriptions, and Making Your Product a Star

Keyword research is crucial to crafting a successful product listing that can be easily found by your audience. Find the right keywords, with a high search volume, and add them to your title and description or your product listing page will not appear in search engines as they do not match the search intent. Ideally, you should select long-tail keywords for your product that has a low competitive density and Cost-Per-Click while still having a high monthly search volume. 

And as mentioned earlier, remember to craft a compelling product description. It should include your keywords and entice the customers to purchase the product by providing them all the information- details and specifications- about the product and how it will help the customer with their pain points. 

A thorough product description helps in highlighting the product and the value that it will bring to the customers’ lives. And using the right keywords can help your customers find these products without any issue. Thus increasing your conversion rates, boosting sales, and generating revenue.

Incentivize Product Reviews

Product reviews are vital when it comes to building trust with your visitors and your potential customers. And it helps in lowering their inhibitions towards your product. For instance, a person may like the product and would like to purchase it, however, is put off by the lack of product reviews and it warrants their suspicion. However, if they do see that the product has reviews and generally a good rating, they are more likely to trust your brand and buy from your business. 

A simple review or testimonial can help you build a loyal relationship with your potential customers. A mere post with a positive quote from a former client along with a picture can instantly boost your credibility and validate your business.

Urgency and Scarcity

Marketing and sales tactics should be optimal and help increase conversions. And to achieve that you need to incorporate these crucial elements: urgency, scarcity, and a direct approach to build rapport. 

You need to create that sense of urgency and scarcity, giving them an illusion that the product you are offering will not be around for long. You need to create anxiety about the product that can only be relieved by purchasing the said product. You have to convince them that if they don’t buy the product now, then they will have missed their chance. 

Supreme, as a brand, is the epitome of creating. Urgency in today’s generation is known as hype and Supreme creates hype on this philosophy of scarcity and urgency, combining it with trendy and attractive products. They launch products at a precise time and in limited quantity, therefore if you miss the window to purchase, you won’t be able to get your hands on them. 

Simplify navigation

Displaying product categories in the main navigation has numerous navigational advantages, according to research conducted by Baymard Institute. 

Here are some steps you can take to make your navigation simple and increase conversions: 

• Make your website easy to browse through
• Add a simple and intuitive search bar
• Display your product categories on the top, clear to view
• Allow your audience to add ratings and rankings for your products.
• Provide filtering options so that navigating through your products is an easier task.

Reveal more through hover

People love to see how things look, after all, it is the only way they can interact with the products online when browsing e-commerce websites. By allowing them to hover over your product images to get more visual information, they can make quick assessments without actually leaving the page.

An image carousel, if you wish to add to your product listing page, helps the customer get a better understanding of the product. Furthermore, a carousel of product images will entice the customers to look into the product detail page. and it has a higher chance of having a positive influence on their purchase decision.

Use product recommendations—and use them well

Product recommendations are known to have a strong impact on the driving behavior of a product listing page. It works on various business models and can display products that are similar to the ones the visitor browsed through, resulting in them clicking on the additional item and increasing their cart items. 

By picking the right product recommendations, you display items that are relevant, personalized, and that are likely to connect with that specific user. This ensures e-commerce personalization and it will boost sales and drive revenue.

Leverage social proof with product ratings

Providing reviews and displaying ratings for your products, from other customers, gives the shoppers and visitors the support they require to decide to purchase from you. 

Reviews, ratings, and testimonials help them make an informed purchase and it also inspires them to trust the product, your brand, and your business. They get to know, through this social proof, that the product they are opting for works and was loved by others.

Use Quick Add Buttons

It is not for all products that the customer ponders over; they forgo the time-consuming deliberation before making a purchase. This is especially the case for returning customers or for specific products like groceries. 

All you need to do is to create quick CTA buttons like add-to-cart or buy now to make the process easier and lead them quickly towards the checkout.

Additionally, you can also use buttons like add-to-wishlist for items that could take a bit of consideration from the customer’s point of view such as luxury items, complex items, etc.

How does product listing optimization impact customer decision journey?

Availability

One of the key factors when it comes to optimizing your product listing page is availability. The availability of the product in inventory and “buy box” ownership are two crucial factors. 

In addition, to have the optimum keywords and high-quality images that represent your product the best, you need to ensure that your products are available and not suppressed due to little to no inventory or stocks. This will tank your chances of ranking on search engines. 

Having a “buy box” helps one seller to differentiate from others. The “buy box” will also help with your inventory and make more sales than any other seller for that product. Thus, incorporating the “buy box” feature will prove to be advantageous.

Findability

You want your products to be found easily and the way to ensure this to use relevant, strong keywords. Weak keywords can render your products irrelevant in search results. 

A potential customer will probably search for the desired product maximum of two times and if both the times, irrelevant results pop up, they will not think twice before hopping to your competitor’s product. Here, the shopping experience is soured even before they had a chance to properly interact with your e-commerce business.

Findability comprises of organic and inorganic- meaning not only should be ensuring to rank for keywords within the product category but also that the customers should be able to navigate to your products. 

You need to evaluate the terms search most number of times, ones that are relevant to you product listing and add them to your product title, description and specification. It is also important to add them in alternate text (for images) and backend keywords. 

Conversion

Your products are supposed to stand apart from your competition and your users should browse through your product page, seeing if it matches their demands and needs. 

If it does meet their requirements, then your product is unique and interesting enough to exist in the market, thus ensuring conversions. 

You have to remember that your customer needs and demands should be provided for through a seamless experience- starting from finding to checkout process, increasing conversion rates and boosting your revenue.

Check if your product page is well-written and the description and copies used can be easily understood.

Post-Purchase

Ensuring customer satisfaction is crucial for your product listing optimization. By giving them a satisfactory experience with your product as well as your site, you will be at the receiving end of good ratings and reviews. 

By providing your customer a positive indication following the post-purchase process, you retain your customer and have a chance of inciting them to return to purchase from your e-commerce business website. Overall boosting your store, increasing your conversion rates, driving sales and generating revenue.

E-commerce Product Listings we love & why

Skullcandy

In their product listing page, they have gone the minimalist route and simply display the wide variety of earbuds they have, the different colours they are available in and the name of the buds. The images speak for the product description and they so employ the hover feature where the cursor when hovering on a product image, it enlargers automatic for a closer inspection. 

Paired with simple navigation and easy-to-browse format, Skullcandy has one of the best product listing pages and it is one of our favourites.

Logo Jeans

Logo jeans, a leading apparel e-commerce business in Southeast Asia, have a unique product listing page. 

The use of filtering and sorting features make it unique. You can navigate through the collection in an easier manner, filtering through the collection according to your liking and what you are specifically searching for. They display their images in accordance to the industry standard. The product is shown to be worn by models, thus highlighting how the product can be used and will give buyers an idea of how it can look on them as well. 

They also added a small heart on the top-right side corner of the images incase the customers would like to add the products to a wishlist instead of purchasing them right away. 

With clear scanable format, proper use of multimedia, navigation filters and unique quick buttons, Logo Jeans has an exemplary product listing page. 

Laneige

One of the best product listing pages, Laneige is a South Korean skincare that displays their products through high-quality images. With product names and their USPs mentioned, it invites the visitor to look for more information regarding the product. 

Additionally, they have mentioned the ratings for the products along with the number of reviews the ratings are based on. They have also added little tabs to highlight which of their products are new, bestsellers and are selected by their famous brand ambassadors. 

All-in-all, Laneige product listing page has an easy format that entices visitors to browse and makes use of the best available product listing strategies to their advantage. 

Tools to help optimise your Product Listings

Here are some tools that helps you create the most effective product listings are unique, well-written, and tailored to your target audience. 

1. Helium10: Helium10 is a paid tool that provides a variety of features to help you optimize your product listings for search engines. These features include keyword research, competitor analysis, and product listing optimization.

2. MerchantWords: MerchantWords is a paid tool that provides keyword research data and suggestions for your product listings. This data can be used to identify the most relevant keywords for your products and to optimize your product descriptions for those keywords.

3. Jungle Scout: Jungle Scout is a paid tool that provides a variety of features to help you research and launch products on Amazon. These features include keyword research, product analytics, and Amazon PPC management.

4. DataFeedWatch is a popular product feed management tool that helps e-commerce businesses optimize and manage their product data for multiple online sales channels. It is designed to streamline the process of creating, optimizing, and distributing product feeds to various platforms, such as Google Shopping, Facebook, Amazon, and more.

5. Google Merchant Center: Google Merchant Center is a free tool that allows you to add your products to Google Shopping. This can help your products show up in Google search results, which can lead to increased traffic and sales.