It’s all in the (Product) details

January 4th, 2007

E-commerce store owners - Never forget the power of details and content. You might have the cheapest price for an item online, or the most expensive, but you’ll always sell more if you provide a great description and detailed imagery.

There was a usability study on web sites that sold shoes via online catalog shopping. Each site was tested for click thrus, sales, and other factors. Only one site seemed to be selling far more shoes than the others, particularly a certain expensive hiking boot that the others offered as well.

When they studied the UI (user interface) and spoke to users it became apparent that what was selling that shoe was the pictures! Turns out people who hike know what they want. The catalog pictures highlighted the tread, workmanship, etc. and the description backed up the picture with details hiking boot shoppers seek.

How did they know to provide this specific info? The web site owner got a shoe salesman to advise them on their catalog! This is how they knew what shoppers are looking for.

It’s more than price. It’s knowing the product really well and sharing that knowledge.

Via Cre8asite Forums (Thanks Kim!)