SEO for eBay: Listing Descriptions

Now that we’ve figured out how to write keyword rich listing titles for good SEO, it’s time to look at how to write good listing descriptions.

Once again, we want to think about the keywords that our buyer might type into the search bar to find our item. There is one key thing to keep in mind. With traditional SEO, you want to have a lot of text on your page for obvious reasons… the more words means the more opportunity for keyword placement. However, we also need to remember that we are not just trying to capture the search engine’s attention, we’re trying to make a sale. We must keep our buyer in mind as we are writing our description.

SEO is not just all about keywords and having the right placement. It’s also about appearance. You can use all the right keywords and do all the technical steps just right, but if your listing is formatted in a way that is unappealing, your viewer will not stay on the page. Once you’ve captured their attention by your keywords in the title, you need to capture their attention by your appearance.

Think about how you buy on eBay. Do you want to read paragraphs of text about the history of the item you are looking at? Do you care where the buyer got it, how long they have had it, or that it was their mother-in-law’s most loved possession? No!

Keep it Short & Sweet

Instead of writing in sentences and paragraphs, consider writing with short keyword rich phrases. Lets use the example of the Nike shoes that we created a title for in the last SEO article. Here is how NOT to write a description:

Up for auction are these stunning Nike tennis shoes. These shoes are a men’s size 10. They are red, white, and blue and would be perfect for 4th of July. They are new in the box and have never been worn. I’ve had them sitting in my closet for a year and never wore them so I decided that it was time to list them on eBay and get my money back. They will be a good pair of sneakers for school, play, running, sports, etc. Thank you for checking out my listing!

This is a relatively short description to some that we’ve seen out there but I think you get the point. I’m sorry, but no one cares that these shoes would be perfect for 4th of July and that they’ve been sitting in your closet for a year. Also, if they are looking for Nike shoes, they probably already know what they want to use them for, so there is no need to go into all that detail.

Instead of writing all that boring text, consider the main points that you are trying to make and write a description like this:

1. Nike Tennis Shoes

2. Men’s Size 10

3. Red, White, & Blue

4. New in Box, Never Worn

Now that was much easier to read… it’s short and to the point. No fluff, just the basic information that the buyer wants to know. No only is this the information that the buyer wants to know, but it is most likely the specific keywords that they might type into the search bar to find your item. You’ll also notice that we used bullet points to list all the main keywords about the item. People are drawn to lists… it catches the eye. We highly recommend using bullet points in your listing to create simplicity to all the information that you want to share. If you would like to check out our listing descriptions, here is a link to our eBay store, The Family Pickers.

While this may not be what the SEO experts would recommend, as far as how many words you put in your listing, it could be what makes the sale in the end.

Bottom line, give the buyer exactly what they want to know about your item, no less and no more.

If you like this article, please share with your friends and followers. Thank You!

#ebaysellingtips #SEO