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Titles and description

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The title and description of the item should be as descriptive and as accurate as possible. Imagine that you are describing your product to someone who can't see it, and also think about which words buyers might use to search for them.

If you list your products  on more than one platform or site, resist the temptation to copy and paste your product descriptions - this is really bad for your organic search results (i.e. Google, Bing). Make sure the content you publish to Folksy is unique to Folksy!

Title

The title is particularly important as it has the highest weighting in search results. To have the highest chance of matching a customer's search query, make your titles as complete as possible. Imagine describing the product to someone who can't see it. Think about including:

  • What it is (eg 'oval necklace with freshwater pearls')
  • Colours and material (eg 'sterling silver')
  • Ways to describe it in terms of style, pattern or season (eg 'statement jewellery', 'dainty', 'geometric')
  • Occasions or people it would make a good gift for (eg '30th anniversary gift')

    • Put the most important words at the beginning of the title. Titles can be up to 80 characters long. 

    Description

    Make your titles as comprehensive and detailed as possible. Think about all the questions a buyer might have before they feel confident ordering the item. We recommend using your first paragraph (see the 'Power Paragraph section below') to describe the item as clearly as possible. Then use the rest of your description to include as much information as you can. Make sure you include:

  • What it is (eg 'shoulder bag', 'hand-bound sketchbook for artists')
  • Who it would be a good gift for (eg 'grandparents', 'newborn baby gift')
  • Occasions it would be relevant for (eg 'Mother's Day', '1st anniversary', 'housewarming')
  • How you made it and the materials you have used
  • Where you made it - eg ('handmade in my studio on the west coast of Scotland')
  • Dimensions 

    • Descriptions can be up to 1,500 characters long - so use your word allowance to add as much relevant information as you can, including 'keywords' (words and short phrases) that will help your product get found in search results. Try to m    ake your descriptions as easy to read as possible. 

    Keywords
    Imagine you have made a handbag you want to list. Here are some possible keywords to include in your listing title, description and tags:

    • Physically descriptive words that real buyers are likely to use in a search -  red leather handbag, leather bag, shoulder bag, zipped pocket, rolled handles, hand stitched, flat base, black lining, magnetic closure, shiny, patent, small, hand-dyed leather.

    • Adjectives that appeal to your target audience – elegant, sustainable, on trend, handmade, heirloom, eighties, 80s


    Power Paragraph


    Create a paragraph that incorporates these keywords, while describing your product as clearly as possible. Search engines will mostly be interested in the first 40-50 words, so make these count and ensure it's full of the keywords someone would use when searching for that item. It must be readable, engaging and sound like a real person – don't just use a string of keywords or Google may penalise your listing.


    All of the keywords we have used have been highlighted to show just how search engine friendly our ‘power paragraph’ is. We have repeated the most important keywords “red” and “handbag” – don’t be tempted to over use keywords, this can have a negative effect -  but do use variations of a word such as bag, handbag, handbags.


    This patent leather red handbag is just what you need for a little extra va va voom! Made from quality materials, this handmade bag features a secure magnetic closure and internal zipped pocket with a hard wearing black cotton lining. The hand stitched, rolled handles are long enough to be worn over the shoulder and close to the body. Seriously sexy, this eighties-inspired handbag is on trend and red hot!


    Edit your description until it really works for you, removing unnecessary words and sentences until it captures the essence of the product you are selling. Take a look at other listings from successful sellers on Folksy or in any online shop for inspiration and develop your own style of writing your descriptions. This will also help to speed up the listing process.


    Don’t leave out important factors about the product – materials and dimensions are a must as it can be very difficult to gauge the size of an item or what it is made from through a photograph alone.


    For more information read our blog post on how to write a good product description >


    Find more advice on keywords and SEO for your online shop >


    Tags

    Tags are used within Folksy to help shoppers find what they are looking for. They are one of the factors our internal search engine uses to bring back relevant results. We match tags to searches done by shoppers on Folksy, so if they search ‘picnic blanket’ and you have tagged a product ‘picnic blanket’, it will show up in their search.

    NB. Tags are not the same as ‘keywords’ which are words or phrases people type into search engines like Google – but you can use keywords relevant to your products as your tags.

    How to use tags on Folksy

     
    • You can add 15 tags to your items when you list or edit a product.
    • Think carefully about which tags will best match shoppers’ searches.
    • Tags can be one word or a short phrase, but the shorter the better.
    • Long tags with multiple words are less likely to help your work be found because people may not use the exact same phrase with words in the exact same order.
    • Use tags alongside other ‘keywords’ or phrases in your titles and descriptions to help your work get found within Folksy and also by search engines like Google.
    • Tags should be separated by commas
    • Tags should not have the # hashtag in front of them
    • The maximum character count for all tags on a listing is 255
    You can find more advice on how to use tags and find the best tag for your product here:
    http://blog.folksy.com/2015/06/18/how-to-use-tags-on-folksy 
    http://blog.folksy.com/2016/11/22/how-to-use-tags 


    Please do not use any profanities or ‘rude’ words in your title, description or tags – it is against the terms of use!

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