How to Improve Your E-Commerce Product Pages

ecommerce

If you’re running an online store and getting traffic but not many sales, there’s a good chance the problem is on your product pages.

The good news is that you don’t need a whole new website or a big redesign. Over the years, I’ve worked with clients on both Shopify and WooCommerce, and I’ve seen how a few small changes like layout, copy, or clarity can make a real difference.

Here are the areas I usually focus on.

1. Make the product title more useful

Most product titles are just names. That’s fine internally, but not always helpful to your customer. It helps to add a short description right in the title. Something that makes it clearer what the product is or why it matters. Even a small phrase like “great for everyday use” or “lightweight and durable” can help.

2. Add a quick summary near the top

The top of the page is where people decide whether to keep scrolling. A short line that sums up what the product is and why it’s useful can give people the confidence to keep going. Without it, the page can feel unfinished, even if the design is clean.

3. Make sizing or variant selection easier

If your product comes in sizes or formats, that info needs to be clear and easy to find. I usually recommend a visual chart, or a short note like “most customers choose Medium.” You want to remove friction wherever possible.

4. Label your color or style options clearly

If you use color swatches or variant buttons, make sure each one is clearly labeled. Tiny dots with no text don’t always translate well, especially on mobile. If something is out of stock, show that visually so customers don’t get frustrated trying to pick it.

5. Rewrite the description in a way people can skim

A lot of product pages either say too little or too much. I try to keep it simple. Start with a short intro, then break out the rest into bullet points or short sections with clear headings. Don’t just list specs. Tell people why those features actually matter.

6. Add a little trust

If you have reviews, use them. If you don’t, that’s okay. You can still add small trust builders like “over 1,000 sold,” or “used by professionals,” or a simple return policy. It gives people confidence to buy from you.

7. Be clear about shipping

If someone is about to buy, they shouldn’t have to click through a bunch of tabs to find out when the item will arrive. I usually suggest adding a short line near the price or Add to Cart button. Something like “ships in 1 to 2 business days” or “free shipping over $50.”

8. Make sure it works well on mobile

If most of your traffic is on mobile, test your product page on your phone. Are the buttons easy to tap? Is the Add to Cart button visible without scrolling too much? Small changes here can make a big difference.

You probably don’t need a new theme

Most of the time, product pages don’t need a full redesign. They just need to be clearer, easier to read, and more helpful. The goal is to remove confusion and help people feel confident about what they’re buying.

If you want help figuring out what to change on your own site, I offer one-time strategy sessions and ongoing optimization work. Get in touch if that’s something you’re interested in.

Case Study: Fixing a WooCommerce Website for a New Client

I met Steven at his store on Bloomfield Avenue in Northern New Jersey. After I gave him my business card he told me his website needs help. The checkout wasn’t working, and users couldn’t even add products to their cart. This was how the previous web development vendor left things before their arrangement ended.

The website was powered by WordPress (managed by Bluehost), and used WooCommerce as its ecommerce solution. I helped him create a Stripe account, and connect it to his online store.  I finished configuring a premium WordPress theme called BeTheme, and gave him a multi-week marketing plan to help sales grow.

website screenshot

I used an image manipulation program (the GIMP) to create graphic assets used throughout the shop:

website graphic design

Many times I have to pick up where someone else left off. I could tell you another story about inheriting a Frankenstein tech stack from a previous vendor. They left off on non-talking terms after demanding back work payments to release the credentials to my team. My skill in figuring things out, regardless of the technology involved, shines in times like these.

My company tag line is “I can build your website” – it should really be “I can fix your website”. Business owners try to do it themselves, and often make it most of the way. When you need help, I am there to carry it over the finish line. I’ve been asked if services like Wix cuts into my business – it’s actually the opposite. Broken, incomplete, or unoptimized websites created on easy-to-use platforms have provided a solid market for my expertise.

Organic market

Local small businesses are what make neighborhoods unique and give families a chance to make a living themselves. It feels great to help people knowing we can both benefit. You can read more about the plan I use to help businesses with their existing website in another blog post.

Membership Discounts Without a Plugin

As part of the marketing plan, we decided to add membership accounts to the WordPress ecommerce website for Organic Sun Market. Enabling that capability was a few settings in the dashboard: WooCommerce > Settings > Accounts & Privacy

woocommerce accounts and privacy settings

I also added a “My Account” link to the site’s global navigation.

menu in wordpress

By default, WooCommerce provides a “My Account” page where users can log in, view their orders, update their information, and more. You can specify a custom page in the advanced settings: WooCommerce > Settings > Advanced

woocommerce advanced setting

The account page specified uses a WooCommerce short code to handle the content: [woocommerce_my_account]

account page shortcode

Change menu text if user is logged into WordPress

I wanted the “My Account” menu text to change if the user is not logged in. I was able to do this with the WordPress hook `wp_nav_menu` and a simple string replacement PHP function:

add_filter('wp_nav_menu', 'change_my_account_menu_item', 10, 2);

function change_my_account_menu_item($nav_menu, $args) {
// Check if the user is not logged in
    if (!is_user_logged_in()) {
        // Change "My Account" link to "Login/Register"
        $nav_menu = str_replace('My account', 'Login/Register', $nav_menu);
    }
    return $nav_menu;
}

To incentivize users to create an account, we offer a 5% discount to any one logged in. The checkout page contains conditional messaging (depending on wether they are logged in or not) to communicate this incentive.

conditional css messaging on checkout

Hide or show UI elements if user is logged into WordPress

I am able to apply that  style condition with two custom CSS classes, specific to the presence of the WordPress body class ‘logged-in’:

.only-show-while-logged-in{display: none;}
body.logged-in .dont-show-while-logged-in{display:none;}
body.logged-in .only-show-while-logged-in{display:block;}

Apply WooCommerce discount to logged in users

I applied the discount by using custom PHP code in the child theme’s functions.php file with the `woocommerce_before_calculate_totals` hook:

add_action( 'woocommerce_before_calculate_totals', 'no_discount_if_not_logged_in', 10, 1);
function no_discount_if_not_logged_in( $cart ) {
	if (is_user_logged_in()) {              
		foreach ( $cart->get_cart() as $cart_item ) {        
			$discount_eliminate = $cart_item['data']->get_regular_price();
			$discount_percentage = 5; // Set your desired discount percentage
			$discount_amount = $discount_eliminate * ($discount_percentage / 100);
			$new_price = $discount_eliminate - $discount_amount;

			$cart_item['data']->set_price($new_price);
		}
	}
}

Apply WooCommerce discount to logged in users on a specific category of products

Later, we changed the logic to be a 10% discount for logged-in members, but only on products that were part of a specific category called “bundles”.

add_action( 'woocommerce_before_calculate_totals', 'discount_for_specific_category', 10, 1);

function discount_for_specific_category( $cart ) {
    if ( is_user_logged_in() ) {
        // Define the category slug you want to apply the discount to
        $target_category = 'bundles';

        foreach ( $cart->get_cart() as $cart_item ) {
            $product_id = $cart_item['product_id'];

            // Check if the product belongs to the target category
            if ( has_term( $target_category, 'product_cat', $product_id ) ) {
                $discount_eliminate = $cart_item['data']->get_regular_price();
                $discount_percentage = 10; // Set your desired discount percentage
                $discount_amount = $discount_eliminate * ( $discount_percentage / 100 );
                $new_price = $discount_eliminate - $discount_amount;

                $cart_item['data']->set_price( $new_price );
            }
        }
    }
}

Print Design

Many local small businesses take their marketing offline and into the real world. Print marketing is a business I have been a part of for almost two decades. I have designed, delivered, and distributed flyers, menus, business cards and more. As the holiday season approached, Steven asked me to create a poster for one of his healthy products.

graphic design request via text message

He sent me a draft he has been working on, along with some inspiration examples that expressed the direction he wanted things to go. This was the final product:

Dog treats poster

And here it is hanging in the store front:

Printed poster design