Product Details, or Lack Thereof, Are Plaguing Online Retailers

Three decades into the e-commerce revolution, a truly personalized and seamless online shopping experience remains elusive. Brands and retailers still struggle to make it easy for consumers to find what they want.

Consumers prefer online shopping for its convenience and expect a tailored experience. Unfortunately, they often don’t get it. The red cashmere sweater they seek might be described as “cardinal luxe,” a phrase rarely used in a consumer’s day-to-day vocabulary and unlikely to appear in their search queries. This disconnect creates problems for both shoppers and retailers, leading to unsold inventory, lost revenue, and poor customer experiences.

Retailers Must Embrace Natural Language — 'Consumer Speak' — to Win Over Shoppers

A new report shows that 80 percent of consumers have abandoned an online search because they couldn’t find what they were looking for. More than 50 percent attempt four to six searches before quitting, while 18 percent give up after only three searches. But they shouldn’t have to give up at all.

Retailers and brands must ensure their products are easily discoverable or risk losing business. They need to move beyond “merchant speak” — industry jargon used in product titles and descriptions — and adopt “consumer speak,” the natural language shoppers use. The same report found that 66 percent of consumers believe retailers use language that makes it difficult to find what they want, and 90 percent have found a product online but visited a physical store to purchase it due to unanswered questions about quality, fit, color or size.

These findings highlight the importance of product details. Shoppers rely on product images (74 percent), reviews (60 percent), and short descriptions (52 percent) to inform their purchases. Long product descriptions (44 percent) and videos (31 percent) also play a significant role.

Retailers must recognize the impact of accurate, relevant search results across platforms such as Google, social media, e-commerce sites, and marketplaces. Making products accessible starts with clear and effective descriptions.

Embracing AI to Make Shopping Smarter

Like every other industry, retail is evolving with a new generation of artificial intelligence. Generative AI, large language models, and agentic AI are transforming the retail ecosystem. Those retailers and brands that leverage these technologies effectively will gain a competitive edge.

The report also found that 40 percent of shoppers have used AI-powered search engines (e.g., ChatGPT, Perplexity) to assist with online shopping. As retailers bridge the gap between “merchant speak” and “consumer speak,” they must also prepare for AI-powered search engines to consume and redistribute their content. For instance, when a shopper asks ChatGPT for recommendations on a light blue dress for a spring wedding, a retailer’s e-commerce site should be optimized so AI can pull relevant product suggestions directly from it. Retailers must meet consumers where they are and adapt to changing search behaviors.

Consumers are ready to buy and embrace the variety, convenience and speed of online shopping. Retailers that quickly adopt technologies to enhance product descriptions and optimize search and discovery experiences will succeed.

Purva Gupta is co-founder and CEO of Lily AI, a retail technology company empowering retailers and brands by bridging the gap between consumers, merchants, marketers, and machines.