25 Shopify meta description examples & how to write the perfect meta description
Introduction:
The meta description tag is an HTML element that tells Google what the page is about. It is the content that is displayed on the search snippet along with the page title.
In this article we are going to look at how to optimize meta descriptions specifically for Shopify. First, we will look into what is a meta description, why it is important, and the ideal way to write the perfect meta description for Shopify. Then, we will look into real examples of meta descriptions from Shopify stores that are ranking well on Google. Studying these examples will give you a really good understanding on how to to craft the perfect meta description tag.
What is a meta description on Shopify?
A meta description is something that tells Google what your Shopify store is about. You can add a meta description to any page by adding the meta description tag in the head section of the page.
But search engines do not always show the text you've added to the meta description tag. Sometimes, Google instead shows different text when they think the meta description tag you've added doesn't correctly answer the searchers query. And this can be a problem as the meta descriptions wont be properly optimized - missing call to actions, not highlighting your products etc.
Why are meta descriptions important for a Shopify store?
Think of the meta description as your first salesman and consider someone searching on Google as a potential customer seeking more information. A good salesman will give enough information to get the customers attention. Similarly, the meta description (along with the page title) is the first thing that your potential customers see about you. The meta description tags should offer enough information to the customer so that he is tempted to visit your store. No matter how well your Shopify store is optimized, if you have poorly written meta descriptions, your potential customers will not even visit your store.
A well written meta description can hugely improve CTRS (click-through rates) - i.e. improve the number of people visiting your store from Google. Hence it is important to take the time to optimize your meta description tags.
What is the optimal length for a meta description?
Over the years Google has experimented with different meta description lengths - from 150 characters to 320 characters in 2018, and back to between 50-160 characters currently. It is important to keep it under 160 characters, as Google truncates long meta descriptions.
If Google truncates your meta description, it will hurt your CTRs. This is because a truncated meta description will not include your whole message and will probably be missing the call to action. Thus making it less likely for a potential customer to click on your SERP listing, and visit your ecommerce store.
Shopify meta description tutorial
Let's look at the important things you must get right while writing a good meta description for Shopify.
1. Avoid duplicate meta description tags
Duplicate meta descriptions can happen if you upload hundreds of products in bulk. To save time, merchants often repeat the same meta description across multiple products and this results in duplicates.
Each page's meta description should be unique and directly related to what the page is selling. You are missing out on a huge opportunity to entice the user to visit your store if you have copy-pasted the same meta descriptions across all your products. Having the same meta description across many pages results in a poorer experience for your user.
What to do: You should ideally create unique meta descriptions for all your pages. However this is not always possible if you have hundreds or thousands of products. In such cases, Google recommends manually creating meta descriptions for all your important pages, and to programatically generate meta descriptions for all your other pages. For example - for your Shopify store you could create meta descriptions based on different variables like the product title, price etc. By using variables you can ensure that each meta description is unique.
2. Take time to write compelling meta descriptions
Think of your page title and your meta description as a paid ad. A paid ad has limited space, competes with other ads, and the main purpose of a paid ad is to get people to click on the ad and to visit your store. Similarly, while crafting your meta descriptions, think about giving enough information to a potential customer, so that they are tempted to click on your SERP listing and to visit your store.
What do do:
1) On shopify, when someone is searching for a specific product to buy, they will need more information regarding different attributes of the product - the price, the quality, the manufacturer, the shipping time, customer feedback etc. It is important that you understand what is important for your potential customer, and you highlight them in the meta descriptions.
2) Include a call to action in the meta description: After a potential customer reads your meta description, you have to remind them to visit your store with a good call to action. We will look at examples of good meta descriptions later in the article, which will give you a good idea on how to better your meta descriptions.
3. Include primary keywords in the meta description
Each pages meta description should include the primary keyword the page is targeting. Ideally place the keyword towards the beginning of the meta description. Another added benefit is that if the searched term is present in your meta description, Google will highlight the term in bold. This makes your meta description stand out among the rest.
If you are programatically creating meta descriptions for hundreds of products, it is recommended to include the primary keywords in the product title, and to then include the product title variable in the meta description. That way your meta description tag will also include the primary keyword.
Meta description examples for e-commerce
The best way to get better at writing good meta descriptions is to actually see what works. For the examples below, we looked at the most successful Shopify stores, to understand how they have written their meta descriptions. We then analyzed them to see what is good, and what could be improved. Going through these will give you a good idea on how to improve meta descriptions for your Shopify store.
Meta description for Clothing Store examples
1. Gym Shark
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: aesthetic look, tapered to leg, tonal.
What could be improved:
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
- ❌ Missing call to action
2. Red Dress
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: gold base, secure lock
- ✅ Included call to action: Shop now!
- ✅ Correct meta description length
3. mnml
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: slim, tapered fit, 98% cotton
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
4. CUPSHE
What's good:
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: v-neck, padding
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing primary keyword in meta description
- ❌ Missing call to action
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
5. Kith
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: silk, cotton, zipped, pockets
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
6. Cettire
What's good:
- ✅ Correct meta description length
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing primary keyword in meta description
- ❌ Missing call to action
7. Allbirds
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included features important for customer: lightweight, free shipping
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
8. Loreta
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
9. Ripndip
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
10. Bohme
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Could add a better call to action
Meta description examples for Food and drink
11. Bulletproof
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: rich, creamy, spices, oil
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
Meta description examples for Beauty & Cosmetics
12. ColourPop
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: hydrating, oil-free, fresh and healthy
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing a call to action.
Meta description examples for Automotive
13. Omaze
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer: speed, supercar
What could be improved:
- ❌ Meta description is too long and truncated by Google, thus missing important information.
- ❌ Missing call to action
Meta description examples for Home and decor
14. Fangamer
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
Meta description examples for Jewelry and accessories
15. Inspire Uplift
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
Meta description examples for Sports and recreation
16. G Fuel
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
What could be improved:
- ❌ Meta description is too long and truncated by Google, thus missing important information.
- ❌ Missing call to action
17. Decathlon
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
- ✅ Correct meta description length
- ✅ Included call to action keyword : 'Buy'
18. Until Gone
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Correct meta description length
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
- ✅ Included call to action with a save offer
19. Misthub
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
20. Evape
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
- ✅ Correct meta description length
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
Shopify collection page meta description example
Most of your organic traffic from Google should land on your collection pages. Someone searching for less specific, more general keywords should be taken to your collection pages that showcases multiple products related to the searched keyword.
21. BAJAAO
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Highlighting a wide range of products related to the search
- ✅ Correct meta description length
- ✅ Included call to action
22. Mavi
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included multiple options under women-tops
- ✅ Correct meta description length
- ✅ Included call to action
Shopify product page meta description examples
Shopify product page meta descriptions should be tailored towards the specific product you are selling - this is different from collection page meta descriptions shown in the next section.
When someone is searching for a product on Shopify, they are looking for more information related to the product, and thus you should promote the specific product's attributes/features in the meta description. Have a look at a few examples below.
23. Peak Design
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
24. KBDFANS
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword in meta description
- ✅ Included product features important for customer
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
Shopify home page meta description examples
Your home page should only traffic from keywords related to your brand.
If someone is searching for a specific product, they should be taken to a product page. And if someone is searching for a more generic product keyword, they should be taken to a collection page. So your home page should ideally only be getting direct traffic from keywords that are related to your brand name.
25. Goulet Pens
What's good:
- ✅ Included primary keyword (brand name) in meta description
- ✅ Included features important for customer
What could be improved:
- ❌ Missing call to action
- ❌ The meta description is too long and is automatically truncated by Google, and thus could be missing important keywords.
How to update meta descriptions on Shopify
How to Set Shopify Homepage Meta Description
Updating your Shopify home page meta description is really easy via the Shopify admin panel. Just click on 'Online store' -> 'Preferences' and you will see the section where you can add the meta description for your home page manually.
How to Set Page Meta Description for Shopify Collections Pages
For updating the collection page meta descriptions, click on 'Products' -> 'Collections' and go to the collection you want to update. Then at the bottom of the page you will see the search engine listing box which you can use to update the meta description for the Shopify collection.
How to Set Meta Description for Shopify Product Pages
Updating the product page meta descriptions is also relatively easy via the Shopify admin. Choose the product you want to update by clicking on 'Products'. Then at the bottom of the screen you will see the option to update the meta description for the product page.
Bulk updating Shopify meta descriptions
Although it is easy to manually update meta descriptions on Shopify, if you have a few hundred products, you cannot do this manually. You will then need to rely on bulk updating them via apps.
The recommended approach is to manually write meta descriptions for all your important pages, and then bulk update meta descriptions for your products and collections by using product variables.
For example, for a collection you can add this:
“Shop the entire collection of [product type] from [Shop name]. Free Shipping on orders over [Minimum price].”
By using variables like product type, price - it ensures that all your meta descriptions will be unique.
Bonus: 5 SEO Tips Regarding Meta Descriptions
- Make each meta description unique.
- Include the primary keyword in your meta description.
- Included a call to action to incentivize the customer to click on your SERP listing and to visit your Shopify store.
- Include free/fast shipping, discounts if you are offering them, as they are an extra incentive for a user to click to your website.
- Include product features/attributes that you think are important for the customer. i.e. price, build or any other features custom to your product.