Product titles and descriptions AI assistants can use
A good product title says in one line what the product is; a good description gives facts an assistant can use to compare two products. Sales talk does not help: Google asks for titles and descriptions without promotional text, and ChatGPT shortens texts itself.
What Google asks for
| Part | What Google asks for |
|---|---|
| Title | At most 150 characters. Must clearly identify the product and match the page. For variants, include colour or size. No promotional text such as "free shipping" and not all capitals. |
| Description | At most 5000 characters. Only information about the product: no links to your store, no sales and no other products. Must match the page; lists and line breaks are fine. |
OpenAI says ChatGPT may shorten or rewrite titles and descriptions, because every store writes them differently. The clearer the facts, the less gets lost in that rewrite.
A title that works
Use the structure brand + product type + key feature, plus colour or size for a variant:
- Not great:
SUNNY - BLUE(does not say what it is, all capitals) - Better:
Acme polarised sunglasses, blue frame
A description that works
Start with one sentence about what the product is and who it is for. Then list the facts a customer would ask about:
- Dimensions and weight, with units (cm, g, ml)
- Material and finish
- Use and care (dishwasher safe, washing instructions)
- What is in the box
- Origin or certification, if it matters
In the Shelv scan, a description counts as sufficient from 300 characters with at least two concrete measurements or specifications. That is our own rule of thumb, not a Google requirement.
Do it efficiently
- Start with your best-selling products; that is where it pays off most.
- Make sure the same title and description are in your product data (JSON-LD). Read how to check it.
- Rewriting many products at once? Have someone else spot-check: one wrong size gets repeated by an AI assistant too.
How does your product page score?
Paste the address of a product page into the free scan. Within seconds you see what AI assistants can and cannot read.