Are you making this mistake in your titles?

I like to browse around on Etsy and way too often I see titles that just make me wonder what the seller was thinking while writing it. I’m not doing anything special, I’m searching and browsing listings in grid view.

Why are these titles a mistake? Because out of context they don’t make any sense to me. They simply don’t convey a summary of the product.

They’re listed below. Notice how they have “…” at the end. This is literally what I see on the screen UNTIL I open the listing.

The problem is these titles don’t rope me in. If you want to very cleverly cut off the title in a “to be continued” sort of build of an anticipation, AWESOME! Otherwise, sell me with the part of the title I can see.

Not to mention that Etsy relevancy search is actually heavily weighted towards the words used in the first part of your title.

If you’re reading my list and thinking “Hey, that’s my listing!”, take it as a friendly critique.

I look at these titles and don’t have a clue what they are.

Tell me that I’m crazy, that clearly you know what each item is by just reading the title.

Oh yeah and mobile only shows 22 characters vs the 31 you’re seeing in the listings above! If you haven’t heard, mobile was responsible for 53% of Etsy visits in 2014, up from 41% in 2013. 2015? You can bet it will be even higher.

Here’s how I browse and choose what to click:

1. Pictures catch my interest. High quality, interesting setting, connects with me at some level.
2. I glance down at the title. If it matches my expectations from the pictures and clearly tells me what it is, I’ll click it to learn more. If it looks spammy (clearly stuffing tags into it), isn’t immediately clear what it is, then I don’t click and move on.

Here’s how to write a good title…

1. Think about your customer. What are they searching for when they’re in the market for your product?
2. Make it very clear what you’re selling within the first 22 characters or you’ll miss out of mobile opportunities. I’m all about using the full relevancy potential of titles, but remember people come first. Sell me early. Plus the first part of your title is more relevant to search than the rest of it.
3. Test your title for competition in Etsy. This is where I tell you Marmalead will make your life A LOT easier. Take a look at the listings that come up. Titles, tags, and thumbnails.
4. Pick the best title which is a delicate balance between high relevancy, succinct description/interest , and reasonable competition. Remember, I have to find your item, and when I do, it has to catch my attention enough and be interesting enough for me to click it.

Hey! You mentioned Marmalead, what the heck is that?

Etsy SEO and good selling practices are very misunderstood. We fix that.