Writing a description of an online store category: text that helps you choose, not selects volume
Writing a description of an online store category begins not with the text, but with the assortment: we open the page itself and see what the buyer has to choose between. Next, the text is written under this question - a short introduction above the products and an expanded block "how to choose" under them. Volume specifies the number of real differences in a category, not the rate of signs. Sometimes the analysis ends with the conclusion that there is nothing to write here: there is a lack of a filter or a title. Then we say so, and this part of the work is free.
working days: calculated from the depth of the product, not from the volume of signs
free analysis of the category, 1-3 working days
Before the estimate
1,602
Measured find
product pages for 32 category nodes — wholesale supplier of medical consumables, measurement 07/31/2026
a catalog of 3,145 products without a site map and without structured data — a wholesale store of building materials
The second measured finding
items for the written text: the competition in issuing does not depend on us
What we do not promise
What's included
Complete list of work and what you get as a result
We analyze the category to the text: how many items are there, by what signs they are divided, what the buyer must decide before clicking on the card. This is the frame of the future text.
We collect questions from the site's internal search, search engine tips, and the Search Console report — then the text answers them in the order in which they are asked.
We write the block "how to choose" with an explanation of the difference between the types of goods - the part for which the page is read at all.
We divide the text into two places: two or three sentences above the products and an expanded block below them, so that the catalog remains on the first screen.
Align the first-level title, page title, and description with the text itself: the three fields must say the same thing, otherwise the snippet promises one thing and the page shows another.
We put breadcrumbs and structured category data — BreadcrumbList for a place in the structure, ItemList for the item list itself.
We make internal links to related categories and to materials explaining the choice - from the text, and not in a separate "similar sections" block.
We record the "before" status: page impressions and requests, rejection rate, share of conversions to cards. Without this cut, there will be nothing to compare with later.
We give the rules with examples, according to which your content manager will write the following categories in the same structure.
When this service isn't right
What's not included — so there are no surprises at delivery
Bulk filling metatags throughout the directory is a separate work with rules and templates.
Product card descriptions within a category.
Layout of new blocks on the page: if the topic does not have space for the bottom text, the template edit is counted separately.
Promises of items according to the written text.
Fact-checking your product claims: Compatibility and standards are confirmed by your specialist.
Who it's for
Situations where this service delivers results
Scenario 1 of 5
The category is displayed in the search, but it is not switched from
There are impressions in the Search Console report, there are few clicks, and those who come in go from the first screen. This usually means one thing: the person did not understand how these twenty items differ from each other, and returned to select options elsewhere.
We'll review your situation in a free audit
Scenario 2 of 5
Only your manager knows the difference between items
Types, standards, compatibility, batch sizes - all this lives in the mind of the person taking the calls. The page contains a list of prices. Our job here is to take that explanation out of the manager and put it where the customer needs it.
Scenario 3 of 5
Flat catalog: thousands of products in several dozens of sections
Measured example: 1,602 product pages and 32 categories — about fifty cards per node. All the selection work falls on these 32 pages, and the text on them weighs more than on a site with a branching tree of sections.
Scenario 4 of 5
The text below is already there, but it was written according to the norm of signs
Three thousand characters between the filter and the products, where the first two paragraphs convey the name of the category. We do not add such text: we cut it to the part that answers the choice question and transfer it under the list of items.
Scenario 5 of 5
Wholesale category, where the questions are completely different
Minimum batch, shipping conditions, certificates, delivery terms. The text here is closer to a commercial offer than to a reference, and is written for someone who buys regularly, not for the first time.
Free category analysis before writing
We open a specific category, see what the buyer encounters in it, and check whether the text is needed here at all. Sometimes you don't need text, but a filter or a title. Analysis is done from the outside, access is not required for it.
What we measure
What is already on the pageTitle, page title, description, existing text and its place - before or after the products.
How many items in the categoryIt depends on what the text should be: a hint for choosing among hundreds of items or a description of a small selection. We count with the regular engine search, page by page.
What are the differences between the itemsThis is exactly what should be explained in the text. If the difference is only in the brand, the text will be short and honest.
What people are asking about this categorySee internal search, hints and appeals. Questions shape the structure of the text, not the other way around. In a catalog with several dozen items, search is almost never used - then there are only two sources.
Condition of marking and bread crumbsDoes the search engine understand the place of the category in the structure. We've seen stores with thousands of items without a single block of structured data.
Does the search engine see the page?A category can be perfect and at the same time missing from the sitemap. We check it before writing.
Is there something to measure the resultAnalytics counters and access to the query report. Without them, the effect of the text will have to be discussed based on feelings.
What you get
Conclusion, whether this category needs a text and of what volume.
The plan of the text: what questions it closes and in what order.
A list of technical details that should be fixed together with the text.
A 30-minute conversation on the document, where you can argue with the conclusions.
Timeline: 1-3 working days
Why is it free
Because in about a third of cases, the answer is "you don't need text, you need a title and a filter." It is more profitable for us to say it right away than to take money for work that will not change anything.
What's next
If the text is needed, we write one as a pilot, show it, agree on the rest of the categories according to the same structure.
Short form: your contact and site URL
Contract, act and 30-day warranty
Every project gets a written contract: scope, deadlines, amount, acceptance procedure. After delivery — act and invoice, then 30 calendar days of warranty.
Sole proprietor & bank transfer
The contractor is a registered sole proprietor. Payment by invoice with closing documents.
Rights & access — yours
Code, design and materials transfer to you after full payment. Domain, hosting, repository and analytics are registered to you.
Client portal instead of email chains
During the project you get access to a portal: contracts, invoices, acts and project status in one place.
European clients
Among our work — projects for Norway, Bulgaria, Moldova and Spain.
Verifiable numbers
Every case in the portfolio comes with a link to a live site and a technical measurement.
Audit first, then pricing
There is no price list on the site intentionally: the scope of the same work differs multiples between clients.
We say "no" when unsure
If the task isn't ours or the deadline is unrealistic — we tell you upfront.
What affects the price
Why two seemingly identical tasks are priced differently
How much you need to understand the productThe main variable. "Gloves" can be disassembled in half a day: size, material, purpose. "Consumable materials for sterilization" - for several, because there you need to check the types, standards and compatibility before writing even one sentence.
Is there someone to check the facts with?The person from your side who confirms the statement about the product in a day keeps the deadline at the lower limit. If the confirmation waits for weeks, the text also waits with it: we do not publish unverified information about someone else's assortment.
How many question sources are availableThe internal search and inquiry report gives a ready list of what they want from you in the words of the buyer. When there is no search on the site, and access to the report is not given, the question has to be restored from the assortment and managers' conversations - it takes longer.
Page state around textIf the category does not have a title, breadcrumbs and markup, it must be closed along with the text. The work is small, but it is there, and it is counted as a separate line.
Language versionsA second language is not a translation of the same file. Questions of choice in different audiences do not always coincide, and machine translation of text about compatibility and standards gives errors in the most expensive place.
Who enters the text in the CMSIf we contribute, we need access and understanding of the theme: in the part of the templates, the description of the category is displayed in one block above the list of products, and the lower block has to be added by editing the theme.
Cases
Tasks and results in numbers — all metrics measured by us
wholesale supplier of medical consumables
Task
Assess the status of catalog categories before ordering texts.
Solution
Analysis of the site map by page types, checking of structured data and language versions, measurement of return speed - all from the outside, without access.
Result
Measurement 07/31/2026: the site map has 1,656 addresses — 1,602 product pages, 32 categories, 17 manufacturer pages, 4 information pages and the main page. There are 32 category nodes for 1,602 products, that is, about fifty cards per section: all the selection work falls on these 32 pages. There is no structured data on the main page at all, there is only one language version. First server response 364.7ms, full markup download 501.3ms at 401.6KB. That is, speed is not a problem here - the problem is that there are few selection nodes and they are empty.
wholesale building materials store
Task
Check whether it makes sense to write category texts just now.
Solution
Counting the catalog page by page through the engine's standard search, checking service files, markups and what is already configured in analytics.
Result
Measure 07/31/2026: 3,145 products — 31 full pages of 100 items and 45 for the last one. There is no sitemap at all: /sitemap.xml returns 200 with a body of 0 bytes, the engine feed is also empty, /sitemap_index.xml is 404, and the Sitemap directive in robots.txt is commented out from the engine's default template. There is no structured data. At the same time, GTM, GA4 and remarketing with product list viewing events work — there is measurement, but there is no visibility. TTFB 547.3ms with 212.1KB markup. The text of the category is not the first item in the queue here, and we said so.
Did not find your case?
Describe how it works on your side — we will tell you whether “Category description as a landing page” fits and what it means in your situation. No brief and no call: one question, one answer.
Process steps
Transparent stages with approval at every step
Total duration:5–30 days
1
Sorting out the category and deciding whether to write
1-3 working days
We look at the page from the outside: number of items, signs of division, existing text, title, markup, presence in the site map. The output is the answer "text of this volume is needed" or "header and filter first, text later". This stage is free.
2
Buyer's question and text plan
1-3 working days
We download the queries from the Search Console report on this page, the internal search log and the list of the most frequently asked questions by your managers. We make a plan: what questions does the text cover and in what order. We approve the plan before writing — it is more expensive to rearrange the blocks in the finished text.
3
Text and fact check
2-10 working days
We write an introduction above the products and an expanded block "how to choose" below them. Then the text goes to your specialist: types, standards, compatibility, equipment — everything we claim about the product must be confirmed by you. This is the longest stage and it is he who draws the upper limit of the term.
4
Putting on the page and binding
1-3 working days
We enter the text, agree on the first-level title, page title and description, put breadcrumbs and structured data, and link to adjacent sections. Here we check that the catalog did not go beyond the first screen on the phone.
5
Measurement and rules for the following categories
1-3 working days
After three or four weeks, we take the same numbers as before the work: requests and page views, rejection rate, share of conversions to cards. Together with them, we give the rules with examples - so that your content manager closes the following categories without us.
Technologies & integrations
What we build on and what it connects to
Stack
Internal site search data is the most accurate source of questions, because these are the words of the buyer without our mediation; works only where the search is actually used, queries will not be typed in the catalog with several dozen positions
Search prompts and clarifying queries — as formulated by those who are not yet on your site; it's demand in general, not demand for your inventory
Google Search Console — report on page requests; he hides part of the requests, there will not be a complete list
Screaming Frog — downloads titles, metadata, and text availability for all categories in one table; on tens of thousands of addresses rests in memory
JSON-LD BreadcrumbList and ItemList — the place of the category in the structure and the list of items; markup does not raise the position, and markup of what is not on the page - the risk of sanctions
Uniqueness check — share of coincidence with other categories of the site; a single phrase match does not prove anything by itself
Integrations
Google Search Console
GA4
internal site search
Selective text vs. character volume text
How this option differs from the alternative
Canvas for 3,000 characters at the bottom of the categoryOur approach
What determines the lengthnorm of marks from the technical taska list of questions that the buyer decides before clicking on the card
Where is it on the pagesolid block, often between the filter and the goodstwo or three sentences above, the expanded part below the list of items
What does the buyer do with itscrolls past because the product is visible belowreads the paragraph that relates to his choice and goes to the card
What happens in similar categoriesrearranged paragraphs from the same blank — and two pages compete with each otherdifferent texts or merging categories if there is no difference
How the result is checkedby the fact of handing over: the signs are written, the work is closedsection of requests, refusals and transitions to cards before and after
What we need from you
We can't start without this — best to prepare in advance
1Access to the category and to the CMS to enter the text - or have someone on your side enter it for our document.
2An explanation from your specialist on how the types of goods in this category differ in essence: compatibility, standards, equipment.
3Search Console data per page, if available: for which queries it is already displayed and how many impressions it has.
4Decision where the text will be on the page. This affects both reading and the length of the path to the product.
5One person with the right to say "yes" to the plan of the text - otherwise the approval goes in circles longer than the text was written.
If something is missing — let us know, we'll help you gather it or do it as a separate task.
FAQ
Most frequently asked questions — with concrete answers
How does it differ from working with the texts of the entire catalog?
The scale and depth of immersion. Working with a catalog is a set of rules and templates for hundreds of pages, where the value is that no field is left empty. Here is one page, which we delve into like a landing page: we analyze the assortment, extract from the manager the difference between the types of goods, collect the buyer's questions. Both works are needed, but they have different budgets and different deadlines, and it is not beneficial for you to confuse them.
Where to put the text — above or below the products?
Share. Two or three sentences at the top: what is here and what to follow. The rest is under the list of items, for those who have reached the bottom and are undecided. There is a technical detail here: in the part of the templates, the description of the category is displayed in one field above the products, and there is simply no second place in the topic. Then a template edit is needed — a separate little job that we call up front, not at the end.
How many characters should be in the category description?
As much as it is necessary to close the issue of choice. Usually 1,500-3,000 characters are produced, and half of them are the "how to choose" block. But if there are ten items of the same brand in the category, the honest text will be a paragraph, and we will not stretch it. The volume here is a consequence, not a task: in the requirement "3,000 characters per category" the text turns into a retelling of the title of the section.
We have 3 thousand products and no markup - will the text help?
Less than markup and sitemap. Our random find: a wholesale building materials store with 3,145 products, where /sitemap.xml returns an empty body, /sitemap_index.xml returns a 404, and the Sitemap directive in robots.txt is commented out from the default blank. There is no structured data, but analytics and remarketing with product view events work. A page that a search engine does not see will not receive a visitor, no matter how much you write on it. Just to be honest: the site map also does not guarantee indexing - it is only a list of addresses that you ask to be bypassed, and the real state of the index is visible in your Search Console.
Is it possible to write one text for several similar categories?
No. Two almost identical texts give two almost identical pages, and the search engine will choose between them, not you - the signals will be separated, instead of one strong page, two weak ones will come out. If the categories really do not differ, the correct answer is to combine them into one, rather than writing two texts. This is a directory structure decision, and it's up to you.
We have wholesale - do we also need category texts there?
Necessary, but with a different meaning. In wholesale, the question is not about taste: minimum batch, shipment conditions, certificates, delivery terms, payment form. We measured a wholesale supplier of medical supplies — 1,602 product pages, 32 category and 17 manufacturer pages, not a single block of structured data. Thirty-two nodes for one and a half thousand products means that each category works as a separate price, and the text on it is closer to a commercial offer than to a reference.
How to understand that the text worked?
By three figures before and after: how many requests give the page impressions, what is the rejection rate and what proportion of people goes from the category to the product card. We shoot the "before" cut before work, the "after" cut after three to four weeks. Your data, from your offices. Immediately the limit: GA4 shows a trend, not an accounting truth - blockers, consent mode and browser restrictions eat up part of the events, so you need to look at the direction, and not at the second sign after the comma.
Who is responsible for the truth of what is written about the product?
Your specialist. We write the structure and wording, he confirms the actual part: compatibility, standards, equipment, application limitations. It's not a formality—in the medical, construction, and technical categories, a single-sentence error costs returns and customer disputes. If there is no such person on your side at all, it is better not to take on the category: we will not invent the characteristics of someone else's product.
Submit a link to the category you are concerned about.
The answer is a conclusion whether she needs a text and of what volume, a plan for the issues it should cover, and a list of technical details that interfere with the page along with it. If the text is not needed, we will say so in the first email.
From measured casesMeasurement 07/31/2026: the site map has 1,656 addresses
There is no price list on the site on purpose: the same work differs several times over between two clients, and a “from” figure explains nothing in that case. First a free audit — we count your pages, duplicates and speed — then we name the sum and the deadline and fix both in the contract.