Write product or service descriptions
A practical way to use AI for this job in a small business, with a prompt you can copy.
Your website has 40 products and half the descriptions say 'Great quality. Order now.' You know they need work, but writing 40 descriptions is a weekend you don't have.
The prompt
Write a description for [product/service]. Who it's for: [customer]. What it includes: [details]. Price or price range: [price]. Common questions people ask: [questions]. Give me a 2-sentence summary and a 120-word version. No exaggeration, no 'best in the world' claims.
Replace everything in [square brackets] with your own details. Don't paste in anything you wouldn't want stored by the AI provider.
Steps
- List the facts first: what it is, who it's for, what's included.
- Run the prompt for each item.
- Check every claim is true.
- Update your website or online store.
A worked example
A Perth homewares shop has a hand-thrown ceramic serving bowl. The owner fills in: who it's for (people who host), what's included (one bowl, 28cm, dishwasher safe, made in WA), price ($89), and common questions (can it go in the oven? no). Claude returns a two-sentence summary for the product grid and a 120-word version for the product page, without any 'best in the world' guff.
She runs the same prompt for the next 10 products in one chat, so the tone stays consistent. With checking, each one takes about 10 minutes instead of 25.
Time saved
Expect to save 10 to 20 minutes per product. On a 40-product catalogue that adds up to a full day or more. These are my estimates for a typical small business, not measured results.
What it costs (AUD)
If you're running hundreds of products, a paid plan's higher limits help. For a few dozen, free is fine.
The free plans of ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini handle this fine. If you end up using AI every day, the paid plans are roughly: ChatGPT Plus approx. A$30 a month, Claude Pro approx. A$29 a month billed monthly (US$20, or about A$24 a month if you pay yearly), and Google AI Pro approx. A$33 a month through the App Store. Prices approx., October 2026. Some are billed in US dollars, so your bank may add a foreign transaction fee. Check the vendor's pricing page before you buy.
Australian notes
Prices shown to consumers in Australia generally need to be the total price, including GST and any unavoidable fees. Don't let AI invent claims like 'Australian made' or 'eco-friendly'. Country-of-origin and environmental claims are a focus for the ACCC and need to be true and backed up.
Privacy: the Privacy Act and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) cover most businesses turning over more than $3 million, plus some smaller ones such as health providers. Even if you're under the threshold, treat customer details with care: strip names, phone numbers and addresses before you paste anything into an AI tool.
My verdict
Good for getting unstuck. Keep the facts accurate because customers notice.
Common questions
Will duplicate descriptions hurt my SEO?
Copying a manufacturer's description word for word is common and doesn't help you stand out. Writing your own, with AI's help, gives you something different.
Can I upload a spreadsheet of products?
Yes, with ChatGPT or Claude file upload. Ask it to fill in a description column, then check every row.
How long should a product description be?
Long enough to answer the questions people ask before buying. For most products, 80 to 150 words is plenty.
Do this today
Pick your best-selling product, run the prompt, and replace its description today. Do one more each day this week.
More marketing use cases
- Write a month of social media post ideas
- Turn one blog post into five social posts
- Draft a monthly email newsletter
Next: Brainstorm blog topics customers actually search for · All marketing · Want a bot to do this automatically? See bot setup guides.