Product Description Writer

Product Description Writer

Translate a product's specs into on-site PDP master copy: benefit-led, scannable, in the brand's voice, decidable in eight seconds on a phone.

The job is not to describe the product. It is to remove the reasons a shopper does not add to cart - while staying strictly inside what the source proves.

When to use

• You have a spec sheet, feature bullets, supplier copy, or a bare template description and need the on-site product detail page (PDP) copy.
• One product, one master page.

When NOT to use

• Amazon / marketplace listing copy → use amazon-listing-optimizer.
• Generating many size / color variant descriptions from one master → use variant-copy-scaler.
• Ads, email, social, packaging, or retail sell sheets → different formats with different constraints; say so and hand off.

Inputs

Required (at least the first two):

1. Spec / feature source - spec sheet, feature bullets, supplier blurb.
2. Target customer - who buys it and the job they are hiring it for.

Optional but load-bearing:

3. Brand voice - if unknown, infer from category and ask exactly one calibrating question (see references/voice-and-tone-matrix.md).
4. Objections - known returns reasons, sizing complaints, review themes.
5. Category - routes the playbook (see references/category-playbooks.md).

Thin-source rule. If the spec list is thin, ask for the one detail competitors omit. Never pad with adjectives to fill space. A short honest page outsells a padded one.

Missing-input rule. If you cannot answer "why would they buy this" from the source, ask before writing. Guessing a benefit is a fabrication risk.

Workflow

1. Gather inputs. Collect spec source, target customer, voice, objections, category. Ask at most one calibrating question; do not interrogate.

2. Find the one reason they buy. Name the core transformation or job-to-be-done, not the product category. "Slices a ripe tomato without crushing it," not "knife." This is the lead hook - it must work standalone, because many shoppers read nothing else.

3. Translate each spec to a benefit. For every spec, write feature + "which means" + benefit: "316 stainless steel, which means it won't rust in a salt-air bathroom." Keep the spec for credibility, the benefit for desire. Drop any feature that translates to nothing the buyer cares about, and log what you dropped and why. → Method and sentence patterns: references/benefit-translation.md

4. Surface and answer objections. Name the silent doubt - sizing, fit, durability, care, compatibility, returns, "will this work for me" - and give one reassuring line each, woven into bullets or a short "Good to know" note. If it runs small, say so. Honesty here prevents returns. → Bank of common objections: references/objection-library.md

5. Assemble for the F-pattern scan. Lead hook → 2-3 sentence intro → 3-5 benefit bullets with the payoff front-loaded and the first 2-4 words bold → benefit-restating CTA → Details/Specs block at the bottom for literal numbers, dimensions, materials, and care. → Structural rules: references/pdp-structure-playbook.md → Skeleton: assets/pdp-output-template.md

6. Calibrate voice. Match sentence length, vocabulary, and warmth to the brand. Premium skincare is calm and precise; a snack brand is playful; hardware is concrete and unromantic. Never let voice beat clarity. → references/voice-and-tone-matrix.md

7. Compliance pass. Strip or rephrase anything that states a number, certification, material, health, safety, or earnings claim the source does not support. → references/compliance-redlines.md

8. Self-audit before delivery. Run the quality gate. Fix failures and re-run rather than shipping with caveats: python scripts/validate_pdp.py <copy.md> --specs <specs.txt> Then score against assets/qa-scorecard.md.

Output

Produce the complete PDP master copy as one paste-ready block, using assets/pdp-output-template.md:

• Lead hook line
• 2-3 sentence intro
• 3-5 benefit bullets (payoff front-loaded, opening words bold)
• Objection-handling lines or a "Good to know" note
• A benefit-restating CTA
• Details/Specs block containing every literal number, dimension, material, and care instruction from the source

Close with a short Notes to merchant section:

• Specs dropped and why
• Claims you could not support from the inputs
• Assumptions you made that should be verified before publishing

Quality gate

Ship only if all of these hold:

• The first line works as a standalone hook.
• Every benefit traces to a spec in the source; every surviving spec earns its place.
• Sentences stay under 20 words; bullets front-load the payoff.
• Every literal number in the source appears in the Details block.
• Every pre-cart objection is answered honestly.
• No unsupported claim survives the compliance pass.

Automated checks live in scripts/validate_pdp.py; the human judgment checks live in assets/qa-scorecard.md.

Hard limits

• Do not invent performance numbers, certifications, materials, or health / safety / earnings claims. Use only what the source provides. If asked to claim an outcome the source does not support, refuse and offer a compliant alternative.
• Do not open with "premium quality," "high-quality," or any generic category claim.
• Do not fabricate scarcity, countdowns, or low-stock urgency. Urgency is allowed only when it is true (limited batch, seasonal, real low stock).
• Do not keep features that translate to no buyer benefit.
• Do not end with a bare "Buy now" - restate the benefit in the CTA.
• Do not write medical, legal, or financial outcome claims without a cited source in the inputs.

Bundled resources

Scripts (scripts/)

• validate_pdp.py - lint the finished copy: hook presence, sentence length, bullet count, bold lead-ins, numbers coverage vs. source, banned phrases, bare-CTA check. Exit code 1 on failure.
• extract_specs.py - pull discrete spec lines (numbers, dimensions, materials, care) out of a raw spec sheet into a checklist, so nothing is lost between source and Details block.
• scaffold_pdp.py - emit a blank PDP skeleton to fill in.

References (references/)

• pdp-structure-playbook.md - F-pattern assembly and section-level rules
• benefit-translation.md - spec → benefit method and sentence patterns
• objection-library.md - the doubts that block the cart, with answer shapes
• voice-and-tone-matrix.md - category voice calibration
• compliance-redlines.md - claim categories, what needs proof, safe rewrites
• category-playbooks.md - per-category priorities (apparel, electronics, beauty, home, food, auto, gear)

Assets (assets/)

• pdp-output-template.md - the deliverable skeleton
• input-brief-template.md - what to collect before writing
• qa-scorecard.md - weighted scoring rubric
• details-block-template.md - spec block layout
• examples-before-after.md - weak vs. strong, annotated

Credits

Enhanced from the MIT-licensed original in SkillMedev/skills (v1). Structure, workflow, and redlines preserved; added inputs contract, category routing, compliance pass, bundled scripts, references, and templates.