How to Create the Perfect E-commerce Title

Your product title is the single most important piece of text on any listing. It is the first thing customers see in search results, the primary signal marketplaces use for search ranking, and often the deciding factor in whether a shopper clicks on your product or scrolls past it. Yet most sellers treat titles as an afterthought, copying manufacturer descriptions or cramming in keywords without any strategy.

This guide covers everything you need to know about writing product titles that perform across the major e-commerce platforms. Each marketplace has different rules, character limits, and ranking algorithms, so a one-size-fits-all approach will always underperform. We break down the specific requirements and best practices for Amazon, bol.com, Shopify, and other channels, then show you how to build a scalable title strategy for your entire catalog.

Why Product Titles Deserve More Attention

Product titles serve three distinct audiences simultaneously. Search algorithms use them as the primary relevance signal when matching queries to listings. Shoppers use them to quickly assess whether a product meets their needs. And advertising systems use them to determine which ads to show for which queries. A title that fails any one of these audiences costs you visibility, clicks, and sales.

Research consistently shows that optimized titles can improve click-through rates by 20 to 40 percent compared to generic titles. On Amazon alone, products with well-structured titles that include the brand name, key features, and relevant specifications rank significantly higher in search results than those with vague or incomplete titles. The compound effect over thousands of products in a catalog makes title optimization one of the highest-ROI activities in e-commerce content management.

Universal Title Optimization Principles

Before diving into platform-specific rules, there are principles that apply everywhere. These form the foundation of any effective product title, regardless of where it appears.

Lead With the Most Important Information

Titles are frequently truncated in search results, mobile displays, and ad placements. The first 60 to 80 characters are the most visible, so they must contain the information that matters most to your target buyer. Typically this means: brand name, product type, and the single most differentiating attribute. The remaining characters can include secondary features, sizes, colors, or model numbers.

Use Natural Language

Keyword stuffing in titles is counterproductive on every platform. Search algorithms have evolved to understand natural language, and shoppers actively distrust listings that read like a string of search terms. Write titles that a human would naturally use to describe the product. If your title sounds like something a knowledgeable friend would say when recommending the product, it is probably structured well.

Include Essential Attributes

Every product category has attributes that buyers consider essential for making a purchase decision. For electronics, these might be storage capacity, screen size, and connectivity. For clothing, they include size, color, and material. For tools, voltage, battery type, and included accessories matter. Identify the top three to five attributes for your category and ensure they appear in the title when space permits.

Avoid Promotional Language

Words like "best," "amazing," "deal," or "sale" do not belong in product titles. Most marketplaces explicitly prohibit promotional language in titles, and even on your own webshop, such language undermines credibility. Stick to factual, descriptive terms that help buyers understand exactly what they are getting.

Amazon Title Optimization

Amazon's search algorithm weighs titles heavily in determining search ranking. Amazon allows up to 200 characters for most categories, but data consistently shows that titles between 80 and 150 characters perform best. Titles that are too short miss keyword opportunities, while titles that are too long get truncated and look spammy.

Amazon Title Formula

The most effective Amazon titles follow a consistent pattern:

Brand + Product Type + Key Feature + Material/Ingredient + Color + Size + Quantity

For example: "Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Noise Cancelling Over-Ear Headphones - Black - 30-Hour Battery Life" or "Makita DBO180Z 18V LXT Cordless Random Orbit Sander - Body Only - 125mm Pad."

Amazon-Specific Rules

Capitalize the first letter of each word (Title Case), except for prepositions, conjunctions, and articles
Do not use all caps for entire words unless it is an acronym (LED, USB, HDMI)
Spell out measurements rather than using symbols
Do not include price, shipping information, or seller name in the title
Avoid special characters like ampersands; use "and" instead
Include the model number if customers commonly search by it

bol.com Title Optimization

bol.com is the largest marketplace in the Netherlands and Belgium, and it has its own distinct approach to product titles. The platform recommends titles between 50 and 150 characters, with shorter, more concise titles generally performing better than longer alternatives. Unlike Amazon, bol.com penalizes overly long titles that try to include every possible keyword.

bol.com Title Formula

bol.com favors a cleaner, more European style:

Brand + Product Type + Key Differentiator + Essential Specification

For example: "Casio G-Shock GBD-200-9ER Fitness Horloge - Geel - Bluetooth" or "Philips CoreLine LED Plafondlamp - 23W - 4000K - IP44."

bol.com-Specific Guidelines

Use the language of the target market (Dutch for the Netherlands, French for Belgium where applicable)
Do not repeat information that is already captured in product attributes
Avoid using hyphens to separate keyword phrases; use them only for genuine compound terms
Include the EAN or model number only if it is a common search term for that product
Keep titles scannable: a shopper should understand the product within two seconds of reading

Shopify and Direct-to-Consumer Titles

When selling through your own Shopify store or other direct-to-consumer platforms, you have more flexibility but also more responsibility. Your product titles need to work for Google organic search, Google Shopping feeds, social media sharing, and on-site search simultaneously.

Shopify Title Formula

For your own webshop, prioritize readability and SEO:

Product Name + Key Benefit or Use Case + Primary Differentiator

For example: "Yamazaki Tower Fruit Basket - Minimalist Steel Wire Design - White" or "Adidas Advantage Children's Shoes - Hook-and-Loop Closure - White/Green."

Google Shopping Considerations

If you run Google Shopping campaigns, your product titles directly affect which search queries trigger your ads and how much you pay per click. Google Shopping truncates titles at approximately 70 characters on desktop and 30 characters on mobile, so front-loading critical information is essential.

Include the brand name within the first 30 characters
Place the primary product keyword as early as possible
Include color and size if they are common search modifiers for your category
Match the terminology your customers actually use, not internal product codes
Test different title structures by creating feed rules that modify titles for Shopping without changing your on-site titles

Common Title Mistakes to Avoid

Using manufacturer codes as titles. A title like "XJ-4500-BLK-L" communicates nothing to shoppers. Always translate internal codes into descriptive, human-readable titles that explain what the product actually is.

Duplicating titles across variants. Every size, color, and configuration of a product should have a unique title that specifies the variant. Identical titles across variants confuse both search algorithms and customers.

Ignoring mobile truncation. More than 60 percent of e-commerce browsing now happens on mobile devices, where titles are severely truncated. If the most important information appears after the truncation point, most mobile shoppers will never see it.

Inconsistent formatting across the catalog. When titles follow different patterns for similar products, it creates a disjointed browsing experience. Establish a title template for each product category and apply it consistently across every SKU.

Scaling Title Optimization Across Your Catalog

Optimizing titles for a handful of products is straightforward. Doing it for hundreds or thousands of SKUs across multiple marketplaces requires a systematic approach. Start by creating title templates for each product category that define the exact structure, attribute order, and character limits for each marketplace.

Document these templates in a content style guide that your team can reference. A well-defined template might specify: "For headphones on Amazon, use [Brand] [Series] [Model] [Type] Headphones - [Key Feature] - [Color] - [Connectivity], maximum 150 characters." With clear templates, even junior team members can produce consistently high-quality titles.

For large catalogs, manual title writing becomes impractical. This is where AI-powered tools provide the most value. By feeding structured product data into a system that understands marketplace-specific title rules, you can generate optimized titles for thousands of products in minutes rather than weeks.

How TextBrew Automates Title Creation

TextBrew is purpose-built for exactly this challenge. Its title generator accepts EAN codes and structured product attributes, then produces marketplace-specific titles that follow the correct format, character limits, and keyword patterns for each platform. You define the template once per category, and TextBrew applies it consistently across your entire catalog.

The platform supports twelve languages, so titles generated for your Dutch bol.com listings are naturally different from those generated for your English Amazon listings. They are not translations of each other; they are independently optimized for each market's search behavior, language conventions, and marketplace rules.

For teams managing large catalogs, TextBrew's batch processing means you can regenerate titles for thousands of products whenever you update your title templates or marketplace rules change. This ensures your entire catalog stays optimized without requiring manual intervention on every individual listing.