In this guide 6 sections
A new skincare or makeup item needs five things before it goes live. They are the full ingredient list, directions for use, skin type and shade tags, a claims review with evidence on file, and batch and expiry fields in stock. Add a patch test note. Finish with a test order.
What the product page must say
Copy the ingredient list exactly as printed on the pack, in the same order, under the INCI names that appear there. Shoppers with allergies read it line by line. A mismatch between page and box is the first thing a complaint points to, and the page is the part you can fix in minutes.
Directions come next. State how much to use, how often, at which step of the routine and what to avoid, such as the eye area. Show pack size beside the buy button. Add how many uses it usually gives, so a shopper can compare a small jar with a large tube.
- Full ingredient list in pack order
- Directions: amount, frequency, routine step
- Size in millilitres or grams, plus typical uses per pack
- Storage note, such as keep out of direct sun
- Photo of the back label, readable at full size
Tags that let shoppers find the item
Pick tags from fixed lists. A moisturiser tagged for dry and sensitive skin appears when a shopper filters for either, while one tagged for every skin type appears for nobody in particular.
Free-from badges need proof. Add vegan or fragrance-free only when a supplier document sits in the product record, so a challenge from a shopper or a regulator meets paper, not a shrug. Retire a badge with the same care. When a reformulation adds a fragrance, the fragrance-free badge must come off the same day, or the shopper who avoids perfume buys it and complains.
Review the lists each quarter. A misspelled duplicate such as “sensative” splits one filter into two, and the products carrying the typo vanish from the main filter.
Variants, sizes and images
Every shade and size variant requires a separate SKU, barcode, weight and images, because the picker, the courier and the shopper all read a different one of them. Travel sizes share the page, not the stock. A refill pouch links back to its bottle.
Plan the images: front of pack, back label, texture shot, swatch or application photo, and one showing scale in a hand. Name files with the SKU. One search then finds any gap.
- SKU, barcode and weight for every variant
- Front, back label, texture and scale images
- Swatch chip for each shade
- Refill linked to its parent bottle
- File names that start with the SKU
Claims review and the patch test note
Read every claim against the evidence file. Words such as hypoallergenic, dermatologist tested or clinically proven each need a test report or a safety assessment behind them before they appear on the page. Some markets limit what a cosmetic may say about skin, so take every doubtful line to your regulatory contact before the page goes live. This is a team check, not legal advice.
Add a patch test note near the buy button. One line is enough: test on the inner forearm first, stop if the skin reddens, keep away from the eyes. A second person signs off both. It cannot be the writer.
Name the evidence folder after the SKU. When a marketplace or a regulator asks for proof, the reply takes minutes instead of a week of searching old emails.
Batch fields and one test order before launch
The stock record needs fields for batch code, manufacture date and either expiry or the open-jar symbol before the first carton arrives. Fill them at goods receipt. Memory weeks later is a poor source.
Then put the item through a test order. Check out with a test payment, then compare what the picker sees on the slip, what the courier label says and what the confirmation email shows. Ask someone who did not build the page to repeat it once on a phone and once on a laptop. Fix every mismatch before launch.
- Batch, manufacture date and expiry on the receiving form
- Supplier certificate attached to the product record
- Storage location and temperature note
- Picking rule set to earliest expiry first
- Test order checked end to end by someone else
New item listing checklist
Four blocks fill the page: page content, tags and variants, claims and safety, and stock fields. Every row carries a tick box, a named person and a due date. A sign-off line at the foot needs two names. The writer signs first. The reviewer signs second, only after reading the claims against the evidence file and placing the test order.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
Who should approve the claims on a product page?
Someone other than the writer, ideally whoever holds the safety assessment and the test reports for that formula, so the claims are checked against paper rather than memory. In a small team that may be the founder. Add a date to the sign-off.
Should the ingredient list be text or an image?
Text. Search engines, screen readers and the filters on your category page can only use words, not a picture of words. Keep a readable photo of the back label as well. It proves the page matches the pack.
What should a patch test note say?
Keep it short. Say where to test, how long to wait and when to stop, using the wording your safety assessor approves for that formula. Place it beside the buy button. Repeat it on the pack insert if there is one.
Should batch numbers show to customers?
Not on the page. Record the batch against each order line, so a complaint can be traced to the exact stock that shipped. Some brands print it on the dispatch note. That helps a customer quote it in an email.