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What shouldn't be in my description?

Spelling and grammar mistakes​

Your description should be free of typos and grammar errors. This is recommended for a few reasons. First, mistakes like these make your product look unprofessional and untrustworthy. Second, poorly-written descriptions are often difficult to understand for users. Lastly, spelling mistakes can hurt your product's performance with search engine results.

For these reasons, all Marketplace products must be run through two proofreading tools before being submitted:

  • Grammarly: Sign up for a free account and paste your text into a new document. The tool will flag basic spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. It will also scan your text for conciseness, helping to remove unnecessary words and simplify text.
  • Hemingway App: Next, paste your description into the free Hemingway editor. This tool flags long, complex sentences, adverbs, and passive voice — all of which can make your text difficult to understand. It also assigns your text a reading level, which you should aim to keep Grade 8 or below.

For more about Grammarly and Hemingway App, check out [our guide to editing product copy].

In some specific cases, you may choose to ignore a spelling or grammar recommendation. However, any product with excessive errors will be flagged by Marketplace staff reviewers. These products will remain unlisted until the mistakes have been resolved.

At times, Marketplace staff may make exceptions if a misspelling is intentional to fit a brand voice.

Markdown​

Your description should be free of most markdown. The following formatting is not permitted:

  • Bold
  • Italics
  • Hyperlinks
  • Headings and subheadings

These types of markdown can be distracting for customers. They are also easily abused and spammed by bad actors. For these reasons, only plain text and bulleted lists are allowed on Marketplace.

If you would like to create the appearance of a heading or subheading, use all-caps text. This can be useful for breaking up large chunks of related content.

Webpage URLs​

Do not paste URLs into your description. Instead, share supporting webpages in the Additional links section, found in your product's Information panel.

URLs and short links make your description more difficult to read. They are distracting and can make your product look spammy and untrustworthy.

Any product with URLs in its description will be rejected by Marketplace staff reviewers. These products will remain unlisted until the issue is resolved.

Unnecessary keywords (keyword stuffing)​

The right keywords can improve your product's search ranking on Marketplace and with search engines like Google. Too many keywords, however, is called keyword stuffing. This is the practice of cramming in as many keywords as possible to manipulate search rankings.

Keyword stuffing is bad practice for a few reasons. First, it makes product descriptions more difficult to read and understand, which can be frustrating for users. Second, it makes your product look spammy and untrustworthy, which can drive away customers. Third, it can backfire and result in search engines limiting or restricting your product from search results entirely.

It's OK to use keywords strategically in descriptions, so long as they appear naturally and don't impact readability.

Any attempts to keyword stuff will be flagged by Marketplace staff reviewers. Products that violate this rule will remain unlisted until the issue is resolved. Repeated keyword stuffing can result in your account being penalized.

References to pricing​

Generally, avoid mentioning product pricing in your description. There are a few reasons for this:

  • Your product price may change over time. This can lead to outdated or incorrect information being displayed in your description.
  • On Marketplace, product prices vary depending on a user's currency preferences. Your product's price in USD ($) will not apply to a customer using Mexican pesos.
  • You may later choose to run a sale on your product. These limited-time promotions cause pricing to fluctuate, which your description may not accurately reflect.

Descriptions that mention price will be flagged by Marketplace review staff. These products will remain unlisted until the issue is resolved.

Exceptions may be made for free products. Since the price of "free" doesn't vary by region or currency, it is OK to mention this in your description.

References of competition​

Do not mention competing products or Makers. This practice is discouraged for a few reasons.

For one, it can make your product seem less unique and special. When you reference competition, you raise awareness of similar products and brands. This can drive customers to explore alternative options. Some may even select a competing product over yours.

Second, it's generally unprofessional to highlight a competitor's flaws. Negative marketing like this can appear petty, cheap, and dirty. It may cause some customers to lose confidence in your product and brand. It could also raise tensions with a competitor, leading to retaliation.

It's better to focus on your product's strengths, rather than the weakness of competitors. Give customers the information they need, then let them form their own comparisons.

Marketplace review staff will flag descriptions that reference competition. These products will remain unlisted until the reference is removed.

Promotional and subjective words​

Do not use promotional phrases. These are cliché marketing terms that don't offer any real value — and are often difficult (or impossible) to verify.

Examples:

  • ❌ Top quality
  • ❌ Hot item
  • ❌ Best seller
  • ❌ Acclaimed
  • ❌ 5-star rating
  • ❌ Great buy

You should also avoid using subjective words. These adjectives describe your opinion, not the product itself.

Examples:

  • ❌ Amazing
  • ❌ Awesome
  • ❌ Beautiful
  • ❌ Best
  • ❌ Brilliant
  • ❌ Entertaining
  • ❌ Exciting
  • ❌ Fascinating
  • ❌ Fun
  • ❌ Gorgeous
  • ❌ Great
  • ❌ Impressive
  • ❌ Lovely
  • ❌ Perfect
  • ❌ Special
  • ❌ Stunning
  • ❌ Unbelievable
  • ❌ Ultimate
  • ❌ Unique
  • ❌ Wonderful

Capitalization mistakes​

Always use sentence case capitalization for product descriptions.

Learn more about sentence case from APA.

Avoid using ALL CAPS. Some exceptions will be given for brand names (e.g., OBS, NVIDIA, IFTTT, VLC, etc.), file types (e.g., PNG, AEP, GIF, etc.), and common acronyms or abbreviations (e.g., VST, SDK, IP, API, CPU, etc.).

Never use all caps for emphasis:

  • ❌ ...and SO much more.
  • ❌ ...all this for FREE!

Do not capitalize common nouns. These are words that are widely used and understood across the industry. They are not specific to Elgato products or apps:

  • ✔️ profile
  • ✔️ icons
  • ✔️ folder
  • ✔️ autofocus

Do capitalize branded Elgato features:

  • ✔️ Clipguard

Incorrect article use​

In general, don't use articles ("a", "an", "the") before Elgato products.

Examples:

  • ❌ …icons for the Stream Deck XL, ✔️ …icons for Stream Deck XL
  • ❌ …supports the Wave:3, ✔️ …supports Wave:3
  • ❌ …upgrade the Camera Hub, ✔️ …upgrade Camera Hub

Exceptions are made when a product name is preceded or followed by a descriptor:

  • ✔️ …an orange Wave:3
  • ✔️ …a Stream Deck faceplate
  • ✔️ …the Camera Hub app

This exception applies to product family names as well:

  • ✔️ …a Facecam effect
  • ✔️ …the Key Light brightness