State exactly what the buyer receives for the advertised price: the number of items, the relevant measurement and what is included. Put that information beside the price and selected option, where the buyer can use it to decide. A useful description might read, for example, “One continuous 3 m length of fabric, 150 cm wide” or “Six bars of soap, 100 g each”.
Use a clear, consistent unit, explain any meaningful variation and distinguish the goods themselves from their packaging. If you sell 500 g of a product, a heavier wrapped parcel does not change that sale quantity. Your aim is to let the buyer answer one question without messaging you: “What exactly will arrive if I order this option?”
Make the quantity part of the offer
Start with the unit of sale. Are you offering one item, a pair, a set, a measured portion or a length cut from a larger piece? Words such as “bundle”, “pack” and “large” can help name an option, but they need an explanation.
For example, “kitchen towel bundle” leaves the contents open to interpretation. “Set of three kitchen towels, each 40 cm × 60 cm” gives the buyer a usable description. If the photograph also shows a basket, add “Basket shown for display; towels only”.
This accuracy has a legal basis as well as a practical purpose. The supplied revised 2012 text of Kenya’s Trade Descriptions Act includes quantity, size, capacity, weight and number among attributes covered by trade descriptions, and addresses false or materially misleading descriptions.[1]
Build the offer around four connected details:
- Contents: what items or material the order includes.
- Quantity: how many, how much or how long.
- Measurement basis: whether the figure applies to each item, the whole set or the contents alone.
- Exclusions: anything pictured or mentioned that the buyer will not receive.
You do not need a long paragraph for every product. “Pair of cushion covers, each 45 cm × 45 cm; inserts excluded” does the work in one line.
Choose measurements that help the buyer decide
Use the measurement that answers the buyer’s practical question. Someone buying ribbon needs its length and width. Someone buying a storage container may need its capacity and external size. A count alone will not tell either buyer enough.
Clear metric units are a sensible starting point in Kenya. The State Department for Trade describes Kenya’s adoption of metric units, including kilograms, litres and metres. This supports using consistent metric measurements; it does not establish one complete labelling rule for every product category.[2]
Write the unit beside the number. “500” is incomplete; “500 g” tells the reader what you mean. Within a group of comparable options, keep the presentation consistent: “250 g, 500 g and 1,000 g” is easier to compare at a glance than a mixture of unexplained figures and size names.
When more than one measurement matters, label each one. For example, “Shelf: 60 cm wide × 20 cm deep × 30 cm high” is clearer than three numbers separated by multiplication signs with no explanation of their order.
For clothing, give the measurements relevant to fit and explain what you measured. “Garment chest circumference” and “recommended body chest measurement” describe different things. If you measure a garment laid flat, say so rather than leaving the buyer to guess whether the figure is a full circumference.
Decide whether the promise is a count or a weight
Some products can be described both ways, but one quantity may be the basis of the sale while the other is only a guide.
Consider an illustrative listing for handmade beads. If you sell by count, write “Pack of 20 beads” and describe any size variation separately. If you sell by weight, write “100 g of beads” and explain that the number varies with bead size. Avoid placing “20 beads” prominently beside the price if that count is only an estimate.
Where both quantities are fixed and checked, include both. “Ten pieces, each 50 cm long” tells the buyer more than “5 m total”, because separate pieces may serve a different purpose from one continuous length.
Keep product quantity separate from parcel weight
Treat the listing description and the delivery information as answers to different questions. The listing establishes the goods included in the purchase. Parcel information describes the shipment containing those goods.
For an illustrative example, suppose a seller offers 500 g of loose tea in a tin. The listing should make clear whether 500 g refers to the tea alone or to the combined tea and tin. A useful description would be: “500 g of tea, supplied in one reusable tin; stated weight refers to tea only.” That wording works only if it matches what the seller actually measures and supplies.
Do not use a shipment’s total weight as evidence of the amount of product inside it. Equally, do not assume a container’s capacity tells the buyer how much product it contains. A jar described as having a 1 litre capacity still needs a separate contents quantity if it is sold filled.
If the container itself is the product, capacity becomes part of its description. In that case, distinguish capacity from external measurements where both affect the buyer’s choice.
Explain variation where it changes the choice
A clear listing can accommodate handmade, natural or individually cut goods. Choose the description according to how you fulfil the order.
For a unique item, measure and describe that specific piece. For a batch with meaningful differences, give a measured range you can support and explain whether the buyer chooses a particular item. For goods sold to a fixed quantity, check that quantity before offering it as fixed.
Avoid using “approximately” as a substitute for deciding what you are selling. “Approximately 30 cm long” may still leave a buyer uncertain about whether an item will fit a particular space. A supported range gives them a firmer basis for deciding. If you cannot establish the range yet, measure the stock before publishing it.
Disclose variation beside the affected measurement, rather than hiding it at the bottom of the description. For example: “Each handmade bowl is 14–16 cm across; the pictured bowl illustrates the style.” Use that wording only when the range reflects the stock you will supply.
Carry the same description through to the order
Imagine a buyer choosing fabric for a project. Your photograph shows several folded colours, the title says “fabric bundle”, and the option says “3 m”. The buyer still needs to know whether that means one continuous length or several pieces, and whether the photograph shows everything included.
An illustrative offer could read: “One continuous 3 m length, 150 cm wide, in the selected colour. Other colours pictured are separate options.” Repeat that essential quantity in the order confirmation so a later conversation does not silently change the agreement.
Before publishing, read the title, photograph captions, option selector and description together. Correct any disagreement between them. If a buyer requests a different quantity in a message, confirm the revised contents and price explicitly before proceeding.
Once those contents are settled, you have a clear basis for planning the delivery. Moveka Send lets you check currently available delivery options and prices using actual parcel details and selected locations; the results depend on those inputs.
Moveka is your best move for turning a clearly agreed order into a practical delivery choice. Confirm exactly what the buyer is getting, then check the options and price for that parcel and those locations so you can choose the next step with confidence.
