How Modern Shock rewrote its titles around color, cut and fabric
MyModernShock
Modern Shock has made more than 3,100 sales on Etsy since 2021, putting witchy, dreamy prints on skirts, jumpsuits, bags and boots. Its titles were written to set a mood, and the shop has used Alura's listing optimizer to add the color, cut and fabric a shopper checks first.
Moon prints, moths and a little rebellion
Modern Shock is about dreamy prints, witchy vibes and everyday pieces with a little spark of rebellion. The catalog has grown past 1,100 listings: tiered maxi skirts covered in moons and moths, wide leg jumpsuits in dark wildflower prints, kiss lock handbags, lace up boots and hooded blankets with cat ears.
Many pieces are made to order with production partners, and new designs come out often. Buyers who want a design on something the shop doesn't sell yet can ask, and Modern Shock loves taking on custom requests. Since opening on Etsy in 2021 the shop has made more than 3,100 sales and collected 766 reviews.
Titles that captured the mood first
The older Modern Shock titles led with a feeling. "Celestial Wide Leg Trousers for Astrology Outfit Lovers." "Dark Romantic Alternative Fashion." "Occult Star Purse." They read like the shop itself, which is part of the charm.
A shopper scrolling Etsy search is usually asking plainer questions, though. Is it black or navy? Pants or a jumpsuit? High waisted? What is the bag made of? Those answers were in the photos and the descriptions, but not always in the title. With more than a thousand listings, going back through every one to add them by hand is a big job, and the same pass also has to cover the tags and the photo alt text.
“The prints are the whole point, so I always led with the vibe. But someone searching for black wide leg pants needs to see black wide leg pants first.”
The wide leg pants went through the editor as a set
The work happens in Alura's listing optimizer. A listing opens in the editor, and Start optimization runs with the title, tags and photo alt text ticked in Optimization settings. The AI reads the listing and drafts a new version of each. Nothing changes on Etsy at that point. The drafts stay in the editor, where View changes shows what is different, and the shop decides what to keep before clicking Publish changes.
The wide leg pants were done as one group: the moon phase palazzo pants, the skull baroque trousers, the crescent moon botanicals and the teal florals. Read side by side now, they give the same details in roughly the same order. Print, color, cut, rise, fabric.
The tags changed in the same pass. On the crescent moon pants, mood tags like "occult pants", "magical pants" and "earthy pants" made way for "palazzo pants", "flowy pants women" and "festival pants". The teal floral pair picked up "green palazzo" and "beach pants women". Some of the shop's own tags stayed where they still fit, like "boho resort pants" and "vacation pants".
The published title isn't the last word either. The navy celestial pants now read "Celestial Wide Leg Trousers, Navy Sun Moon Star Print, High Waist Polyester Pants", the same details in a different order after a later edit. If a change doesn't sit right, Listing history keeps the earlier versions, and Restore version puts one back.
“I wanted every pair of pants to list print, color, cut and fabric in the same order. When they match, a shopper can compare them in two seconds.”
The titles now say what the piece is
The prints still come first in most titles. What changed is everything after them. The titles now carry the details a shopper checks before she clicks: the color, the cut, the rise, the fabric, and on the bags, how they're carried. A bit of the mood is still there in words like witchy, goth and botanical. It just shares the space with the facts.
The bags show it best. The skull damask kiss lock bag used to be a "Vintage Gothic Victorian Style Purse, Witchy Top Handle Shoulder Bag". It now reads "Skull Damask Gothic Handbag, Waxed PU Leather Kiss Lock Frame Purse with Detachable Strap". A buyer knows the material and that it works as a crossbody before she opens the listing.
The photo alt text was rewritten in the same pass, so each print is also described in words for shoppers using screen readers, down to the gold suns and moons on the navy pants. Those descriptions are easy to skip when you write a listing by hand, and on a shop this size they add up.
Moon Phase Palazzo Pants, Celestial Wide Leg Trousers for Astrology Outfit Lovers
Moon Phase Palazzo Pants, Black Wide Leg High Waist Trousers with Gold Star Print
Victorian Skull Wide Leg Pants, Black Baroque Goth Trousers, Dark Romantic Alternative Fashion
Black Skull Goth Pants, High Waist Wide Leg Baroque Palazzo Trousers in 100% Polyester
Astrology Moon Sun Satchel, Celestial Witchy Bag, Occult Star Purse
Witchy Crossbody Bag, Black Waterproof Canvas Satchel with Gold Sun Moon Star Print
Gothic Skull Hands Print Blanket Hoodie, Oversized Wearable Fleece Wrap
Gothic Hooded Blanket, Oversized Skull and Moth Print Fleece Wrap in Black
Lead with the print, then say what it is
The shop's advice is about word order. The print is what makes someone stop, so it goes near the front. Right after it comes what a shopper would type if she already knew what she wanted: black, wide leg, high waist, crossbody. And when a whole product line shares a format, keep the details in the same order on every listing, so the titles are easy to compare in search.
“Write the title for someone who has never seen your shop. They don't know your vibe yet. They just know they want a black skirt with pockets.”
MyModernShock received Alura credits as a thank-you for sharing this story.