e-commerce optimization

How do I optimize an e-commerce site without rich content?

For those of you running an eCommerce website this is a Key broadcast from the GoogleWebmasterHelp Team.

JSWeb Summary:

A common problem I encounter with e-commerce sites is exactly what Matt mentions. The client copies the product descriptions straight from the supplier or manufacturers website or brochure. What we end up with his many duplicates of the same content. In most cases, the manufacturer/supplier was the first to put up the content. For various reasons the ecommerce site will never rank highly for those products. The best way to fix this common problem, is to re-write the content, but who can be bothered and who has the creativity to write hundreds or thousands of product descriptions? Simple, in Microsoft Word you'll find a very handy Thesaurus, run your descriptions through this changing verbs and adjectives as you find suitable replacements.