TLDR

Alt text, also known as "alternative text" or "alt attributes," is a brief and descriptive text associated with an image on a website.

Alt text, or alternate text, is essential for improving your website's usability and search engine optimisation (SEO). Search engines like Google rely on alt text to understand and index visual material when it comes to images. Making images more discoverable for search engine bots by creating effective alt text is like doing magic for them, increasing your website's visibility.

Tips #1: Ensure that your images improve the user's experience.

If the image is relevant there, Google will examine the surrounding information and index the image in that context.

User experience feedback is a powerful signal to Google for ranking purposes since Google favours relevance and quality when returning search results. Therefore, the rating increases as an image becomes more well-liked and receives more clicks. Here are some pointers for optimising user interaction with your images:

  1. Make sure that your images are interesting and of high quality. Consider how you want to appear in your Facebook profile picture in order to best represent who you are as a person.
  2. While overly big image file sizes slow down page load times, quality need not be sacrificed in order to reduce the file size. Therefore, using an image optimisation service is strongly advised. We heartily endorse Optimole for this.
  3. Stock images are usually easy to identify and often feel fake or insincere. Get personal with the pictures you're using.

Image Size

File Size: Aim for a balance between image quality and file size. Use image compression tools to reduce the file size while preserving image quality. Resize images to the specific dimensions needed on your website. Avoid using larger images when smaller ones will suffice. This reduces page load times.

In this example:

"cricket-match.jpg" is the image file name.

"Cricket match at the 2023 World Cup between India and Bangladesh with fans cheering in the stadium." is the alt text.

Key points to note in the alt text example

Key Strategies for Alt Text Magic: Descriptive Precision: Choose descriptive words that accurately convey the content and context of the image. Be specific, using keywords relevant to your content and the image itself.

Keyword Integration: Include important keywords in your alt text naturally. Consider the keywords that users might use to find material comparable to yours.While still containing the necessary information, keep your alt text brief. Aim for a brief summary that conveys the picture's main ideas.

Contextual Relevance: Make sure the alt text is in line with the other information. This enhances the user experience overall while also assisting search engines in comprehending the context.

Avoid Stuffing Your Alt Text With Keywords: While integrating keywords is important, do not stuff your alt text full of pointless terms. Instead of attempting to trick search engine algorithms, concentrate on giving useful content. Include your brand name in the alt text if appropriate, especially for photographs of logos or products. In addition to supporting your brand identity, this can improve your overall web visibility.

No Blank Spaces: If an image doesn't convey any meaningful information, use an empty alt attribute (alt="") rather than leaving it blank. This informs search engines that the image is decorative and doesn't require indexing.

Accessibility First: Remember that alt text is primarily for accessibility purposes. Make sure your descriptions are helpful for users who rely on screen readers or have visual impairments.

Unique Descriptions: Avoid using identical alt text for multiple images, as this can confuse search engines. Each alt text should be unique to accurately represent the content of its respective image. Periodically review and update your alt text to ensure it remains relevant to changes in your content or website focus.

You can improve the accessibility of your website, optimise your photos for search engines, and build a more welcoming online space for all users by becoming an expert at creating appealing alt text. Alt text magic is a potent SEO tactic that has the potential to have a big impact on how well your website performs online.

Hocalwire CMS has excellent automation features that direct traffic from various sources to your website. With the help of Google Analytics and potential options from Hocalwire, you can significantly increase your traffic. Schedule a demo to learn more about Hocalwire CMS's limitless potential.