Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is crucial for any online business or website to be successful in today's digital landscape.
SEO optimization involves optimizing the content and structure of a website to improve its visibility and ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs). With most online traffic driven by search engines, businesses and websites must ensure their content is easily discoverable by search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. By implementing SEO best practices, websites can improve their organic search rankings, drive targeted traffic, and increase conversions and revenue. SEO is an ongoing process that requires regular monitoring and optimization, but the benefits of having a well-optimized website are undeniable.
There are tons of ways how you can make an SEO-friendly website for better website performance. One of them is through using alt texts for images. Need help figuring out what is alt text? We got you covered.
Understanding Alt Text
Alt text, or alternative text or alt tags, is a text description of an image that appears in place of the image if it cannot be displayed. The primary purpose of alt text for images is to provide a text-based alternative to visual content for users who cannot see it. This can include visually impaired users, users with slow website and internet connections, or users who have turned off images in their browsers.
Image taken from Grand Tour Florence
The Purpose of Alt Text
Alt text for images has a more crucial role in web design than just providing an alternative to visual content. Search engines also use alt text to understand the context and relevance of an image on a webpage. When a search engine crawls a webpage, it looks for alt text to help determine what the image contains. The better the alt text describes the picture, the higher the chances of the webpage appearing in relevant search results.
The Importance of Descriptive and Accurate Alt Text for SEO
Creating descriptive and accurate alt text for images on your website is essential. This not only helps improve the accessibility of your website for visually impaired users and contributes to your website's SEO ranking. Using generic alt text like "image1" or "picture" provides no context to search engines or users and can even harm your website's ranking.
Using descriptive alt text that accurately describes the image helps search engines understand what the image is about and can increase the chances of your website appearing in relevant search results.
Best Practices for Writing Effective Alt Text
It may initially seem daunting if you're new to understanding what is alt text. But fear not! Here are a few more best practices to help you write clear and compelling alt text:
Image taken from Rainforest Treehouse Cabin
1. Use the active voice.
When writing alt text, the present tense and active voice can make all the difference. Using active verbs and present tense can make your alt text for images more engaging and help users feel right in the middle of the action.
For example, instead of "picture of a cat sitting on a couch," you could write "a curious cat perched on a cozy couch." See the difference? Not only is the second option more descriptive, but it also puts the reader right in the middle of the scene.
Whether you're writing alt text for images of products, events, or even just for decorative purposes, using the active voice and present tense can help make your alt text more engaging and appealing to users.
By following best practices for writing compelling alt text, using Strikingly's built-in tools, and using the active voice and present tense, you can create a more engaging and inclusive website to attract and retain visitors.
2. Think about the image's purpose.
When learning what is alt text and how to write one, you want to consider the image's purpose. Why is it on the page? What is it trying to convey? Is it a cute cat picture or a critical chart that gives vital information? Your alt text should reflect the image's purpose.
But don't just describe the image in boring, bland terms. Get creative with your alt text! Use descriptive language and make it enjoyable. For example, instead of saying, "A woman sitting on a bench," you could say, "A woman enjoying a peaceful moment on a park bench surrounded by lush green trees."
You can use a variety of terms interchangeably. Alt text, alt tags, image alt text, image alt tags, and image title tags all refer to the same thing. And if you're looking for alt text examples, a quick Google search should provide plenty of inspiration.
Always think about the image's purpose, get creative with your language, and provide informative alt text for images on your web page. Your users (and their screen readers) will thank you!
3. Avoid unnecessary details
We already discussed the importance of thinking about the image's purpose when writing alt text. But here's another pro tip for you: avoid unnecessary details.
Sure, you want to include relevant information about the image. But you don't want to overload your users with many elements that could confuse or distract them. For example, if you're describing a picture of a person, you don't need to mention their hair color or what they're wearing.
Remember, the alt text for images should be concise and to the point. You want to give users a clear idea of what the image is showing without overwhelming them with unnecessary information. And if you're looking for some alt text examples, a quick Google search should give you plenty of inspiration.
Always keep your alt text concise and relevant. Don't overload your users with unnecessary details; remember the image's purpose. With these tips in mind, your alt text game will surely be on point!
4. Use proper capitalization
The title case is a great way to capitalize the first letter of each word in your alt text. Title case not only makes it easier to read, but it also makes your alt text more visually appealing. Plus, it shows that you're a proper alt text for images pro who pays attention to the details.
When it comes to implementing alt text, there are a variety of terms you can use interchangeably: alt text, alt tags, image alt text, image alt tags, and image title tags.
If you're looking for alt text examples that use proper capitalization, peek at some well-designed platforms created by the best website developers. You'll likely see plenty of examples of alt text that use title cases to make it more visually appealing.
Use proper capitalization when creating your alt text. A title case is a great way to make it easier to read and more visually appealing. With these tips, you'll be an alt text master soon!
5. Avoid repetition
When mastering what is alt text for images, avoiding duplication is essential.
If you have multiple images on a page with similar content, resist the urge to copy and paste the exact alt text for each one. Instead, use unique descriptions for each image. Not only does this help users better understand the content of each image, but it also shows that you've put in the effort to make your web page more accessible.
Remember, image alt tags help visually impaired users understand the image's content. You can use various terms interchangeably, like alt text, alt tags, image alt text, image alt tags, and image title tags.
Take a moment to think about what sets each image apart. Is there a particular detail or element that stands out? Is there a different perspective or angle that you can describe? Focusing on these unique qualities allows you to create alt text that avoids repetition and provides valuable context for each image.
By following these additional image alt text best practices, you can write alt text that is descriptive, accurate, engaging, and visually appealing. And with Strikingly's built-in tools for adding alt text and image title tags, it's easier to make your website accessible and SEO-friendly. Feel free to get creative with your alt text! Remember, it's a small but mighty tool that can impact your website's success.
Image taken from Steph Harding Photo
How Alt Text Boosts Your SEO
Now that you understand what is alt text and how to write clear alt text, let's dive into how alt text can boost your SEO efforts.
1. Importance of Alt Text for Search Engine Crawlers
Using alt text for images on your website cannot be overstated. It helps search engines understand what the image represents and makes your website more accessible and user-friendly. Search engines use alt text to index images and determine their relevance to search queries. If your alt text is descriptive and includes relevant keywords, it can improve your website's ranking in search results and increase its visibility to potential customers.
When creating alt text for images, it's vital to be descriptive and accurate. Use relevant keywords to describe the image's content and function, but avoid keyword stuffing or misleading descriptions. Alt text should be concise and to the point, typically no more than 125 characters.
Here are some examples of good alt text:
- Alt text for a picture of a dog: "A golden retriever running on a sandy beach."
- Alt text for a graph: "A bar graph showing the increase in website traffic over the past year."
- Alt text for a logo: "The company logo for XYZ Corporation."
2. How Alt Text Affects Website Accessibility and User Experience
Alt text is essential for search engines and website accessibility and user experience. For visually impaired users who use screen readers, alt text provides a way to understand the content of images on a website. Using descriptive and accurate alt text can make your website more accessible to people with disabilities and improve their user experience.
Visually impaired users would only notice important information conveyed through images with alt text. This could lead to frustration and a negative user experience. Additionally, images without alt text can slow down the load time of a website, which can also impact the user experience negatively.
When creating alt text for images, it's important to remember that it should be descriptive and accurate. This means avoiding vague or generic descriptions and using keywords that accurately reflect the content and function of the image.
In addition to alt text, other accessibility features that can enhance the user experience include using headings to organize content, providing transcripts for videos and audio content, and ensuring that website navigation is straightforward and easy to use.
3. The Impact of Optimized Alt Text on Website Rankings
Optimized alt text can have a significant impact on your website's rankings in search results. By including relevant keywords in your alt text, you can signal to search engines that your website is relevant to those keywords and improve your chances of ranking higher in search results.
Search engines like Google use complex algorithms to determine the relevance of websites to search queries. Optimizing your website's alt text can provide search engines with valuable information about the content and purpose of your images. This, in turn, can increase the relevance of your website to specific search queries and improve your rankings in search results.
In addition to its impact on SEO, alt text can also improve the overall accessibility and user experience of your website. By providing descriptive alt text for all images on your website, you can make it easier for visually impaired users to understand the content of your website. This can increase engagement and drive more traffic to your website.
When creating the alt text, it's essential to use relevant and accurate keywords that describe the image's content and function. However, avoiding keyword stuffing or misleading descriptions is also essential, as this can negatively impact your website's ranking in search results.
Image taken from Karen Lo
Using Alt Text in Strikingly
Adding alt text to your images is a breeze if you use Strikingly as your website builder platform. Here's how:
How to Add Alt Text to Images in Strikingly
- Select the image you want to add alt text to.
- Hover over the image, and click "Edit."
- Select "Alt Text" from the dropdown menu.
- Enter your alt text in the field provided.
- Click "Save."
Image taken from Strikingly
It's that easy! Adding alt text to your images in Strikingly can improve your website's accessibility and user experience.
Best Practices for Using Alt Text in Strikingly Websites
There are a few things to remember when using alt text for images on Strikingly websites:
1. Add image alt text to all images on your business website, including those in galleries or slideshows. This will maximize the potential SEO benefits of alt text.
2. Use Strikingly's built-in tools for adding alt text and image title tags to ensure your website is optimized for accessibility and SEO.
3. Regularly review and update your website alt text to ensure that it accurately reflects the content and purpose of your images.
By following these best practices and using Strikingly's built-in tools, you can easily add image alt tags to your images and optimize your website for accessibility and SEO.
Start Your Alt Text Journey With Us!
The website alt text describes images that can be read by search engine crawlers and screen readers, making your website more accessible to visually impaired users and improving your SEO rankings. By following best practices for writing compelling alt text and using Strikingly's built-in tools, you can easily add alt text for images and improve the user experience on your website.
Image taken from Bryan Fusco
Adding alt text to your images in Strikingly is not only accessible, but it's also essential for maximizing your website's potential for both accessibility and SEO. Writing descriptive and accurate alt text for your images and using Strikingly's built-in tools ensures your website is optimized for users and search engines. Why wait? Start adding alt text to your pictures in Strikingly today!
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