In most content management systems (CMSs), clicking on an image in the body of a blog post produces an image optimization or rich text module, where you can create and change the image's alt text. Icons: alt text for icons should be the equivalent to the information intended by the icon, such as “Download PDF” or “Visit our Facebook Page” Images as Links: If the image is being used to link to another page, the alt text should describe what will happen when the image is clicked (rather than what it looks like). Read on to learn more about how to create alt text and image descriptions. At its most basic form, alt text is a grouping of descriptive words or phrases that describe what is occurring within an image. Image titles and alt texts are both attributes in an image tag that describe the content of that image. Includes a step-by-step guide on "how to write amazing ALT text" with real life image examples. Functional images are images that are linked or initiate an action, such as submission of a form or a search query. Captions work best for: Images that require a heading to understand what the context of the image: For example, portraits of people or pictures of geographic locations may benefit from a caption to ensure everyone is aware what the image is about. Don’t neglect form buttons. Be descriptive and specific. Let's take a look at a couple examples of alt text in action: Okay alt text: Rooster, Better alt text: Rooster crowing, Best alt text: Red-crested rooster crowing, Okay alt text: man on escalator, Better alt text: man walking on escalator, Best alt text: man wearing backpack walking down escalator, Okay alt text: kw explorer, Better alt text: keyword research in Keyword Explorer, Best alt text: Moz Keyword Explorer tool for SEO keyword research, The Page Optimization section of Moz Pro highlights pages that aren't living up to full search visibility potential (and includes things like whether a page is missing alt text). Images without alt text cause problems for screen readers because there’s no way to communicate the content of the image to the user. Your ALT text should be not more than 125 words because screen reading tools stops screening when it’s exceed 125 words. Image alt attributes (often referred to incorrectly as ‘alt tags’) should specify relevant and descriptive alternative text about the purpose of an image and appear in the source of the HTML like the below example. STEP 4: ALT-TEXT. It should be brief: less than 250 characters. When explaining how to use a certain type of software, screenshots of that software are often the best way to demonstrate it. By adding alt text and image descriptions, barriers are lifted and more people can access your content. If you’re reading this article, I’m guessing you have at least some awareness of what alt text is for and how it’s used. While your first priority should be describing and providing context to the image, if it makes sense to do so, include your keyword in the alt text of at least one image on the page. The screenshot above is the first SERP Google produces for the search term, "email newsletter design." gives more details than alt text and allows someone to learn more about what is in an image that goes beyond alt text Learn why ALT text is so important for Image SEO. For example, automatic alt text once interpreted a picture of my brother standing outside as being a picture of a car. As with many website specifics, ALT tags also play a role in SEO. Google won't dock you points for poorly written alt text, but you'll be in trouble if you use your alt text as an opportunity to stuff as many relevant keywords as you can think of into it. 2. Stay up to date with the latest marketing, sales, and service tips and news. Broaden your SEO knowledge with resources for all skill levels. 3. This is less of an alt text-specific best practice and more of a general SEO-friendly web development tenet. It never hurts to double check alt text and make sure that both the computer and humans are in agreement as to what is in the picture. Marketing automation software. Alt text for galleries is entered in the “Image Title” box on Squarespace’s Edit Image popup *Note that if you don’t want this text to show as a caption in a gallery (which I wouldn’t), you’ll need to edit the gallery, click the Design tab, and disable “Show Title and Description.” Image buttons should have an alt attribute that describes the function of the button like, "search", "apply now", “sign up,” etc. In that sense, alt text offers you another opportunity to include your target keyword. Alt text gives the user the most important information while image descriptions provide further detail. Therefore, the image's alt text needs to reflect that. In that case, you may want to highlight a certain genre, like nature or landscape photography. If the content that the image conveys is presented within text in the surrounding context of the image, then an empty alt attribute may suffice. If you want to expand on the navigation, such as in this example, you can use the title attribute. Don't cram your keyword into every single image's alt text. For example, the alt text for an image of a question mark that links to a help page should be “Contact Support” rather than “question mark.” Images with complex information: If the image is a chart… If you cannot avoid images of text, its best to have the exact same text in the alt attribute. This can’t be read by a screen reader because it is a picture. How Can Alt Text Be Used and Added To Your Images? The text should explain where the link goes if the image is inside an element. See how complete and consistent your business’s location appears across the web. Alt text or alternative text is also known as "alt descriptions" or "alt attributes." Alternative text allows Google to place images in search results as well as aid in assisting visually impaired users. Along with implementing image title and file naming best practices, including alt text may also contribute to image SEO. The more images you optimize, the better your SEO strategy will be moving forward. The best format for alt text is sufficiently descriptive but doesn't contain any spammy attempts at keyword stuffing. Monitor your SEO performance and get insights to increase organic traffic. Using alt text on your images can make for a better user experience, but it may also help earn you both explicit and implicit SEO benefits. You should also avoid using images of text because images of text are not accessible by screen readers. Both should be written with the user in mind but alt text is the main source of information about what’s in the image. Alternative text, or “alt text” describes the content of images, graphs and charts. Your alt text would be something like this: “Beautiful landscape photography of a lake with mountain view.”. Don’t forget longdesc="". If an image fails to load, alt text will display in its place. It's already assumed your alt text is referring to an image, so there's no need to specify it. The filename for this image is: image src=“cookie.jpg”. Guidelines for the alt text: The text should describe the image if the image contains information. In fact, the alt text above makes it hard for Google to understand how the image relates to the rest of the webpage or article it's published on, preventing the image from ranking for the related longtail keywords that have higher levels of interest behind them. Spot opportunity in target markets with local metrics and top SERP competitors. If you're trying to rank for "Jim Halpert's impersonation of Dwight Schrute," though, you'll need to lend the search engine a helping hand. But what if your image doesn't have official context (like a place name) by which to describe it? Do not repeat the surrounding textual content as alt text or use phrases referring to images, such as, "a graphic of" or "an image of." It's a short HTML attribute that is a description of about 100 characters that you assign to the images on your web page to describe what the image is. So use relevant and short image filename for your images. One of the most important things image alt text can do for you is turn your images into hyperlinked search results -- giving your website yet another way to receive organic visitors. Notice how, in addition to the "Images" tab at the top, Google pulls in a substantial pack of clickable images to the beginning of the main results page -- before any organic text results are even visible. Yes, the image above shows a baseball field and a player hitting a baseball. Titles should add extra information that couldn’t be included in the alt text. The first step when determining appropriate alternative text for an image is to decide if the image presents content and if the image has a function. Keep in mind, however, that this alt text rule can lose its value if your alt text doesn't also consider the image's context. ALT tags help search engines associate images with a webpage's content so they can properly index it within their search results. An all-in-one SEO toolset to boost your search engine rankings. This helps me understand the use cases of the feature better and keeps my focus on the people I’m designing for. in your alt text. Alt text is just a way to describe what is going on in the image while actively increasing your ranking through smart, thoughtful placement of SEO keywords. For example, important context may be the setting, the emotions on people's faces, the colors, or the relative sizes. Alt text for images in galleries on Squarespace is generally added in the “Image Title” box. Image alt text. Consider the examples below. Written by Braden Becker Listen to the first example image below without alt text in JAWS or view the Transcript. https://www.wptasty.com/blog/how-to-craft-alt-text-for-images The most popular screen readers cut off alt text at around 125 characters, so it's advisable to keep it to that character count or less. Content editors can generally provide alt text at the same time they upload images into websites. The highlighted text shows the alt text (alt attribute) of the image at left. If you can close your eyes, have someone read the alt text to you, and imagine a reasonably accurate version of the image, you're on the right track. Don't include "image of," "picture of," etc. Quick access to whitepapers, reports, guides, webinars, and case studies. Continuing our article series on accessibility requirements, Alternative Text or Alt-Text is an area that is often misunderstood. The filename explains the topic that the image represents to the search engines. We are going to look at ways you can improve your image alt text while keeping your content search engine friendly. Understanding what makes good alt text is subtle and important. Free and premium plans, Customer service software. If you're writing about photography, for instance, photographic examples of your insight are crucial to your visitors' reading experience. Because search engines can't read text within your images, you should avoid using images in place of words. Including alt text with your images ensures all users, regardless of visual ability, can appreciate the content on your site. Keep it (relatively) short. ALT tags are used to describe the image or what the image is representing. Alt text for images in galleries on Squarespace is generally added in the “Image Title” box. There are times where using alt text or image descriptions is pointless. The first line of code actually doesn't contain any alt text at all (notice the quotes are empty), while the second example demonstrates keyword stuffing in alt text. This isn't just a stack of "pancakes" (as the first alt text example demonstrated); it's a stack of blueberry pancakes with a dusting of powdered sugar! hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(53, 'f55ac8df-26f8-41f5-b63a-fa80e97d2fec', {}); More and more, the topics that many businesses and publishers create content on require images to accompany their words. If they don't understand, or get it wrong, it's possible you could either rank for unintended keywords or miss out on ranking altogether. It should convey the purpose of the image, not describe the image. Alternative text allows Google to place images in search results as well as aid in assisting visually impaired users. In many cases, Google searchers don't want the classic blue, hyperlinked search result -- they want the image itself, embedded inside your webpage. Try to fit the image at your context of the article; Don’t use irrelevant images then you can’t able to write its proper ALT Text. But this is also a picture of Fenway Park -- and the Red Sox's #34 David Ortiz clocking one over right field. Premium plans, Connect your favorite apps to HubSpot. Here's an example: Google might see the following image and be able to decipher that it's a man wearing a tie and glasses, sitting at a desk. These are important specifics Google would need to properly index the image if it's on, say, a blog post about Boston sports. Image with text According to WCAG, images of text are not allowed. Discover and prioritize the best keywords for your site. Try it >>. ALT tags are also used for those who surf the web with images turned off or users that have text only browsers. Here are some bad and good examples of alt text based on the reason you're publishing it: The line of alt text above would normally pass as decent alt text, but given that our goal is to publish this image with an article about going to business school, we're missing out on some key word choices that could help Google associate the image with certain sections of the article. Explore using the longdesc="" tag for more complex images that require a longer description. Watch to see how your organic traffic changes among the pages that you give new alt tags. What is alt text? Lay out all the possibilities, and decide what’s most … text. If your image contains information or represents something meaningful, determine the message the image conveys and write a short, concise text … What's wrong with the line of alt text above? The same applies for any other text embedded within an image. Screen readers read alt text aloud, and browsers pages alt text when images fails to load. Using alt text to stuff keywords into fragmented sentences adds too much fluff to the image and not enough context. These work by converting on-screen content, including images, to audio. alt and title attributes of an image are commonly referred to as alt tag Missing or empty alt values create significant problems for screen reader users because functional images are essential to … If you spend time optimizing your blog or website's content, headers, subheaders, and meta descriptions for search engines, the following image should alarm you: Today, Google's search engine results pages (SERPs) deliver just as many image results as they do text-based results. Ultimately, image alt text needs to be specific but also representative of the topic of the webpage it's supporting. Alt text tells people what is in an image, such as text or basic essential details. Free and premium plans, Content management system software. Here's what that alt tag might look like in an article's source code: The most important rule of alt text? Weak ALT Text: alt=“fresh cookie”. Its original (and still primary) purpose is to describe images to visitors who are unable to see them. While search engine image recognition technology has vastly improved over the years, search crawlers still can't "see" the images on a website page like we can, so it's not wise to leave the interpretation solely in their hands. Focus on writing descriptive alt text that provides context to the image and if possible, includes your target keyword, and leave it at that. This alt text is only "okay" because it's not very descriptive. Provide alternative text, or alt text, when a screen reader needs to understand the message provided by the images on a page. However, you may have come across people using the incorrect term "alt tags" as well. Consider what is important about an image. Consider performing a basic audit of your existing content to see where you can incorporate alt text into previously untagged pictures. One of the main purposes of ALT tags is for the benefit of visually impaired users who use screen readers when browsing. The image name is just as important as Alt text and you should be using proper image filename as well. Both images above have clear context that can help us write good alt text -- one is from a HubSpot office, and the other is Fenway Park. Neither of these examples are recommended. This alt text is a better alternative because it is far more descriptive of what's in the image. The line of alt text above is almost as descriptive and specific as the good alt text from the previous example, so why doesn't it suffice for a webpage about education software? Alt text is a tenet of accessible web design. Amazing ALT Text: alt=“man sitting on chair with black Canon camera”. The following examples show multiple kinds of images, and how alt text … The 10 most valuable pieces of content we can find for SEOs. Alt text (alternative text), also known as \"alt attributes\", “alt descriptions\", or technically incorrectly as \"alt tags,” are Usually, they skip over these images, or worse, read out long and unhelpful image filenames. With the bad alt text (above) in mind, better alt text for this image might be: The line of alt text above technically follows the first rule of alt text -- be descriptive -- but it's not being descriptive in the right way. Below are some examples of functional image situations. It varies depending on your CMS, but typically, images will have a rich text module in which you can edit and optimize the images on your site. The text alternative for the image should convey the action that will be initiated (the purpose of the image) rather than a description of the image. @BradenBecker. For example, the alt text for an image of a question mark that links to a help page should be “Contact Support” rather than “question mark.” Images with complex information: If the image is a chart, diagram, or illustration, consider how to convey the information contained in the image using both the alt-text and the adjacent page text. Yes, this is an image of a stack of pancakes. Alt text can miss the mark in three different ways. Also called "alt tags" and "alt descriptions," alt text is the written copy that appears in place of an image on a webpage if the image fails to load on a user's screen. Alt text provide better image context/descriptions to search engine crawlers, helping them to index an image properly. This is where you'll need to use the topic of the article or webpage to which you're publishing the image. Whether or not you perform SEO for your business, optimizing your website's image alt text is your ticket to creating a better user experience for your visitors, no matter how they first found you. If you're creating content on a topic that requires the support of visuals, consider how your audience might prefer to find answers to their questions on that topic. Now let’s talk about some the example of it . HubSpot uses the information you provide to us to contact you about our relevant content, products, and services. One of the first steps to web and document accessibility, providing accurate and appropriate descriptions for an image, can be critical to the overall goal of ensuring that content is accessible. if an image truly doesn't convey any meaning/value and is just there for design purposes, it should live within the CSS, not HTML. When writing alt text, consider what details the author thought was most important. We're committed to your privacy. Image ALT text or (alternative text) helps your products show up in Google search results. The most common form text alternative is alt text. Describe the image as specifically as possible. Use alt="" if the image is only for decoration. For example, if your article's head keyword is "how to generate leads," you might use "lead generation" in your alt text, since "how to" might be difficult to include in image alt text naturally. Despite your best SEO efforts, you could still be missing out on another source of organic traffic: your website's images. ALT tags are also used for those who surf the web with images turned off or users that have text only browsers. Alt text is, first and foremost, designed to provide text explanations of images for users who are unable to see them. Although it's not always visible to regular visitors, alt text for images helps sea… Also called “alt tags” and “alt descriptions,” alt text is the written copy that appears in place of an image on a webpage if the image fails to load on a user’s screen. This text helps screen-reading tools describe images to visually impaired readers and allows search engines to better crawl and rank your website. If a form on your website uses an image as it’s “submit” button, give it an alt attribute. How Can Alt Text Be Used and Added To Your Images? Find out the top 6 rules for creating awesome ALT Text and improve your SEO today! Specifies an alternate text for an image. People who use screen readers are usually either completely blind o… Millions of peopleare visually-impaired, and many use screen readers to consume online content. alt text is a brief label contained in the HTML code for the image. Alt text, or alternative text, is primarily used by people who use screen readersto access websites, apps, and other software. Adding alternative text to photos is first and foremost a principle of web accessibility. Don't use images as text. It should be added to every image that conveys meaning in instructional and communications materials including Moodle sites, word processing documents, and slide presentations. Pretty Good ALT Text: alt=“Man with Canon camera”. How to Write Alt Text for Your Images. This includes screen readers and browsers that block images, but it also includes users who are sight-impaired or otherwise unable to visually identify an image. For example, for the alt text of this non-linked image you could use the words in the image itself: Pretty Good ALT Text: alt=“fresh chocolate chip cookie”. hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(53, 'b86a9513-efae-441c-8b14-17ab402495e8', {}); Originally published Sep 28, 2018 7:00:00 AM, updated September 23 2020, Image Alt Text: What It Is, How to Write It, and Why It Matters to SEO, How to Successfully Migrate a Website Without Harming SEO [Checklist], How to Prevent Redirect Chains from Destroying Your SEO, The Simplified Guide to Google's RankBrain Algorithm. For example,”Image of a smiling man” is not good alt text. This example dives even deeper into the topic of business school, and specifies that the ideal audience for this webpage is teachers. Free and premium plans, Sales CRM software. The actual image looks like this: Get the most out of Moz Pro with a free 30-minute walkthrough. How do you get in on this traffic source? This text helps… Google talks about the importance of alt text for users with screen readers in their SEO starter guide. As with alt text, an image requires a caption if it conveys important information. Continuing our article series on accessibility requirements, Alternative Text or Alt-Text is an area that is often misunderstood. Alt Text (also known as alternative text or alt attribute) is ALT text should always describe the content of the image and should repeat the text word-for-word. Alt text (alternative text), also known as "alt attributes", “alt descriptions", or technically incorrectly as "alt tags,” are used within an HTML code to describe the appearance and function of an image on a page. https://ux.shopify.com/considerations-when-writing-alt-text-a9c1985a8204 You may unsubscribe from these communications at any time. Of your existing content to see how your organic traffic surf the web image isn t... 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