In today’s digital landscape, images do more than just add visual appeal, they communicate ideas, evoke emotions, and enhance user experience. However, many website owners and content creators overlook a critical aspect beneath the images: image alt text.
What is Alt Text?
Alt text, or alternative text, is a textual description attached to an image on a webpage. It is designed to describe the appearance and function of the image in context.
The purposes of alt text include:
- Accessibility: It ensures that visually impaired users who rely on screen readers can access the image’s information.
- SEO (Search Engine Optimization): Alt text helps search engines index and understand the image, which contributes to a better search ranking.
- Fallback Option: If an image fails to load due to slow internet connections or other technical issues, the alt text is displayed in its place, ensuring that the user still gets the context.
Why is Alt Text Important?
Alt text plays a crucial role for multiple reasons:
1. Web Accessibility
In an age where inclusivity is becoming more prioritized, making your website accessible to all users is essential. Visually impaired users use screen readers to browse the web, and without alt text, these users would miss out on the vital content images offer. Alt text enables screen readers to translate the image into meaningful descriptions, ensuring that users with disabilities have the same access to content as sighted users.
2. SEO Enhancement
Google and other search engines cannot “see” images in the traditional sense. They rely on alt text to understand what the image is about. Well-written alt text helps search engines comprehend the image content, improving your site’s chances of ranking higher in search results, particularly in image searches. In a world where SEO is a primary driver of traffic, optimizing your images with alt text is a valuable strategy.
3. Improved User Experience
Sometimes, images may not load properly due to poor internet connections or technical glitches. In these instances, the alt text is displayed in place of the image. This ensures that even when images are unavailable, users can still understand what was meant to be there. As a result, the overall user experience improves, contributing to better site retention and lower bounce rates.
4. Regulatory Compliance
In some regions, laws and regulations like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) mandate that websites be accessible. Adding alt text helps your website meet these legal standards, ensuring compliance with accessibility regulations and avoiding potential penalties or lawsuits.
How to Add Alt Text?
Adding alt text is a simple process, whether you’re using a content management system (CMS) or coding directly into HTML. Here’s how you can add alt text across different platforms:
1. Content Management Systems (CMS)
Platforms like WordPress, Shopify, and Wix make it easy to add alt text to images. When you upload an image into the CMS, you’ll find a designated field labeled “Alt Text” or “Alternative Text.” In this field, enter your descriptive alt text. Once done, the alt text is automatically added to your image and is accessible to both search engines and screen readers.
2. Image Management and Bulk Editing Tools
If you manage a large volume of images on your website, tools like SEMrush, Moz, or plugins like Yoast SEO and All in One SEO help in batch-editing and optimizing alt text. These tools provide recommendations based on SEO guidelines, making it easier to manage alt text for multiple images efficiently.
Alt Text Examples
Let’s examine a few examples of alt text to highlight the difference between generic and optimized descriptions.
Example 1
- Image Description: A slice of layered cake with fruit topping sits on a glass pedestal, with two strawberries placed near the pedestal.
- Generic Alt Text: “Layered cake”
While technically accurate, this alt text lacks detail and doesn’t capture the full content of the image.
- Optimized Alt Text: “A slice of layered cake with fruit topping sits on a glass pedestal, with two strawberries placed near the pedestal”
This alt text includes key details about the image (the layered cake and the sweet strawberries), providing a more complete description for screen readers and search engines alike. It also enhances the image’s relevance to users.
Example 2
- Image Description: “A woman holding a cup of coffee and smiling while standing by a window with rain outside”.
- Generic Alt Text: “Woman drinking coffee”.
This alt text is too generic and doesn’t provide enough detail to help either users or search engines understand the image.
- Optimized Alt Text: “Woman holding a cup of coffee and smiling, standing by a rainy window”.
This alt text paints a clearer picture by providing additional context, such as the environment (rainy window) and what the woman is doing (holding coffee, not just drinking it). It’s descriptive yet concise, improving both accessibility and SEO.
Example 3
- Image Description: A young girl with blonde hair beams with joy while holding freshly picked flowers in a sunlit daisy field.
- Generic Alt Text: “A young girl”
This description is too vague and does not provide any information about the person’s activity, appearance, or setting.
- Optimized Alt Text: “A joyful girl with a white dress, and blonde hair beams while holding freshly picked daisies in a sunlit meadow. Her sparkling eyes and radiant smile reflect the warmth of the golden hour light.”
This description includes details about the girl’s appearance, clothing, and the context of the image, offering a richer understanding for users and search engines.
Best Practices for Writing Alt Text
Writing effective alt text may seem straightforward, but there are several best practices to follow to ensure it is both user-friendly and SEO-optimized. Here’s what you need to keep in mind:
1. Be Descriptive and Specific
Alt text should describe the content and function of the image. Avoid vague descriptions like “Image1” or “photo” and be as specific as possible. Instead of simply stating “Man,” write “Man riding a bicycle through a busy city street during rush hour.” This ensures that your alt text adds value and context.
2. Keep It Concise
While alt text should be descriptive, it should also be concise. Aim for around 125 characters or fewer. This allows screen readers to process the information efficiently and avoids overloading search engines with excessive text.
3. Use Keywords Naturally
Incorporating relevant keywords into your alt text can help improve SEO, but avoid keyword stuffing. Your alt text should read naturally and provide a genuine description of the image. For example, if your image is of a cake, and your keyword is “chocolate cake recipe,” your alt text could be “Rich chocolate cake with frosting, baked as part of a delicious chocolate cake recipe.”
4. Avoid Redundant Phrases
Don’t start your alt text with phrases like “Image of…” or “Picture of…” as they are unnecessary. The alt text should jump straight to describing the content of the image, as users and search engines already know it’s an image.
5. Match Alt Text to Context
Ensure the alt text aligns with the surrounding content. For example, if the article is about eco-friendly travel tips, and you have an image of a cyclist, your alt text could be “Cyclist riding a bike in a city park as part of an eco-friendly travel initiative.” This helps to reinforce the topic of the page, improving both user understanding and SEO.
6. Include Functionality for Interactive Images
If the image is interactive (like a button or a link), your alt text should describe its function rather than its appearance. For example, if the image is a “search” icon, the alt text should read “Search icon” or “Search button” rather than “Magnifying glass.”
Conclusion
Alt text is a game-changer for making websites accessible, user-friendly, and SEO-savvy. By adding thoughtful, descriptive alt text to every image, you not only enhance accessibility for visually impaired users but also boost your site’s search engine rankings. Embracing the best practices for high-quality alt text ensures your website stands out, delivers a superior user experience, and gains a competitive edge. Whether you’re an experienced web designer or new to the field, mastering alt text is key to crafting a more inclusive and optimized online presence.