(09) Image Alt & Filename
Let's delve into the topic of images, including file names and image alt tags. Search engines struggle to understand images, but there are some advanced techniques like Google image reverse search that I find fascinating, even though I don't fully comprehend how they work. From an SEO perspective, it's important to make smart decisions about our images, including their file names and descriptions, to help search engines understand our content.
Let me give you two extreme examples to illustrate what not to do. On one end, there are under-optimized images with generic file names like "homepage-graphics-6.png." These names provide no useful information to search engines or users. On the other end, there are over-optimized images with excessively long and keyword-stuffed file names like "buy Nike shoes online, shoes Nike buys online, buy Nike shoes discount promo code, nikeshoesonline.jpg." This approach is absolutely ridiculous and should be avoided.
Instead, the key is to be reasonable when naming and describing images. Use descriptive file names that accurately represent the content of the image. Similarly, provide a clear and concise description in the alt text. If possible, include your target keyword in the alt text, or use a synonym or related keyword. It's also important to consider accessibility for blind and visually impaired users who rely on special browsers that read images. The alt tag is what these users hear, so it should provide a reasonable description of the image.
It's worth noting that over-optimizing image alt tags is not likely to have a significant impact on overall optimization. However, it is still a good practice to ensure accessibility and provide helpful information to search engines.