Optimizing Your Images For SEO

Dec 05, 2022

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO as it is more commonly referred to, is an ever-evolving online strategy with multiple facets. There are many approaches that you can take to achieve your SEO goals. You must use a variety of different internet marketing strategies to have the best possible chance of getting your website seen. One of those strategies is optimizing your images for SEO. Let’s talk a little about what steps you can take to make your images more attractive from an SEO point of view.

What is SEO?

We will start with a brief summary if you are unfamiliar with SEO and what it means for your website. SEO can help drive traffic to your website as part of your internet marketing efforts, thus getting you higher rankings on search engines. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. In the most basic terms, it is the process of making the pages of your website more attractive to search engines like Google to help your site appear high in the search results. 75% of internet users will never look beyond the first page of results when searching for something online. That’s why it is so important to rank as high up that first page as you can! SEO can help to achieve this when it is used as part of an overall internet marketing strategy.

Why Are Images Important?

So, what’s the big deal about images? Optimizing your images offers so many advantages that it would be unwise to turn them down! We are talking about things like faster page loading, better user experience, and let’s not forget the all-important higher search engine rankings. Did you know that our brains can process visual images up to 60,000 times faster than text? We also retain about 80% of visual information compared to just 20% of the information we read. It is easy to see why images and other visual components are a big part of your internet marketing strategy. With so much at stake, you need to choose images with care. They need to be relevant to your content, and they need to be vibrant and visually attractive. They also need to be unique. If you purchase stock images, you run the risk of your competitors using the same image. This is not good if you are trying to help your brand stand out from the crowd! Even if you have perfectly optimized your images, they won’t have the same impact as an original image. The more authentic the image is, the greater your odds of ranking higher on relevant searches. If you can’t produce your original photographs, you can still use stock imagery but should consider working with them to make them more unique with design elements.

Tips For Making Your Images SEO Friendly

  1. Choose The Correct Format - Choosing the appropriate image format for your files is essential to ensure they load quickly and don’t take up too much bandwidth. Images such as photographs should be in JPG format, while logos, icons, graphic elements, and transparent images should be in PNG format.
  2. Maximum File Size - Another significant factor for optimizing your images to use online is to keep the file size down. The trick is to get a smaller file size without losing quality. We recommend aiming for a maximum of 150KB for JPG and 100KB for PNG.
  3. Compressing Your Images - If you need to reduce the file size of your images, some simple tools can help. Photoshop has a ‘Save For Web’ option, or you can use the TinyJPG service.
  4. Responsive Image Sizes - Don’t forget that your website won’t just be viewed on a desktop or laptop computer. It must look great for visitors using mobile devices like phones and tablets.
  5. Use ALT Tags - All your images should have an ALT tag to describe them, including a relevant keyword. This helps search engines to read and understand the image correctly. It is also helpful to your visitors who need to use text-to-speech software for accessibility.

The Future is Image Centric

Images are already vital to your SEO efforts, but they are about to become even more critical. The Google algorithm is constantly changing and advancing, meaning SEO strategies must also shift to keep up. A significant shift that is taking place right now is a shift toward a more image-centric search. In the past, Google could only read alt tags. Still, with the introduction of Google Lens, entire images can be read by the search engine, and the information in them will contribute to your ranking position. This means producing unique and relevant images has become an even more critical component of your internet marketing strategy.

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To Your Best Online!

Ingrid Maddox, Internet Marketing & Strategy Consultant. bluedress INTERNET MARKETING®, an Internet Marketing Company headquartered in Knoxville, TN. Internet Marketing Developed, Implemented, and Managed to Full Circle! Organic Internet Search Engine Guru. Turn-Key Internet Optimization Programs Placing You Everywhere and Anywhere You Need to Be Online.

ingrid@bluedressinc.com

865-378-7712