Image ALT Attribute
-
Hi,
Got a message from the On-Page Optimizer to update the ALT Attribute in an image. Does that mean just rename the image and re-upload it on to the site?
Thanks!
-
Hi Heather,
Thanks for the reply. The site uses FCK Editor + Smarty + PHP. It's super easy to use when you are uploading content, but I think it might be very poorly set up for SEO.
On the FCK Editor there is a SOURCE button that shows the HTML. I'm not sure, but that MAY be the only place to put in the meta descriptions and ALT Attributes.
It's unfortunately very confusing!
-
Just to add to this:
Adding an ALT attribute (alternative text) to all of your images is a usability best practice and can also help with your SEO efforts.
Here's a (fairly old) video from Matt Cutts, head of Google's web spam team, that highlights the importance of not ignoring ALT attributes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NbuDpB_BTc
And here's an article from Rand Fishkin that briefly touches on the topic:
http://www.seomoz.org/blog/perfecting-keyword-targeting-on-page-optimization
Specifically:
"Alt Attribute - Surprisingly, the alt attribute, long thought to carry little SEO weight, was shown to have quite a robust correlation with high rankings in our studies. Thus, we strongly advise the use of a graphic image/photo/illustration on important keyword-targeted pages with the term/phrase employed in the alt attribute of the _img _tag."
-
Could you tell us what CMS you're using and perhaps your site URL so we can take a look at the code.
The ALT attribute has to be added into the HTML and cannot to added to an image before upload, but there should be an option in your CMS to add this. If there isn't, you need a new CMS!
-
When you upload your image does the CMS not ask for a test description of the image? What CMS is it?
You can't do anything to the image files itself in order to do this. You could rename the image so that it has a meaningful filename which may help, but it still won't provide an ALT atribute.
-
Hi Guys,
Thanks for the detailed replies. On my CMS I can't really edit the image. Is it possible to edit the image before I upload it? That way the information I'm trying to include will be added.
Thanks!
-
The ALT attribute is part of the HTML code used to include the image on your page. It should look something like this:
The ALT attribute is displayed when the browser can't display your image (and used by screen readers).
The reason this is important for SEO is that it can help provide search engines with a clue as to what the image is about (and if you can use keywords that you're tying to get your page to rank for it should also help overall page relevancy). The text surrounding the image will also be used by search engines to provide more information for what the image is about.
Hope this helps.
-
Hi,
No it means that in your HTML-tag you should have an ALT attribute.
Like so:
-Rasmus
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Image scale Error On page seo
I Have an Image Scale Error in Gtmetrix how to solve it which is the best way to solve it I tried many ways but it's not working.
On-Page Optimization | | AlexSmithh0 -
Is using a H1 tag in a logo image bad for SEO?
We have brand logos on certain pages that have H1 tags in them - the H1 text being the brand's name, as this is what we'd want the title of the page to be. The logos are at the top of the page instead of a written title. But is this the best option for SEO? Do search engines value H1 tags in images as highly as a standard H1 tag?Would it be better for SEO to add an alt tag to the logo and add a separate H1 tag on the page that's also the name of the brand?
On-Page Optimization | | DVLighting0 -
SEO Implications of using Images for Article Titles
Hi guys! New to Moz Pro. I just recently completed an online course with Moz... I have a client who is writing some new content for their site, and we are approaching it with SEO in mind. I was wondering about using an image with text on it as the article title, instead of an actual "text on the page" title. Wondering if that's going to "cost" us anything, SEO wise. I guess we could use alt-text/title/description fields to make sure the keywords are crawlable for our article title but do they have less "weight" than a standard title? How does that work? Hope my question makes sense. Article header attached mB0PXsA.jpg
On-Page Optimization | | JakeWarren1 -
Images, using a lightbox would it go against adsense TOS?
Something I have been trying to figure out. On my website each member can have up to 10 images. When viewing a profile you can select each different photo and we currently use javascript to display this in a small box so the page does not re-load. I am curious for ideas, would we be better off having the images load on a different page? Giving more pages per visit in GA or would a lightbox type pop up be optimal. My concern is that the lightbox (similar to how Facebook displays images) would be a violation of google adsense TOS. I tried to talk with a help desk member from google regarding this but I am not even sure they could speak english to understand what I was saying. What do you guys think? When it comes to handling groups of images how would you best display them for user happiness and search engine optimisation?
On-Page Optimization | | Burto0 -
Alt and title tags on images
For SEO, are alt and title tags still worth the effort? Or have they gone the way of meta keywords? I can see having alt tags for visually impaired reasons, but at this point is there any SEO reason to use them?
On-Page Optimization | | CompucastWeb0 -
Title Attribute Length + Use
Hi, Is there an optimum character limit for attribute titles like there is for meta titles? On my ecommerce site I am adding about 280 characters product category page headers to succinctly describe what the page is such as in the example below; MENS BRIEFS + TANGAS We stock a range of mens briefs from leading designer brands that offer popular cuts and fabrics such as mens cotton briefs. You will also discover styles that are a little more risqué for those looking for something more daring in sexy mens briefs and tangas. I have added the following [title attribute] to this header text (MENS BRIEFS + TANGAS)so it displays the following title attribute text when you hover over it. My intention behind this is so that it enables me to provide visitors with access (via assistive reading software or hovering their cursor over the header text) to a bit more information, which they my find useful [title attribute text] - Mens briefs and tangas. These are possibly the most common and long established style of mens underwear, yet they still come in a variety of cuts and styles. The common feature amongst all men’s briefs is that they have a full rear panel that partly or entirely covers the bottom. They will have cut away legs, a pouch at the front and are supported with an elasticated waistband. Briefs and tangas can vary in the amount coverage in the side panels around the hips and top of the legs and the rear. The more revealing and skimpier tanga style usually consists of only a pouch at the front that is supported with an elasticated waistband and a minimalist rear, with no side panels that exposes the hips.[title attribute text] Is this too much? Can search engines penalise me for it? Am I using/misusing title attributes? Thanks
On-Page Optimization | | UnderMe0 -
Images being ranked
I have a client who is concerned about the performance of his images ranking on Google Images. I have taken a look at the obvious things like - alt tags, title tags , file names. I am not sure why he is struggling quite so much to get his images ranked well as the sites he is competing against and who are already ranking are a very poor quality. This is his site - http://www.ukweddingfavours.co.uk Would really appreciate your feedback and I can dish out some good answers.
On-Page Optimization | | onlinemediadirect0 -
Optimisation for Google Images
What techniques do you use for the optimisation of images on Google. Alt tag , image title Surrounding text Anyone tested actual linking to the image url and not the page url. I have achieved hundreds of top listed images but when it gets competitive what is the most useful technique you have used. Thanks
On-Page Optimization | | onlinemediadirect0