Visual SEO: Why Optimizing Images and Videos is Key to Ranking Higher

Use Descriptive Image Names and Alt Text

Refrain from using default file names, and instead replace them with clear, descriptive text that shows what the image contains. An image not only helps users recognize what it represents, but it is just as important that search engines are able to understand its content clearly.

Likewise, your alt text should offer relevant context and a short description of the image, replacing it whenever your images fail to render.

Tap Into Social Media Platforms

Build on the vast reach of image sharing platforms such as Instagram and Pinterest to strategically publish and amplify your visual content. Incorporate relevant keywords into your captions to provide contextual direction to search algorithms, and use hashtags to serve as content signals.

Compress Your Image Files

Reducing the file size of images speeds up page loading, as large files are a key reason websites slow down and search engines consistently downrank slow pages. This is equally significant for users, as pages hampered by large image files that reduce loading speed risk losing their rankings due to the poor browsing experience they create. Some preferred formats are WebP, JPEG 2000, AVIF.

Position Your Images for Context

Always put your images beside the text or content they correspond to, as doing so enables search engines to index your pages with greater accuracy and ties your visual content to the meaning of the page.

Optimize for Visual Search Tools

Given that Google Lens and Pinterest are popular tools for visual searching, you should optimize your content for them by presenting your subject clearly against an uncluttered background that makes it immediately recognizable.