Alt text, also known as alternative text or alt attributes, is a written description of an online image that provides an alternative when the image is inaccessible to the user. Alt text is used to describe the appearance or function of an image on a page and is read aloud by screen readers used by visually impaired users, displays in place of the image when it cannot be loaded, and is indexed by search engines. Alt text is added to the HTML code of an image using the alt attribute. Alt text is used to increase accessibility and user-friendliness, including for blind internet users who rely on special software for web browsing. Alt text is also used to make images more machine-readable, which improves search engine optimization (SEO) .
Alt text is particularly helpful for image SEO, as it can help images rank high in Google Images and other image results, driving valuable traffic to a website. Alt text should be added to all non-decorative images, kept short and descriptive, and not include "image of" or "photo of". Alt text should be used to convey the meaning and intent of the image, rather than being a literal description of the image itself. Alt text should be written to describe the images content and purpose, and not just its appearance.
Good alt text should be written to describe the images content and purpose, and not just its appearance. Alt text should be added to the right kinds of images, and not written for purely decorative images. Alt text should be kept short and descriptive, like a tweet. Alt text should not be used to stuff keywords, but rather to describe the image and, if possible, include a keyword or keyword phrase that is being targeted.
In summary, alt text is a written description of an online image that provides an alternative when the image is inaccessible to the user. Alt text is used to increase accessibility and user-friendliness, make images more machine-readable, and improve search engine optimization. Good alt text should be written to describe the images content and purpose, kept short and descriptive, and not used to stuff keywords.
