Have you ever heard of SEO for images? Search is not just about words anymore. Over 20% of all U.S. web searches happen on Google images. Besides good information, users are looking for good visuals too – and Google knows this. 

Image SEO is an area you must not neglect, especially if you’re running an e-commerce platform. Some users search for your product’s images on the internet, and optimizing them with relevant keywords can capitalize on online impressions and traffic. Image optimization creates a better user experience, faster page load times, and additional ranking opportunities. In this write-up, we will highlight tips for optimizing images for visual search.

No. 1 – Choose the right format. 

Before you start adding lots of images to your website, you need to choose the right format for your image. The most common formats are PNG, JPEG, and WebP. Choosing the right format will help with smaller file sizes, faster downloads, and crisper graphics. PNG is broadly chosen for better quality images, especially creative graphics. JPEG is best for photography, and it allows you to adjust the quality level. WebP is a modern image format that provides superior lossless and lossy compression for images on the web. 

No. 2 -Avoid Heavy HD Photos 

It is a best practice to compress your images before publishing. Large file images on your website add extra weight to pages and affect the loading speed. According to HTTP Archive, images make up on average 21% of a total webpage’s weight. This added load degrades the performance of a website and affects its rankings on Google SERP pages. Using Photoshop or a dedicated plug-in for compressing your images will not only reduce the size of a file but will also improve SEO and page load time.

No. 3 – Find related keywords. 

Image SEO starts with the file name. Keyword research is important to make your image meaningful and allows it to be found more easily by search engines. A descriptive file name would be much more useful than DSC73635.jpg. Along with the file name, every image has a keyword and an alt tag. These keywords are used by search engines and help index and rank your file better. The best alt tag descriptions are short and include relevant keywords.

Bear in mind that when you select keywords, you need to analyze the key traits of images as well. For example – let’s say you sell “shirts.” Now the key traits would be – material (i.e., cotton or woolen), full-sleeves or half-sleeves, plain or printed, etc. On the basis of key traits, you can choose keywords accordingly. From what we have observed, long-tail keywords work best for image SEO. They extend your focus keyword and bring in more traffic.

No. 4 – Optimize titles and descriptions.

Search engines rely on relevant, descriptive titles and descriptions to deliver quality search results. When thinking of a good, descriptive title, a good place to start is to think of the 5 w’s- who, what, where, when, & why. Once you have shortlisted the relevant keywords, it’s time to implement them into the image title and meta description. Keywords in the title & description describe the graphic and are important in ensuring that your content is more accessible to all users. Try to keep titles concise and literal while descriptions can include broader concepts and ideas.

No. 5 Create a dedicated sitemap for images.

Google gives emphasis to the sitemap for crawling and ranking purposes. A sitemap contains a map of your entire content. Adding images to a sitemap gives Google image extensions to discover images that it might not be able to find.  In other words, it enables the search engine to crawl all the pages of your site. This allows Google to crawl & index all your images for better image SEO.

Eye-catching visuals make the content more interesting and play a crucial role in user engagement. Optimized images contribute to good user experience, SEO, and higher conversions. By combining high-quality content and properly optimizing it, you will benefit from search working for you.