SEO for Sex Bloggers: Image Best Practices

So, do as I say, not as I do, because I’m notoriously bad at optimizing my images. But they’re important! Especially when it comes to sex toys, people are always searching for what the toy looks like in order to determine their interest in purchasing! Having properly optimized images can increase your image’s visibility in Google Image Search, which can lead to more traffic.

Alt Text

Alt text, or alternate text, is what a browser will display if an image cannot be shown. It will also tell search engine crawlers (that cannot interpret information from images) what the image is supposed to be. If alt text is not present, an empty icon or broken graphic will be displayed. Avoid those, they are not helpful or useful. Alt text is also important for users who use screen readers! Include alt text if you can.

In terms of search importance, instead of adding keywords in the image alt text, adding a brief but complete description will allow users to more easily discover what they’re searching for.

Image Metadata 

Just like PDFs, videos, and HTML pages, images can be marked up with metadata! This can help improve the chances of appearing in search results. With a photo editor (such as Adobe Photoshop) you should be able to access metadata via “File Information.”

File > File info > Description

Optimize the following fields:

• Document Title (descriptive of the image with a keyword if possible)
• Author (brand name)
• Description
• Keywords

Tips and stuff!

• Consider adding more description of the actual product in order to help users with browsers that do not display images, or users who use screen readers.
• If you can, be sure to include the product name in the description.
• Filenames are given directly to Google’s crawler, and are another place to insert descriptive, appropriate keywords, even if users don’t typically see them.
• Host your own image if you can!
• Use hyphens instead of underscores for spaces between words.

Short post this week, but as always, I’m here or on Twitter (@_aceinthehole) to answer questions!