How to optimize your website's images for better SEO

It is simple to concentrate on text-based features like headlines, body copy, and alt tags when it comes to search engine optimization (SEO). But keep in mind how important photos are to SEO! Image optimization can raise your website's search ranks and increase the number of relevant visitors it receives. In this article, we'll go over three stages for image optimization for your website's SEO.

Step 1: Use descriptive, relevant file names

An image's file name plays a significant role in SEO. The file name that you provide a picture when you save it becomes the name that appears by default on your website. Users and search engines will not take much notice of a file name like "IMG 1234.jpg" if you use it. On the other hand, giving your file a descriptive, pertinent file name will aid search engines in understanding the content of the image and increase your chances of appearing in search results for associated keywords.

Let's imagine, for illustration, that your website features a picture of a golden retriever. Rather than "IMG 1234.jpg," a file name like "golden-retriever-puppy.jpg" would be considerably more descriptive and pertinent. Additionally, it's a good idea to use hyphens to divide terms in your file names so that both users and search engines can more easily read and comprehend them.

It's also important to remember the common SEO mistakes that people make when applying SEO efforts to their website.

Step 2: Choose the right file format

There are numerous options for image file formats, but not all of them are equal in terms of SEO. JPEG, PNG, and GIF are the alternatives that are most SEO-friendly.

JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) is a good choice for most photographs, as it allows for high-quality images with relatively small file sizes.

Another well-liked option is PNG (Portable Network Graphics), particularly for photographs with transparent backgrounds or those requiring fine detail. PNG files frequently have bigger file sizes than JPEG files, which is a drawback.

GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) is a file format that's best suited for simple graphics with a limited number of colors, like logos or icons.

It's crucial to remember that using the incorrect file format can hurt your SEO. For instance, utilising a file format that web browsers don't typically accept, like BMP or TIFF, will make your images load slowly and degrade your search engine rankings.

Step 3: Compress your images

Larger photos may take longer to load and result in a slower page load time for your website, therefore image size is an important SEO element. Slow loading times can result in a greater bounce rate and poorer search ranks, which can be problematic for both consumers and search engines.

Final thoughts

Images are only one of the many aspects that go into optimising your website for SEO. As a starting point, make sure you're doing this, and you'll be off to a good start.