Visual elements on websites are important as they draw the attention of those visiting a website. They also trigger emotions and we also remember visual elements more easily than blocks of text. With this in mind, we can agree that you can’t have a website without any images, because it would be just plain and boring. So it’s good to know the importance of images for your website and how they can be optimised for better search engine optimisation results

Choose the right image format

Images have to be uploaded in the right image format. This isn’t something you can freely choose if you want to have an optimised and fast website. There are two most commonly used image formats, the jpeg and gif.

Gif is used for simple images while jpeg is used for richer images. The choice depends largely on the purpose of the image and the intended visual appeal. You can also use png and WebP image formats.

Ensure the size is appropriate

Since the website load time is used to rank websites, you need to be aware that images can slow down your load time. If the images take ages to load, the website will take ages to load and the visitors will probably lose their patience and leave your website. To avoid this you need to ensure the images are in the correct size.

Compress where necessary

If you need to ensure the images are the correct size, you might need to compress them. There are different plugins you can use to compress images before you even upload them to your website. By compressing your images, you’ll speed up your website as it’s been stated that around 21% of a website’s weight is assigned to images. So, compress where necessary to ensure your website load speed is optimal and recommended.

Use unique images

Now, you’ve probably seen the same set of images all over the web space. That’s because websites use generic stock images. Thousands of other websites have probably used the same images so far which makes their visual appeal far from unique. The best strategy is to create unique images, whether to hire stock models and take their photos for this purpose only. You can also take unique photos of your employees and use them on your website.

Use keyword-rich file names

Images can also be optimised with the relevant keywords which will help your overall SEO strategy. You can use relevant keywords in image descriptions. But, there’s a catch. If you overdo it, it might be perceived as spammy so it’s best to invite a professional to assist you on this topic.

If your business is Australia based, you’re aware of the high competition so you’ll do what it takes to have an SEO-friendly website. That’s why people team up with SEO Sydney or any other agency near them. A team of SEO experts will help to optimise images and other areas which might need improvement.

Use alt text

Alt text is short of alternative text and it’s used to describe what the image is about if for some reason the image can’t be loaded. Most importantly, alt text is necessary for google crawlers because they read the alt text to understand what the image is about.

Ensure images are mobile friendly

Images have to be equally responsive meaning that the images have to load perfectly on the desktop version of the website and the mobile version. It’s of utmost importance that your website is generally mobile-friendly because the majority of searches come from a mobile device. This only means that your website visitors will visit your website through their phones. Just ensure your website is equally responsive in its mobile version.

Add image captions

Use appropriate image captions to add to the overall visual appeal of the website. Image caption will be written under the image and this caption should be as descriptive as possible. Image captions will have an effect on user experience.

Image sitemap

By adding images to your sitemap, you’ll do all that you can to make it easier for google crawlers to access your website and read all the information the right way. You also want to ensure that your image does show up in search results, so this is one more reason to do the work and create an image sitemap.

When your web pages are indexed and discoverable through search, your website will get more visitors. The entire purpose of SEO is to help your website rank better and get more traffic. If this is one more step that will get your website closer to its goal, then you should do it.

Don’t forget about the structured data

Structured data isn’t something you should forget about. It’s equally important as your image optimization tactics. Structured data is imperative if you want Google to understand your website the right way. This step will help your website reach greater visibility and you also increase its chances of appearing in search results.

Test your website speed

After you implement all of these changes and also work on other aspects of your search engine optimisation strategy, it would be wise to monitor your website speed. You need to test your website regularly by checking up on Google PageSpeed Insights. If it’s not as fast as you want it to be, keep on improving it. Also, if it slows down, you can start analyzing it to uncover the issue.

The last step we would add to this list is to check your SEO score to learn about the results of all your efforts. Doing all this work without looking at the data and monitoring the data as time goes by would be like you didn’t care about the results. These insights will also help you to further optimise your strategy and get better results. All that we’ve covered in this article will be useful if you plan on adding pages to your website. You’ll know how to optimise images early on and ensure that your website is fast, reliable and user-friendly.