Complete Guide on Image Optimization Audit for Improved SEO:
Image optimization is a necessary part of website optimization, and it incorporates several technical elements that might affect where your website is ranked in search engines. An audit of your website’s image optimization is an efficient technique to find any problems that may be influencing the visibility of your site in search engine results pages and to find solutions to such problems (SERPs). In this piece, we will go through how to do an image optimization audit that can assist in improving the search engine optimization of your website.
Why Is Image Optimization Important?
Every website needs images to improve the user experience. They may also delay your website’s load time, which may hurt your SEO efforts. Results may suffer. Search engines can’t “see” photos as people can, therefore optimizing them helps them interpret them. Image keywords and alt text may do this.
How to Perform an Image Optimization Audit
Review Image File Names:
Optimizing picture quality begins with the file names. Make sure the titles of your images are informative and include keywords that describe the content of the picture. Files saved using the default names “IMG 0001” or “DSC 1234” will hurt your SEO rankings and should be avoided.
Check Image Size
The size of your images can significantly impact your website’s loading speed. Large images take longer to load, which can negatively affect your website’s user experience and SEO. Use a jpeg compressor tool to reduce the file size of your images without sacrificing quality. Aim for an image size of 100KB or less.
Review Image Alt Tags
Alt tags are descriptions of your images that appear if the image fails to load or if a visually impaired user is accessing your website using a screen reader. Ensure that all images have an alt tag that describes the content of the image accurately. This can help search engines understand the image and improve your website’s accessibility.
Check Image Format
The image format that you choose to use for your website may also affect how long it takes for the page to completely load. JPEG is the most used kind of picture format, and it’s a good choice for pictures and other images that have a lot of different colors because of the way it handles transparency. Images saved as PNG are the preferred format for use with graphics and photographs that have transparency. On the other hand, pictures saved as SVG are the superior choice for use with logos and icons.
Check Image Placement
Website SEO may also be affected by where your photographs are placed. Make sure photos are not too huge to the point where they force the text down the page. However, search engines can’t understand text in photos, so don’t use them instead of text.
Use Structured Data
Using structured data may help search engines better understand the text and images on your website. Use schema markup to specify the context of your photos and credit the photographer or any relevant parties.
Conclusion
Improving your website’s search engine rankings calls for measures like auditing your image optimization. Images that have been optimized for online usage load faster, provide a better user experience, and aid in search engine indexing. If you follow the advice in this article, you’ll be able to do a thorough audit of your website’s image optimization, which in turn should boost your site’s search engine ranks.