Everything You Need to Know About Alt Text and How It Works

Have you ever heard about “alt text” but you are not sure what it means? Don’t worry; you are not alone. Alt text or alternative text is typically used in the web development world. It is a small yet significant piece of information that helps enhance the accessibility and search engine optimization (SEO) in almost every website. In this post, we will explain what Alt Text is, its function, how it works and why it’s essential for your website.

The meaning of ‘Alt Text’

Imagine yourself browsing the internet, and instead of the image, you see just a blank box. That can be frustrating and confusing, right? But, what happens if someone with a visual disability encountered this situation? This is where alt text comes in handy. Alt text is the text attribute that appears when the intended image isn’t visible. It provides a description of the image that assists people with disabilities to understand the context of the image.

How does an Alt Text work?

Alt text works by inserting descriptive words into an attribute that is within the image tag of a website. It’s not visible to the viewer but provides people who have visual impairments with a description of the image. The text is read by screen readers, which are software programs that read aloud the content of a website, thereby providing the user with a better experience. Additionally, the search engines spiders crawl the website and index alt text content, which can have a positive impact on search engine rankings.

The three pillars of an Alt Text

The alt text has three essential elements, commonly known as the three pillars. First of all, it should be descriptive and provide an accurate interpretation of the image. Second, it should be concise. Screen readers’ technology only reads the first 125 characters, so it’s important to keep the message short and sweet. Finally, it should include specific keywords and phrases that are relevant to the content, which helps SEO.

Why we think you should invest in an Alt Text

There are several reasons why you should invest in alt text for your website. The first reason, as we have previously mentioned, is to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. It’s also critical for search engine optimization. Search engines rank websites based on many factors, including how relevant your content is to the user’s search query. Optimizing images with alt text can boost SEO and help the website show higher in search results.

In brief

In conclusion, alt text is a crucial element that should never be overlooked when it comes to website development. Its function is to provide a description of the image for users with visual impairment or in situations where the image is not available. Alt text has three fundamental elements, which are descriptive, concise, and SEO-friendly. Investing in Alt Text improves the website’s accessibility, enhances the user experience, boosts SEO rankings, and makes your website more relevant to search engine results.

Most frequently asked questions

Q: How do I add alt text to an image?
A: You can add alt text to an image by inserting the “alt” attribute within the image tag and filling it with a short, accurate description.

Q: How long should Alt text be?
A: A concise alt text description consists of 125 characters or less.

Q: Do I need to include punctuation in Alt text?
A: Yes, you should include punctuation in Alt text to match the clarity and style of the message in the text.