Times have changed since the era of dial-up Internet, when users had to wait minutes for a single images to load. Today, we can enjoy fast Internet access-even on our mobile devices.But make no mistake, image optimization for users and search engines is just as important as it ever was, if mot more so.
1.Use the right image- Finding and using the right type of image for your website is an essential step towards success.A great place to start is good old Flickr.com.
2.Choose the right file format- After you have choose the right image, you need to decide which file
format is optimal for your needs.We have to choose from three commonly used raster image formats:
JPEG
GIF
PNG
3.Optimize your images for the web- When optimizing images for the web, your goal is to reduce the file size as much as possible, without sacrificing too much in term of image quality.
4.Use informative file names- For images download from your camera, give them a new names that’s descriptive, making it easier for search engines to find them.
5.Pay attention to alt text– Alt text(short for “alternative text”) is used highlight the identity of an image when you hover over it with your mouse cursor.
6.Separate your thumbnails from main pictures- Ideally, your thmbnails should be as small as possible
to minimize page load time.That means you need to resize them and use the appropriate level of compression.
7.Create image sitemaps- Google encourages you to use image sitemaps to give their search engines more
information about the images available on your website.
8. Don’t rely on third- party image hosting- Image hosting services like Imgur and Post image allow you to load upload images onto their servers, which is great for saving some space and lessening the overall bandwidth your site consumes.
9.Integrate social Media- Social Media plays an important role in your overall SEO and customer acquisition strategy. The easiest way to integrate your images into social media platforms is to add social media sharing buttons is to add social media sharing buttons to your website.
10.When in doubt, consult Google’s Webmaster Guidelines- Google has prepared a set of image publishing
guidelines to help you optimize your site for their search engines and your visitor as part of their
Webmaster Guidelines.
