In Part 1 we discussed use and optimization of Meta Tags , in Part 2 proper use and optimization of Header Tags and today we’ll take a look at using Alt Tags in images.

Alt Tag Attribute

The ALT text is actually meant to provide alternative or substitute text, primarily for use when the image is not being displayed in browsers.

Alt text is the line of text you see pop up when you place your cursor over an image. It also displays a text representation of the image when the user has images turned off in their browser.

The most common mistake (besides not using it at all) is to provide a description of the image in alt tag, it is highly recommended that you utilize this area as it is required under accessibility laws.

Now since it is indexed by the search engines, the alt text attribute can help your SEO but should not to be stuffed with keywords or phrases. The alt text should reflect the content of the image that is again relevant to the page content.

For Example if you have a page that is about Motorola RAZR V3, you could and should add image of the phone and use “Motorola RAZR V3″ Alt text for that image as this will not only enhance your reader’s visit to the page but also add little more “weight” and relevancy to the page for that keyword.

Example:
<img src=”images/motorola.gif”
alt=”Motorola RAZR V3″ />

If it is a graphic header, then your alt attribute should mirror the text in the graphic header.

In general alt text values should not exceed 80 characters in length. If more than 70-80 characters are required one should use the longdesc attribute as an alternative to alt text.

Implementing a long description link usually requires an additional page which contains a text alternative of the graphical content and the use of the <longdesc> attribute within the <img> tag.

Example:
<img src=”images/motorola.gif”
alt=”Motorola RAZR V3″
longdesc=”motorola-v3.html” />

In this example you would need to create motorola-v3.html page with long description.

Again just make sure your Alt Attribute is relevant to the content of that image.

Quick References:

• Onpage Optimization Factors
• Analyzing Keywords and Phrases
• Keyword Suggestion Tool
• Top Paying Adsense Keywords
• W3C - Use the alt attribute
• W3C WCAG - 7.1 Short text equivalents for images (”alt-text”)
• W3C WCAG - 7.2 Long description of images