----------------------------------------------------------------- I-Search Discussion List "Social Search Marketing and Technology" ----------------------------------------------------------------- Moderator: Published by: Disa Johnson Search Return http://www.searchreturn.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- May 10, 2007 I-Search Issue #129 ----------------------------------------------------------------- SEND POSTS: ----------------------------------------------------------------- Refer a friend: http://www.searchreturn.com/subscribe.shtml ----------------------------------------------------------------- .....IN THIS DIGEST..... // -- SEARCHRETURN TIPS -- // "Alt Text" ~ I-Search ----------------------------------------------------------------- // -- SEARCHRETURN TIPS -- // ----------------------------------------------------------------- ==> Alt Text SearchReturn Tip: Many SEOs have stuffed page keywords in areas that don't fundamentally affect the way a page appears. They do this in an attempt to get rankings with on page criteria. Meta Keywords is one place where keywords are supposed to appear and they don't affect the way a page displays. We've covered some key thinking in a previous issue about how to craft the Meta Keywords container. Alt text, on the other hand, is an attribute of the image container and it deserves specific treatment. The text does appear, typically with a mouse hover and tooltip textarea. The visually impaired utilize software known as "screen readers" that essentially read aloud highlighted page text or the contents of a Web page - including image Alt attributes. Few things trigger emotions more than stuffed Alt text, particularly with the visually impaired. Keyword repetitions are read aloud over and over and are difficult to skip to make navigation a pure nightmare on SEO pages. Bear in mind this is a large audience of avid Web users that include an elderly population and all otherwise visually impaired users. Alt text must depict the image that it applies to and that can in fact include the use of a keyword where it makes sense. This is the seed of the problem when overzealous SEO practitioners took the idea too far until they disconnected Alt text from its natural purpose and supplied keyword lists instead of a proper descriptor. What makes Alt text increasingly important is that XHTML now requires the use of it for all your image media. Your page code will not validate as XHTML without Alt text for all images. You can supply it empty if you want for those images that are used as spacers (or other non descript images), but you must at least do so in order to validate your XHTML document. The consequences of not depicting images properly, or neglecting Alt text altogether can lead to failure to comply by standards of design (such as XHTML), or government body certification, and can even lead to possible lawsuits such as that which Target experienced recently. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-10-25-blind_x.htm The greatest part about paying attention to Alt text is that it is perfectly appropriate to supply a keyword that depicts the image properly - and you actually have to, so go ahead. Just avoid stuffing. Images that link to destination pages can provide you with opportunities to get creative with keyword usage. Keyword use in Alt text is not going to get you a number one ranking but it benefits your visually impaired users. Keep your focus on the visually impaired when authoring your Alt text and you will have the right incentive to write well. Search engines are paying attention too, and you can appear in specialized search engines including Google's experimental Accessible Web Search. Assume that good Alt text descriptors help your rankings, and stuffed ones hurt you pretty bad. http://labs.google.com/accessible/ ----------------------------------------------------------------- Stay Tuned. Got feedback?: http://www.searchreturn.com/feedback.shtml Archives: http://www.searchreturn.com/digest-archive.shtml Alternate formats: http://www.searchreturn.com/info-formats.shtml Manage Subscriptions: http://www.searchreturn.com/help/manage-subs.shtml Problems unsubscribing? Contact the postmaster: mailto:postmaster@searchreturn.com Information on how to sponsor this publication: http://www.searchreturn.com/help/advertise.shtml Published by SearchReturn http://www.searchreturn.com Website Membership: http://www.searchreturn.com/register.shtml The contents of the digest do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SearchReturn or Disa Johnson. SearchReturn and Disa Johnson make no warranties, either expressed or implied, about the truth or accuracy of the contents of the SearchReturn Digest. Copyright 2007 Disa Johnson. All Rights Reserved. -----------------------------------------------------------------